'Daniel "Danny" Buggs' (born
April 22,
1953, in
Duluth, Georgia) was an
American football wide receiver for the
New York Giants and
Washington Redskins of the
National Football League, the
Edmonton Eskimos of the
Canadian Football League, and the
Tampa Bay Bandits and
San Antonio Gunslingers of the
USFL.
Collegiate career
After sitting out a year in
1971, forced to for academic reasons by coach
Bobby Bowden, and rejecting offers from
Arizona State,
Clemson and
Florida State, Buggs made an immediate impact in
1972. He scored a whopping 84 points, including punt returns, and also averaged a touchdown every five times he touched the ball.
Buggs was a
1973 Kodak first team All-American from
West Virginia University, who owns the longest catch from scrimmage in West Virginia school history against
Penn State in
1973 for 96 yards and a touchdown. He was also the first Mountaineer to post back-to-back 100 yard receiving games.
In
1974 he was selected to play in the
Hula Bowl and the
Senior Bowl, helping the East top the West with a touchdown in the Hula Bowl.
He ranks fourth in career receiving yards with 1,796 and touchdowns receptions with 15 and holds the West Virginia record for most career yards per reception with a 20.9 average. He is often considered one of the greatest receivers in West Virginia University football history, along with greats such as
Reggie Rembert,
Jerry Porter, and
Chris Henry.
Pro career
NFL
In the third round of the
1975 NFL Draft, Buggs was drafted by the
New York Giants. He played two seasons in
New York,
1975 and
1976, but never saw time during the regular season.
Buggs was then cut by the Giants, to only then be signed by the
Washington Redskins late in
1976. On the final six games of the
1976 season, Buggs saw his first professional action. He only totaled 2 receptions for 25 yards, but then increased it the
next season to 26 receptions for 341 yards and a touchdown.
Buggs broke out in
1978 with 36 receptions for 575 yards and 2 touchdowns. In Buggs' final
NFL season,
1979, Buggs totaled 46 receptions for 631 yards and a touchdown while playing all 16 games for the first time in his career.
CFL and USFL
Buggs played in the CFL from
1980 to
1982. In 1980, he helped the
Edmonton Eskimos win the
Grey Cup, which is the CFL's championship game.
Buggs played for the USFL's
Tampa Bay Bandits in
1983, and the
San Antonio Gunslingers in
1984 and
1985.