Lewis Billups
Lewis Kenneth Billups, Jr. (October 10, 1963 – April 10, 1994) was an American football cornerback who played seven seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals and Green Bay Packers in the National Football League, recording 9 interceptions and 8 fumble recoveries. Billups was known to wear an opponent’s T-shirt the day of the game to stay focused.[1]
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born: | October 10, 1963 Tampa, Florida |
| Died: | April 10, 1994 (aged 30) Orlando, Florida |
| Height: | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
| Weight: | 190 lb (86 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Niceville (Niceville, FL) |
| College: | North Alabama |
| Position: | Cornerback |
| NFL Draft: | 1986 / Round: 2 / Pick: 38 |
| Career history | |
| Career NFL statistics | |
| Player stats at NFL.com | |
Known as a tough corner who played with a chip on his shoulder, Billups was a defensive back who was very popular among teammates. His best season was in 1988, when he intercepted 4 passes and recovered 2 fumbles, helping Cincinnati reach the Super Bowl. Billups is often remembered for his critical dropped interception in Super Bowl XXIII. In the beginning of the fourth quarter with the Bengals up 13–6 over the San Francisco 49ers and the 49ers driving from the Bengals 10-yard line, quarterback Joe Montana threw a pass towards Billups that he dropped in the end zone. On the next play, the 49ers scored a touchdown, tying the game at 13. Towards the game's conclusion, Montana threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to John Taylor to give San Francisco a 20–16 lead with 34 seconds left. The 49ers won the game 20–16.
Personal life and legal problems
When not playing football, Billups was a family man who spent a great deal of his time in Florida with his family members. One of Billups closest of friends was Bengals wide receiver Tim McGee who was picked alongside Billups in the 1986 draft.
Billups had an extensive history of violence off the football field. In 1987, Billups was criminally charged with felony domestic assault for beating his then-girlfriend, a Cincinnati resident named Tracy Fair, after she ended their relationship. She later dropped the criminal charges, but did file a civil lawsuit against Billups. In Billups' civil trial, Fair testified that he threatened to hire someone to cut Fair's face with a razor blade and "finish the job" if she did not drop the criminal charges. Fair required six operations on her face from the assault, including a bone grafting procedure in which her nose was reconstructed with bone pulled from her skull and ribcage. Billups ultimately paid Fair $30,000 in damages in an out-of-court settlement.[2]
As Billups' NFL career wound down, his violent behavior continued. In March 1993, Billups was arrested in Lexington, Kentucky for making terroristic threats against Washington Bullets basketball player Rex Chapman, whose sister Billups had been dating and abusing. Billups called Jenny Chapman multiple times to warn her against seeing other men after the two broke up. Because of earlier threats, Jenny contacted the FBI, which recorded two of the calls. In one call, Billups stated: "You got your brother's knees in your hands." He said Rex Chapman would "get a visit, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, down. Next thing you read, Rex Chapman through for the year, maybe for the rest of his career."[3] In the other call, Billups said: "Now, I'm telling you right now as God as my witness, I swear on my mother's life, if you ever speak to a guy, speak -- just say 'Hi' to a guy from Kentucky, I promise you (Billups' associates will) go see your brother and he'll never play basketball again." Billups flew up to Kentucky from Florida to meet Jenny, but instead was met by FBI agents and arrested. Numerous people testified about Billups' violent nature, including Jenny Chapman and Tracy Fair, and stated that they were fearful for their safety in Billups' presence.[2] Billups pleaded guilty to the charge after accepting a plea deal, and he was sentenced to serve twelve months in the Federal United States Penitentiary, Atlanta, three years supervised release, and pay a fine of $10,000.[4]
Billups also pleaded no contest in Seminole County, Florida, on charges of aggravated sexual assault, criminal conspiracy, and extortion. The charges came after Billups, with the aid of a friend, Gregory Calloway, drugged and raped a woman at Billups' Longwood residence in December 1992. According to the victim, Billups invited her over to his home for lunch with he and Calloway, who was Billups' roommate at the time. An unspecified drug was slipped into the victim's drink which caused her to pass out, and according to a report, Billups sexually assaulted the unconscious victim while Calloway recorded the act on videotape. The victim further claimed that Billups threatened to send the videotape to her husband, other family members, and friends if she failed to meet Billups' demand of paying he and Calloway $20,000 each. Billups and Calloway were subsequently arrested in Seminole County on December 16 after warrants for their arrests were issued, and they were each released on $50,000 bond the following day.[5] This prompted multiple women to come forward and accuse Billups of raping them in similar fashions, but no additional charges were filed.[6] In this case, Billups was sentenced to serve three years of probation, which would begin following his release from federal prison on April 4, 1994. He died just days after his incarceration ended.[5]
Death
Six days after his release, Billups died in a car crash. Driving at speeds in excess of 100 mph, he lost control of his Corvette convertible on Interstate 4 when trying to avoid contact with another vehicle attempting to make a lane change, destroying over 55 feet of steel security railing in the process. Billups' friend, Danny Green, who was seated next to him, was killed on impact. Billups was thrown from the car and was later found by highway patrol men attending the scene. Billups was taken to an Orlando hospital where he died from his injuries. The details of Billups' exploits are prominently featured in the best-selling book, "Pros And Cons."
References
- ^ 1990 NFL Pro Set trading card, Lewis Billups, Card No. 60, Pro Set Properties
- ^ a b "United States of America, Plaintiff-appellee, v. Lewis Kenneth Billups, Jr., Defendant-appellant, 19 F.3d 1434 (6th Cir. 1994)". JUSTIA US Law. March 4, 1994.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "BILLUPS GUILTY OF CHAPMAN THREATS". CHICAGO TRIBUNE. June 13, 1993.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "BILLUPS PLEADS GUILTY TO THREATS AGAINST CHAPMAN". The Washington Post.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b "BILLUPS, 30, DIES IN THE FAST LANE". April 10, 1994.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Robert Perez (1992-12-18). "MORE WOMEN SAY BILLUPS RAPED THEM". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved 2023-01-02.
External links
- Lewis Billups at Football Database