Owen Schmitt Owen Schmitt ( born February 13 , 1985 ) is an American football fullback free agent of the National Football League . He was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the fifth round of the 2008 NFL Draft . He played college football at West Virginia University . Schmitt has also played for the Philadelphia Eagles and the Oakland Raiders . Early years . Schmitt was born with a cleft lip and palate and underwent several surgeries to correct it as a child , including one when he was in fourth grade in which doctors inserted a piece of hip bone into his jaw . As a result he has a scar running from under his nose to his upper lip . Schmitt played fullback , defensive end , and linebacker first at Paul VI Catholic High School and then Fairfax High School in Virginia . Collegiate career . Wisconsin – River Falls . After graduation from high school , he enrolled at Wisconsin – River Falls . At River Falls , he posted a 1 , 063 yards and five touchdown performance his freshman year , which earned him WIAC all - conference honors in only nine starting games . West Virginia . Schmitt attended spring practice the next year at West Virginia University . A walk - on to the Mountaineers ' squad , Schmitt became the starter that fall as a sophomore for the 2005 season and it was a breakout year . He was active as both a rusher and as a primary blocker . At the midpoint of the season , freshman Steve Slaton earned the starting spot at halfback , and with quarterback Pat White at the helm , Schmitt and Slaton teamed up to make one of the best rushing tandems in the NCAA . Schmitt totaled 380 yards and two touchdowns himself , while Slaton was a huge beneficiary of his blocking , recording 1 , 128 yards and seventeen touchdowns . In 2006 , Slaton , White , and Schmitt were featured on the cover of " Sports Illustrated ' s " regional " Big Man On Campus " article . With high expectations , the Mountaineers finished with an 11 - 2 record . Schmitt rushed for 351 yards and seven touchdowns on the season , and also caught one touchdown pass . His blocking helped Slaton to another phenomenal year — 1 , 744 yards . Schmitt ' s biggest game was the come - from - behind Gator Bowl win against Georgia Tech , where he filled in for the injured Slaton and rushed for 109 yards and two touchdowns . Schmitt earned National Strength and Conditioning Association Strength All - American honors at the end of the season , as he bulked up from 245 pounds to 260 . After the season he was named " College football ' s top workout freak " by " ESPN . com " . In 2007 , his senior year , Schmitt was arguably one of the best fullbacks in the nation . He also took many snaps at tight end in spring practice , where head coach Rich Rodriguez lined him up occasionally . Schmitt ' s first big game of the season came against Maryland when he carried the ball four times for 46 yards , including a 44 - yard run early in the 31 - 14 win . According to ESPN during the game , Schmitt had broken eight face masks in his career to that point . In the next game against East Carolina , Schmitt rushed for 32 yards on four carries with two receptions for nine yards . Against Syracuse at the Carrier Dome , he earned MVP honors with two touchdowns on eight carries for 39 yards ; in that game he also had a 31 - yard reception ( where he hurdled one defender and ran over another ) and a 27 - yard punt that was downed inside the Syracuse 10 - yard line on a trick play . In a subsequent game , a 28 - 23 victory over # 22 Cincinnati , he rushed for 19 yards on six carries , including the first score of the game , a four - yard touchdown run . After wins over Louisville and Cincinnati , he had reportedly recorded 10 broken facemasks . WVU ' s impressive run to the national title game was sidetracked on the last game of the season with a bitter , improbable loss in the Backyard Brawl to Pitt . This knocked them out of the National Championship game and matched them up instead with # 4 Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl . Schmitt ' s 57 - yard touchdown run in the 48 - 28 Fiesta Bowl victory over Oklahoma was perhaps the most impressive and memorable moment of his storied career at WVU . Coming in a huge game at an emotional moment , his dash through the line of scrimmage and down the sideline broke open what had been a tight 6 - 3 scoreline . That run was also a personal career - best as well as a WVU school bowl record ( until Noel Devine broke the record in the fourth quarter of that same game ) . It also marked the third consecutive bowl in which Schmitt had a 50 + yard run . Schmitt finished the Fiesta Bowl with three rushes for 64 yards and a touchdown . Schmitt was awarded the Ira Errett Rodgers Award and Fred Schaus Captain ' s Award at the end of the regular season by head coach Rich Rodriguez . As a rush blocker , Schmitt finished the 2007 season with 106 knockdown blocks and 17 touchdown - resulting blocks . He also finished the season with two of his three " pooch " punts downed inside the 20 - yard line , for an average of 20 . 3 yards - per - punt . In Schmitt ' s career , he earned 21 career starts , four of which were at tight end . Through his 353 career carries ( at WVU and Wisconsin – River Falls ) , he was only tackled for a loss four times . He carried the ball for 1 , 003 yards , a 6 . 3 yard average , during his Mountaineer career . In his four collegiate seasons , Schmitt totaled 122 points and 2 , 398 all - purpose yards . Professional career . Pre - draft . Schmitt accepted an invitation to play in the 2008 Senior Bowl in Mobile , Alabama following the season . He was then invited to the 2008 NFL Scouting Combine . Schmitt ' s 26 bench reps were tied for the fourth best by a back in the Combine . At West Virginia ' s Pro Day on March 13 , Schmitt ran a 4 . 72 40 , a 4 . 11 short shuttle , a 6 . 85 three - cone , and an 11 . 85 long shuttle . He measured in at 6 ' 2 " and . He performed running back , fullback , and tight end drills without dropping a pass the entire day . He also recorded a 9 ' 9 " broad jump and a 31 . 5 " vertical jump . After the Pro Day , Schmitt worked out at the campus before traveling to interview with the Cleveland Browns , Washington Redskins , and San Diego Chargers . He also worked - out with the Browns ' running backs coach , Anthony Lynn . Seattle Seahawks . Schmitt was drafted in the fifth round ( 163rd overall ) in the 2008 NFL Draft by the Seattle Seahawks . He was the second Mountaineer selected in the draft , behind Steve Slaton in the third round ( 89th overall ) to the Houston Texans . Schmitt signed a four - year $ 1 . 87 million contract that included a $ 158 , 000 signing bonus . In his first preseason game as a Seahawk , he rushed one time for two yards , caught two passes for 35 yards and also had two tackles on special teams against the Minnesota Vikings . The following week , against the Chicago Bears , he recorded one reception for 15 yards . Schmitt did not play in the season opener against the Buffalo Bills , but he recorded one reception for six yards in the second game against the San Francisco 49ers . In the 27 - 3 victory over the St . Louis Rams , he recorded his first professional carry , for two yards . He earned his first career start against the Philadelphia Eagles later in the season , in which he had a block in the backfield on a 90 - yard touchdown pass early in the game , a franchise record for longest pass play in team history . He finished the game with two receptions for eight yards . In the following game , he carried the ball three times for 19 yards , including a 14 - yard run , and recorded one reception for six yards against the Miami Dolphins . In the next loss to the Arizona Cardinals , he recorded a seven - yard reception . Schmitt finished his rookie season by totaling five carries for 21 yards and six receptions for 29 yards , playing in every game on the season except for the season - opening loss against Buffalo . Following the March 2009 free agency departure of starting fullback Leonard Weaver to the Philadelphia Eagles , Schmitt was expected to compete with Justin Griffith for the starting Fullback role for the 2009 season . Schmitt attracted media and YouTube attention in the aftermath of a game during the 2009 NFL season during which he smashed his helmet against his head until he opened up a large gash . On September 6 , 2010 , the Seahawks released Schmitt , citing the lack of need for a true fullback in the Seattle offense . Philadelphia Eagles . Schmitt was signed by the Philadelphia Eagles on September 13 , 2010 following a season - ending injury to Leonard Weaver . On December 2 against the Houston Texans in week 13 , Schmitt caught a five - yard touchdown pass from quarterback Michael Vick , marking Schmitt ' s first career touchdown with the Eagles . Oakland Raiders . On May 15 , 2012 , he signed with the Oakland Raiders . On December 10 , 2012 , the Raiders released Schmitt and promoted cornerback Chimdi Chekwa from the practice squad . Schmitt played in 13 games , with 4 starts when Marcel Reece shifted to tailback following injuries to Darren McFadden and Mike Goodson . Personal . Growing up , John Riggins of the Washington Redskins was Schmitt ' s favorite football player . Schmitt likes to play guitar in his spare time and can often be found following the Davisson Brothers Band on tour . The band based out of Clarksburg , West Virginia allows him to play on stage as a part of the band whenever he is able . In the media . Schmitt is also featured on the cover of the PSP version of " NCAA Football 09 " . He also shared a " Sports Illustrated " regional cover for the 2006 college football preview with teammates Steve Slaton and Pat White .