Mike Wallace

Burnell Michael Wallace III (born August 1, 1986) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL).

As a junior, Wallace ran the anchor leg for the O.P. Walker 4 × 100 meter relay squad at the 2004 State Outdoor Championships, helping them earn a fourth-place finish with a school-record time of 41.81 seconds.

In addition, he also owned a 4.4-second 40-yard dash and had a 36-inch vertical jump.

Wallace was rated as a two-star recruit by Rivals.com.

SuperPrep named him the 17th-ranked college prospect in the state of Louisiana and selected him to its 2004 Southwest Team.

Wallace was also named the league MVP, district MVP, and All-West Bank MVP.

He was also named an All-State, All-League, All-Metro, and All-West Bank player.

He committed to Oregon State on February 4, 2004.

In 2004, Wallace accepted a scholarship from Oregon State after insisting that they also recruit his best friend and high school teammate Keenan Lewis, who was one year ahead of Wallace in school.

However, Wallace later decided not to join Lewis at Oregon State but instead to follow his high school coach, Frank Wilson, who had joined the coaching staff at the University of Mississippi.

As a true freshman in 2005, Wallace played in 10 games.

In 2006, he started all 12 games as a split end.

He recorded two touchdown receptions to tie for first on the team.

At Alabama, he had his first career touchdown on a 55-yard catch from Brent Schaeffer.

In 2007, Wallace saw action in all 12 games with nine starts as a split end.

He recorded 716 receiving yards and had two 100-yard games.

He ranked first in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) in yards per catch with 18.8.

He was named third-team All-SEC.

In 2008, he played in six games, recording 39 receptions for 784 yards and seven touchdowns.

He played college football for Ole Miss Rebels, and was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the third round of the 2009 NFL Draft with the 84th overall pick.

He also played for the Miami Dolphins, Minnesota Vikings, Baltimore Ravens, and Philadelphia Eagles.

Throughout his career, Wallace was known for his speed after finishing with a time of 4.33-seconds in the 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine.

Wallace was born to Burnell and Sonjia Wallace in New Orleans, Louisiana.

He grew up in the Cut-Off section of the Algiers neighborhood of New Orleans.

He attended O. Perry Walker High School, where he played football on both offense and defense and his teammates included future New Orleans Saints cornerback Keenan Lewis.

After seeing limited offensive playing time as a junior (four receptions while playing mostly on defense), Wallace had an outstanding senior season, catching 60 passes for 1,039 yards with 19 touchdowns.

He received first-team All-State honors as a wide receiver, and earned league and district MVP honors as well as All-League, All-Metro, All-West Bank and All-West Bank MVP following his senior season.

He also returned four punts and four kickoffs for touchdowns, giving him 27 for the season and 162 points, with seven more scores called back due to penalties.

Wallace set the school records for total points and kick return touchdowns.

Also a standout track & field athlete in high school, Wallace earned All-State honors in the 100-meter dash as a senior.

In the 2009 Cotton Bowl against Texas Tech, he caught a 41-yard touchdown pass from Jevan Snead.

He once again led the SEC in yards per catch with 20.1.

Wallace participated in the 2009 Senior Bowl on the South team.

At the 2009 NFL Scouting Combine, Wallace finished second overall in the 40-yard dash with an official 4.33-second time.

The Pittsburgh Steelers selected Wallace in the third round (84th overall) of the 2009 NFL Draft.

On June 18, 2009, Wallace signed a three-year contract with the Steelers worth $1.740 million which included a $555,000 signing bonus.

In Pittsburgh he was reunited with former high school teammate Keenan Lewis, whom the Steelers selected just twelve picks after Wallace.

Wallace achieved his first 100-yard receiving game against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 3 of the season; he had 7 receptions for 102 yards.

On December 20, Wallace caught a game winning pass while falling out of bounds as time expired to defeat the Green Bay Packers, 37–36.

Wallace was the 11th wide receiver chosen in the draft.