Pat Tillman | |||||||||
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 Tillman in 2003 as a specialist | |||||||||
| Birth name | Patrick Daniel Tillman Jr. | ||||||||
| Nickname(s) | "Pat" | ||||||||
| Born | November 6, 1976 Fremont, California, U.S. | ||||||||
| Died | April 22, 2004 (aged 27) Spera, Afghanistan | ||||||||
| Allegiance | United States | ||||||||
| Service/ | United States Army | ||||||||
| Years of service | 2002–2004 | ||||||||
| Rank | Corporal (posthumous) | ||||||||
| Unit | 2nd Ranger Battalion 75th Ranger Regiment | ||||||||
| Battles/wars | Iraq War War in Afghanistan † | ||||||||
| Awards | Silver Star Purple Heart Meritorious Service Medal | ||||||||
| Spouse(s) | Marie Ugenti | ||||||||
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American football career | |||||||||
| No. 40 | |||||||||
| Position: | Safety | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Height: | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 202 lb (92 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Leland (San Jose, California) | ||||||||
| College: | Arizona State (1994–1997) | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 1998 / Round: 7 / Pick: 226 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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| Player stats at PFR | |||||||||
Patrick Daniel Tillman Jr. (November 6, 1976 – April 22, 2004) was an American professional football player for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL) who left his sports career and enlisted in the United States Army in May 2002 in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks. His service in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as his subsequent death, received national attention, especially so when it was discovered he had been killed by friendly fire.[1]
Tillman played college football for the Arizona State Sun Devils, earning first-team All-American honors in 1997. After four seasons in the NFL, Tillman joined the Army Rangers and served several combat tours before he was killed in the mountains of Afghanistan. At first, the army reported that Tillman had been killed by enemy fire. A month later, on May 28, 2004, the Pentagon notified the Tillman family that he was actually killed by fire from his own side. The family and other critics allege that the Department of Defense delayed the disclosure until weeks after Tillman's memorial service out of a desire to protect the image of the U.S. military. In 2007, the Pentagon released a report ruling Tillman's death as accidental.
Tillman was posthumously promoted from specialist to corporal. He also posthumously received the Silver Star and Purple Heart medals.
- ^ Multiple sources:
- Rickey, Carrie (September 2, 2010). "Pat Tillman Documentary Follows Family's Quest for Answers". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- Fish, Mike (July 19, 2006). "A Case of Fratricide: Who Killed Pat Tillman?". ABC News. ESPN. Retrieved June 1, 2021.
- "Soldier: Army ordered me not to tell truth about Tillman". CNN Inside Politics. April 25, 2007. Retrieved June 1, 2021.