Two Eagle Scouts in the NFL grab wins in their returns to action

Eagle Scout Austin Collie started his career with the Indianapolis Colts and now plays for the New England Patriots.
Eagle Scout Austin Collie started his career with the Indianapolis Colts and now plays for the New England Patriots.

Everyone’s talking about yesterday’s snow-covered NFL games today, but here’s a story to make Scouts and Scouters smile — regardless of how their favorite team fared.

Two Eagle Scouts returned to NFL action yesterday, each in a winning effort. It must be especially satisfying for tight end Dennis Pitta and wide receiver Austin Collie after a frustrating 2013 season for each of the 28-year-olds.

Pitta, sidelined for the first 13 weeks of the season after dislocating his hip in the preseason, had six catches for 48 yards and one touchdown for the Baltimore Ravens in their win over the Minnesota Vikings. Ravens fans last saw Pitta back in February when he had a touchdown catch in the team’s Super Bowl XLVII win. Ten months after that big win, he’s got another.

Collie, also a Super Bowl veteran (his Indianapolis Colts lost in Super Bowl XLIV in 2010), has been in and out of the NFL after being released last month. The New England Patriots re-signed Collie last week, and the Eagle Scout had one catch for four yards in the team’s comeback win against the Cleveland Browns.

Both Eagle Scouts attended Brigham Young University after achieving Scouting’s highest honor. Now that they’re in the NFL, they’re proving that a successful Scouting career can coexist with a successful sporting career.


Photos from Flickr. Pitta: Some rights reserved by Phil Romans. Collie: Some rights reserved by Jeffrey Beall.


About Bryan Wendell 3282 Articles
Bryan Wendell, an Eagle Scout, is the founder of Bryan on Scouting and a contributing writer.