49ers safety Donte Whitner withdraws application to change name to 'Hitner'

49ers safety Donte Whitner has 45 total tackles this season. (Jose Carlos Fajardo, Contra Costa Times)

San Francisco 49ers safety Donte Whitner withdrew his application to change his last name on Tuesday, but still planned to change his name after the season.

Last month, Whitner announced that he was changing his last name to "Hitner" because he felt the NFL was wrong in fining him for hits on opposing offensive players.

He was fined $21,000 by the league for a hit during a game in October against the St. Louis Rams.

Whitner's application was scheduled to be considered in court on Tuesday at the Cuyahoga County (Ohio) Probate Court. According to court records, Whitner withdrew the application.

"That's my game," he said last month, via the Sacramento Bee."...That's what I do. That's my last name and removing a letter makes it pretty cool."

"This is a tough game. This is a game for grown men. When we signed up for that, we all know that," Whitner said. "If you don't want to play football, you don't want to be physical, you don't want to be hit, don't come around guys that like to hit. That's the game of football, just do it the right way."

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