Alex Highsmith

Alex Highsmith (born August 7, 1997) is an American football outside linebacker for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Charlotte.

Alex Highsmith
No. 56 – Pittsburgh Steelers
Position:Outside Linebacker
Personal information
Born: (1997-08-07) August 7, 1997
Height:6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:242 lb (110 kg)
Career information
High school:Eugene Ashley
(Wilmington, North Carolina)
College:Charlotte
NFL Draft:2020 / Round: 3 / Pick: 102
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of 2020
Total tackles:44
Sacks:2.0
Forced fumbles:0
Fumble recoveries:0
Pass deflections:1
Interceptions:1
Player stats at NFL.com
Player stats at PFR

Early life and high school

Highsmith grew up in Wilmington, North Carolina and attended Eugene Ashley High School, where he played baseball, basketball and football.[1] He played middle linebacker and fullback and was named second team All-Area and first team All-Mideastern Conference as a senior. He was also named All-Area in baseball. Highsmith was lightly recruited by college programs and only received interest from Davidson and Furman before being offered a spot on UNC Charlotte's team as a walk on.[2]

College career

Highsmith joined the Charlotte 49ers as a walk-on and redshirted his true freshman season.[3] As a redshirt freshman, he played in all 12 of the 49ers games and finished the season with 17 tackles and a sack. Highsmith was a key member of Charlotte's defensive line rotation during his redshirt sophomore season and finished the year with 33 tackles with 5.0 tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks and one fumble recovery.[4] He was named a starter at defensive end as a redshirt junior and was named first team All-Conference USA after setting a school record with 17.5 tackles for loss along with 60 total tackles, three sacks and two forced fumbles.[5][6][7] He was again named first team All-Conference USA and was also a third team All-America selection by the Associated Press as a senior after setting new school records with 14 sacks and 21.5 tackles for loss.[8][9][10]

College statistics
Charlotte 49ersDefense
YearTeamGPTacklesLossSacksFF
2016Charlotte12172.01.00
2017Charlotte11335.02.00
2018Charlotte126018.53.02
2019Charlotte137521.515.02
College totals4518547.021.04

Source:[11]

Professional career
Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand size 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump
6 ft 4 in
(1.93 m)		 242 lb
(110 kg)		 33 1⁄8 in
(0.84 m)		 9 1⁄8 in
(0.23 m)		 4.70 s x s x s 4.31 s 7.32 s 33.0 in
(0.84 m)		 10 ft 6 in
(3.20 m)
All values from NFL Combine[12]/"Alex Highsmith, DE, Charlotte".

Pittsburgh Steelers

Highsmith was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the third round, 102nd overall, of the 2020 NFL Draft.[13] In Week 8 against the Baltimore Ravens, Highsmith recorded his first career interception off a pass thrown by Lamar Jackson during the 28–24 win.[14] In Week 9 against the Dallas Cowboys, Highsmith recorded his first career sack on Garrett Gilbert during the 24–19 win. [15] In Week 13 against the Washington Football Team, Highsmith made his starting debut. In it, he recorded five tackles in the Steelers first loss of the season. Highsmith would finish the remaining four games as the Steelers' starter, recording 23 more tackles as well as sack that he recorded during their season finale against the Cleveland Browns.[16]

NFL Statistics
Legend
Led the league
Bold Career high
NFL career statistics
Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
GPGSTotalSoloAstSackTFLQBHitsIntYardsAvgTDPDFFFRYdsTD
2020PIT 165392415145122.0010000
Career165392415145122.0010000

References
  1. Barth, Tanner (2020-04-24). "Pittsburgh Steelers draft Ashley High School standout Alex Highsmith 102nd overall". WWAY TV. Retrieved 2020-04-26.
  2. DiCecco, Andrew (February 26, 2020). "Charlotte edge rusher Alex Highsmith still proving people wrong". ProFootballNetwork.com. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  3. "Highsmith keeps making strides at Charlotte". Star-News. December 5, 2016. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  4. "Alex Highsmith walked on to the Charlotte 49ers. Now he's a star. Is the NFL next?". The News & Observer. August 13, 2019. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  5. "Former Ashley football standout goes from walk on to starter for the Charlotte 49ers". WECT.com. December 17, 2018. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  6. Mahoney, Ashley (August 3, 2019). "Charlotte DE Alex Highsmith thinking big for senior campaign". The Charlotte Post. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  7. Brugler, Dane (September 25, 2019). "Meet the Prospect: Pass rusher Alex Highsmith continues to make Charlotte a must stop for NFL scouts". The Athletic. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  8. Lamorandier, Logan (January 27, 2020). "Late-Round Sleeper Who Can Bolster Lions' Defensive Line". SI.com. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  9. "Charlotte 49ers Defensive End Highsmith Becomes First All-American In Program History With Third Team Selection". WCCBCharlotte.com. Associated Press. December 16, 2019. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  10. Barth, Tanner (December 12, 2019). "ALEX HIGHSMITH NAMED TO CONFERENCE USA FIRST-TEAM". WWAYTV3.com. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  11. "Alex Highsmith statistics - College Football". sports-reference.com.
  12. "Alex Highsmith Combine Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
  13. "Steelers select Highsmith in the third round". steelers.com. Retrieved 2020-04-26.
  14. "Pittsburgh Steelers at Baltimore Ravens - November 1st, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2020-11-04.
  15. "Pittsburgh Steelers at Dallas Cowboys - November 8th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2020-11-13.
  16. "Pittsburgh Steelers at Cleveland Browns - January 3rd, 2021". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2021-01-03.
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