James Jett James S . Jett ( born December 28 , 1970 ) , is a former American football wide receiver and Olympic sprinter who played nine seasons for the Los Angeles / Oakland Raiders from 1993 to 2002 , in the National Football League . He attended college at West Virginia University . Early life . Jett attended Jefferson High School in Shenandoah Junction , West Virginia , where he earned his diploma through a special IEP completion program . Collegiate career . Jett played college football at West Virginia University where he was a four - year starter at receiver and a seven - time All - American in track and competed for the gold medal winning 4 x 100 m relay team in the 1992 Summer Olympics ( James Jett outran eventual Olympic gold medalist Carl Lewis in 100m during prelims to the games ) . Freshman season ( 1989 ) . Jett entered the 1989 season as the only true freshman to play on the eventual Gator Bowl team . Jett was one of the targets , along with senior Reggie Rembert , for All - American quarterback Major Harris . Along with receiving , Jett led the Mountaineers as a return specialist . Jett finished the season with only 8 receptions but 179 yards and three touchdowns . He also had a total of 35 returns for 504 yards . Sophomore season ( 1990 ) . Jett entered his sophomore season in 1990 as the leading returning receiver for the Mountaineers , who lost both Rembert and Harris . Jett totaled his best statistical season in his career , recording 31 receptions for 652 yards and 2 touchdowns . He also had a career - low 10 returns for 164 yards . Junior season ( 1991 ) . As a junior , Jett saw his numbers decrease to only 9 receptions for 171 yards and two touchdowns . However , he totaled 45 returns for 619 yards , both career - highs . Jett also had five carries for 28 yards and a pass for 27 yards . He finished the season with 845 all - purpose yards . Senior season ( 1992 ) . In his final collegiate season , James Jett recorded 19 receptions for 382 yards and 4 touchdowns . He also had 35 returns for 333 yards . Jett finished his career against Louisiana Tech , where Jett was on the receiving end of a stadium - record 78 - yard touchdown reception . Jett played in the Japan Bowl All - Star game upon his graduation . Legacy . James Jett finished his career with 1 , 384 yards and 11 touchdowns . He also had 125 returns for 1 , 620 yards , totaling 3 , 076 career all - purpose yards . His all - purpose yardage was fifth on WVU ' s all - time career list , while his receiving totals was eighth at the time of his graduation . Jett was inducted into the West Virginia University Sports Hall of Fame in 2002 . Professional career . 1993 - 1995 . James Jett signed with the Los Angeles Raiders as an undrafted free agent following the 1993 NFL Draft . During his rookie season , Jett lead the NFL with over 23 yards per reception and also recorded 771 yards on 33 receptions for 3 touchdowns . Jett averaged 48 . 2 yards per game his debut season , played in all 16 games but only starting one . In the 1994 season , Jett played in all 16 games , only starting one , again . However , he only recorded 15 receptions for 253 yards ( 16 . 9 yards per reception ) . In 1995 , Jett played in all the games on the season but did not start any contests . He finished the season with 13 receptions for 179 yards and a touchdown . 1996 - 1998 . In 1996 , Jett finally started all 16 games on the year . At age 26 , he recorded 43 receptions for 601 yards and 4 touchdowns . Jett won the NFL Fastest Man Competition following the season . The following season , he was second among NFL receivers with a personal - best 12 touchdowns in 1997 . Jett finished with a career - high 46 receptions for 804 yards . Jett was a finalist in the NFL Fastest Man Competition after winning the competition the previous season . In the 1998 season , Jett recorded a career - high 882 yards on 45 receptions for 6 touchdowns . He also tallied a career - high 55 yards per game in his final season of starting all 16 games . 1999 - 2002 . At 29 years old , in 1999 , Jett recorded 552 yards on 39 receptions for 2 touchdowns . The following year , 2000 , he finished with 20 receptions for 356 yards and 2 touchdowns , including a career - long 84 - yard reception against the Atlanta Falcons . In 2001 , at 31 - years old , Jett played in 11 games on the season , recording two receptions for 19 yards . In his final professional season , 2002 , the 32 - year old played in and started only one game , but did not record a statistic . Legacy . James Jett finished his career with 256 receptions for 4 , 417 yards and 30 touchdowns , a 17 . 3 yard per reception average . Jett finished his career as the 8th - leading receiver in Oakland Raiders team history .