Jay Riemersma Allen Jay Riemersma ( born May 17 , 1973 ) is a former American football tight end . He played for the University of Michigan from 1994 to 1995 . He next played nine seasons in the NFL for the Buffalo Bills ( 1996 – 2002 ) and Pittsburgh Steelers ( 2003 – 2004 ) . In 2007 , he accepted a position as the regional director of the Family Research Council . He announced his candidacy for the U . S . House of Representatives in September 2009 . Playing career . Zeeland . Riemersma was born in Evansville , Indiana and grew up in Zeeland , Michigan . In 1991 , he graduated from Zeeland High School , where he was a star athlete in three sports . He became Zeeland ' s all - time leading scorer in basketball , played baseball for two seasons , and was the quarterback for the football team . Michigan . Riemersma enrolled at the University of Michigan in 1991 . Originally recruited by Michigan as a quarterback , Riemersma appeared in three games at that position in the 1992 and 1993 season s . On September 26 , 1992 , he made his debut as a redshirt freshman against the University of Houston . He came into the game as a substitute for Todd Collins in the third quarter and completed all three passes he attempted for 43 yards , including a 14 - yard touchdown pass to Amani Toomer in the fourth quarter . He completed a total of six of eleven passes for 79 yards the 1992 and 1993 seasons . In 1994 , Riemersma suffered a rotator cuff injury , which ended his career as a quarterback . Michigan head coach Gary Moeller switched Riemersma to the tight end position , where he played in the 1994 and 1995 season s . Interviewed in 2009 , Riemersma pointed to the rotator cuff injury as " divine intervention , " saying , " Some called the injury luck . I called it divine intervention . I never would have played in the NFL as a quarterback . It was an injury that parlayed into an NFL career . " During the 1994 season , Riemersma became one of quarterback Todd Collins ' favorite targets , finishing as the team ' s third leading receiver behind Amani Toomer and Mercury Hayes . He caught 33 passes for 336 yards and two touchdowns in 1994 . His most productive games were against Notre Dame ( 5 catches for 69 yards and a touchdown ) and Wisconsin ( 8 catches for 79 yards and a touchdown ) . In 1995 , Riemersma added another 41 catches for 370 yards and a touchdown . His best games of the 1995 season came against Virginia and Michigan State . He connected with Scott Dreisbach for seven catches and 71 yards in the Wolverines ' come - from - behind 18 - 17 win over Virginia in the season opener , and he caught a career - high nine passes , good for 70 yards , in a 28 - 25 loss to the Spartans . The longest reception of his college career was a 35 - yard catch in Michigan ' s 31 - 23 win over Ohio State in 1995 . In two seasons as Michigan ' s tight end , Reimersma caught 74 passes for 706 yards . While completing his degree at Michigan , Riemersma twice earned Academic All - Big Ten Conference awards . He also won both the Meyer Morton Award and the Arthur Robinson Scholarship Award while attending Michigan . NFL . Buffalo Bills . Riemersma was drafted by the Buffalo Bills as the 35th pick of the 7th round ( 244th pick overall ) of the 1996 NFL Draft . He spent seven seasons in Buffalo from 1996 to 2002 , appearing in 90 games , 65 as a starter . As a tight end for the Bills , he had 221 receptions for 2 , 304 yards and 20 touchdowns . As a rookie in 1996 , Riemersma appeared in all 16 games for the Bills , including eight as a starter . He caught 26 passes for 208 yards and two touchdowns . In 1998 , Riemersma had a career - high six touchdowns in 16 games for the Bills . He had his first career two - touchdown game in a November 2000 win over the Miami Dolphins . From 1999 to 2001 , he missed only six games in four years , and accumulated 1 , 808 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns . In a September 2000 game against the Green Bay Packers , Riemersma had his second career two - touchdown game and 70 receiving yards . After the game , teammate Eric Moulds said , " A couple of times they tried to double me and left Jay wide open down the field . We ' ll take that matchup all day . If you ' re going to leave Jay Riemersma one - on - one with a linebacker , you ' re going to lose most of the time . " He had his best season in 2001 . He started 15 games for the 2001 Bills and caught 53 passes for 590 yards . Riemersma was plagued by injuries during his six years with the Bills . He underwent eight surgeries during his NFL career . His offensive production declined in 2002 to 32 receptions for 350 yards , and for the first time in his NFL career , Riemersma did not score a touchdown in 2002 . In February 2003 , the Bills announced that they intended to release Riemersma unless he accepted a significant pay cut . Bills president Tom Donahoe said the club was asking Riemersma to restructure the final year of his contract , reportedly worth $ 3 . 5 million . The Bills officially released Riemersma in late February 2003 . Pittsburgh Steelers . In March 2003 , Riemersma signed a three - year contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers worth almost $ 4 million . In his first game for the Steelers , a 34 - 15 win over the Baltimore Ravens on September 7 , 2003 , Riemersma " beat Baltimore safety Ed Reed badly " for a 20 - yard touchdown pass from Tommy Maddox . On the next drive , Ravens safety Gary Baxter followed Riemersma and left Hines Ward wide open for a 28 - yard touchdown catch . After the game , Steelers coach Bill Cowher said , " Jay Riemersma adds a dimension we never had . He gives you a guy that you better start thinking about down the middle of the field . " He played for Pittsburgh in 2003 and 2004 before rupturing his right Achilles tendon on a 26 - yard touchdown reception against the Jacksonville Jaguars in December 2004 . At the time of the injury , the " Pittsburgh Post - Gazette " reported , " Jay Riemersma caught a touchdown pass in his first game with the Steelers and his last , but that ' s about the extent of any good fortune the tight end has had in his two seasons here . " Riemersma did not play another game in the NFL after suffering the Achilles tendon injury . In February 2005 , the Steelers released Riemersma in a salary cap move required after the Steelers ' 15 - 1 performance in 2004 triggered performance bonuses , including a $ 2 million bonus to Ben Roethlisberger . Riemersma spent the 2005 season coaching high school football and recovering from his injury . In January 2006 , Riemersma announced that he would not attempt a comeback and that he was retiring from the NFL . His agent , said at the time that the nature and severity of the injury would make it too difficult for Riemersma to play again . In nine NFL seasons , Riemersma played in 112 games ( 74 as a starter ) and caught 221 passes for 2 , 524 yards and 23 touchdowns . Football coach . In August 2005 , while trying to rehabilitate his Achilles tendon , Riemersma returned to western Michigan and took on a one - year assignment as the football coach at Zeeland East High School . After announcing his retirement from the NFL in January 2006 , Riemersma returned for two more seasons as the football coach at Zeeland East . In three years as the football coach from 2005 to 2007 , Riemersma compiled a record of 1 - 26 . In 2008 , Riemersma said , " We won just one game while I was there . I ' m really proud , though , of what we tried to accomplish in building character in the kids . " In 2009 , Riemersma was inducted into the Grand Rapids Sports Hall of Fame . Politics . In November 2007 , Riemersma joined Family Research Council , a nonprofit organization based in Washington , D . C . , as the director of a six - state region that includes Michigan . In September 2009 , Riemersma announced that he would run for the U . S . House of Representatives as a Republican in Michigan ' s 2nd congressional district . The seat was held by Rep . Peter Hoekstra who is vacating it to run for Governor of Michigan . Riemersma said he would fight against abortion , taxes and big government . He was ultimately defeated in the primary election by Bill Huizenga , who would go on to win the general election . In February 2010 , Riemersma drew attention when he announced his support for Tim Tebow ' s Focus on the Family Super Bowl advertisement . Personal . Jay and his wife Cara have three children , Sophie , Trip , and Nick , and reside in Holland , Michigan . Riemersma is an active member and deacon of Parkside Bible Church in Holland . Riemersma also serves on the Board of Directors of the American Red Cross , Ottawa County Chapter .