Earnest Graham
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
|
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers — No. 34 | |
| Running back | |
| Date of birth: January 15, 1980 | |
| Place of birth: Naples, Florida | |
| Height: 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | Weight: 225 lb (102 kg) |
| National Football League debut | |
|---|---|
| 2004 for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers | |
| Career history | |
| College: Florida | |
| Undrafted in 2003 | |
Teams:
|
|
| Career highlights and awards | |
|
|
| Stats at NFL.com | |
Earnest "Dodge Ram" Graham, Jr. (born January 15, 1980 in Naples, Florida) is a National Football League running back for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Contents |
[edit] High school career
Earnest Graham attended Mariner High School in Cape Coral, Florida from 1994-1998. He was a versatile athlete and lettered in football, baseball and basketball. Graham especially excelled in football at the running back position, and set county and state records for career rushing yards and touchdowns. After his senior year, Graham was named the state of Florida's "Mr. Football" for 1997, and was also named to several High School All-American teams.[1]
[edit] College career
Due to his achievements in high school, Graham was a sought-after college recruit and eventually chose to accept a scholarship offer from the home-state University of Florida Gators and then-coach Steve Spurrier.
Early in his first collegiate season of 1998, Graham suffered a foot injury which required surgery and was granted a medical redshirt.
Graham started seven games for the Gators in 1999 and ran for 654 yards and 5 touchdowns, earning him a spot on the Southeastern Conference All-Freshman team. Graham split time with fellow running back Robert Gillespie during the 2000 season, in which he rushed for 676 yards and 8 touchdowns. Graham was slowed by injuries in 2001 (including a controversial knee injury suffered in the Florida State game), but still earned 2nd-team All-SEC honors on the strength of 650 yards and 9 touchdowns while again splitting time with Gillespie.
During his senior season in 2002, Graham started every game for the Gators and took advantage of his opportunity, rushing for 1,085 yards and 11 touchdowns, including a career-high 182 yards in the season opener versus UAB.
At the conclusion of his career at Florida, Graham ranked among the best running backs in Gator history. Graham finished 3rd in school history in rushing touchdowns (33), 5th in rushing yardage and attempts (3,065 yards on 603 carries), 5th in career 100-yard games (9), and 9th in all-purpose yards (3,468). Graham also averaged 135 yards in his three bowl games.[2]
[edit] NFL career
Graham entered the NFL by signing as an undrafted free agent with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on April 28, 2003. For several seasons, Graham performed well in preseason games but did not get many opportunities to play at running back once the regular season began. Graham played extensively on special teams and led the team in special teams tackles in 2006. [3]
[edit] 2007
Graham started the season playing predominantly on special teams once again. However, injuries to Bucs' running backs Cadillac Williams, Mike Alstott, Michael Pittman allowed Graham to get significant playing at running back for the first time in his pro career. He scoring the first two touchdowns of his career on September 23, 2007 in a 24-3 win against the St. Louis Rams. When starter Cadillac Williams seriously injured his knee in the following week's game against the Carolina Panthers, Graham became the Bucs' starting running back for the remainder of the season.
Graham took advantage of his opportunity, rushing for 898 yards and 10 touchdowns in the 13 games he played. In that span, he rushed for over 100 yards in a game three times and scored a touchdown in 6 consecutive contests. Graham became only the second running back in Buccaneers history to register back-to-back 100 yard rushing games, which he did against the Atlanta Falcons and the Arizona Cardinals. In nine of his ten starts, Graham either ran for 100 yards, scored a TD, averaged four yards a carry, or caught 6-plus passes. [4] He is nicknamed "Dodge Ram" by Buccaneers fans for his physical running style.
Graham is rumored to be in search of a contract similar to the five-year, $28 million that Frank Gore signed in 2007.[5]. Graham says he's skipping the voluntary offseason program due to "family things," not his contract situation. He says he'll be in Tampa after the 2008 NFL Draft. Graham has still not shown up for the voluntary workouts and is in search for a extension after having a career year. [6]
[edit] References
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Graham, Earnest, Jr. |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | American footballer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 15 January 1980 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Naples, Florida |
| DATE OF DEATH | |
| PLACE OF DEATH | |
