John Pitts
Football, Class of 2006

John Pitts came to Santa Ana College in 1963 in an attempt to find the sport of his calling. He was a three-sport athlete at Laguna Beach High School with offers to play football and basketball at the collegiate level. He was a member of the Laguna Beach CIF basketball championship team his junior year. Also while at Laguna Beach , Pitts was named to the All-County team in football and played in the Shrine's game.

Pitts played football for SAC in 1963 and 1964 as a wide receiver and defensive back; he was also a member of the men's basketball team and the track and field team as a high jumper and sprinter.

He was named to the first-team All-Eastern Conference and was a JC All-American honorable mention in his sophomore season in football. He also received All-Conference honors in basketball.

Pitts transferred to Arizona State University (ASU) where he earned All-Western Athletic Conference honors in 1965 and 1966 and was an All-American his senior year.

While at ASU, Pitts was roommates with future MLB player Reggie Jackson who played football at ASU as well. Pitts again played both ways at ASU as well, starting at wide receiver and defensive back.

Pitts was drafted in the first round of the 1967 NFL Draft by the Buffalo Bills. He played 10 seasons of professional football for the Buffalo Bills (1967-73), Denver Broncos (1973-76) and the Cleveland Browns (1976-77). Pitts appeared in 115 games and intercepted 10 passes for 96 yards.