Jacoby Ford
Encyclopedia
Jacoby Ford is an American football
wide receiver
for the Oakland Raiders
of the National Football League
. He is also an accomplished track and field
athlete. He played college football
as a wide receiver
and return specialist
for the Clemson Tigers
at Clemson University
. In track, he competed in sprinting events
.
. Jacoby attended Cardinal Newman High School
in West Palm Beach, Florida
, where he earned two letters in football and one in track. As a senior, he recorded 22 receptions for 550 yards and ten touchdowns. He was named the Palm Beach County All-Star Game most valuable player and a second-team all-state player. In track, he was the 2005 Florida state 100-meter dash champion reportedly with a time of 10.32 seconds (he ran a wind assisted 10.21 on another occasion), and 200-meter dash champion with a time of 21.25 seconds.
In 2005, he attended preparatory school at the Fork Union Military Academy
in Fork Union, Virginia
. There he recorded seven kick returns for touchdowns, 57 receptions for 1,254 yards and nine touchdowns, and 12 rushing attempts for 306 yards and three touchdowns. At the Fork Union Military Academy combine, he reportedly ran the 40-yard dash in 4.126 seconds. Rivals.com
ranked him the number-17 prep school player in the nation and called him the "fastest player on the East Coast". The head coach John Schuman called him "the fastest player ever at Fork Union", a school which has produced 87 NFL Draft
picks and two Heisman Trophy
winners.
Ford was recruited by Clemson, Florida
, Michigan State
, Virginia
, Virginia Tech
, and West Virginia
.
, where he majored in sociology
. In 2006
as a true freshman, he saw action in 12 of 13 games. He recorded 15 receptions for 187 yards and two touchdowns, and eight rushing attempts for 104 yards, 23 punt returns for 166 yards and one touchdown, and 13 kick returns for 426 yards and one touchdown.
In track and field during 2007, he was named the Atlantic Coast Conference
(ACC) Indoor Freshman of the Year. In the 60-meter dash, he set an ACC record, and the national best for the year, at 6.52 seconds. Ford was also named the Southeast Region Indoor Track Athlete of the Year, and he was awarded National Collegiate Athletic Association
(NCAA) All-American, All-East Region, and All-ACC honors.
During the 2007 football season
, he saw action in eight of 13 games. He recorded 17 receptions for 310 yards and four touchdowns, 14 rushing attempts for 172 yards, 18 punt returns for 108 yards, and eight kick returns for 211 yards. His season ended early when he suffered a broken ankle against Maryland
.
In 2008
, he saw action in all 13 games. He recorded 55 receptions for 710 yards and four touchdowns, 18 rushing attempts for 96 yards, 21 punt returns for 62 yards, and 17 kick returns for 313 yards. In February 2009, at the Virginia Tech Elite Meet, Ford ran a 6.52-second 60-meter dash, which was one-hundredth of a second shy of the NCAA Championship meet record. In March, he won the 60-meter dash at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships. During the track season, he was again named an NCAA All-American, All-East Region, and All-ACC athlete with a fastest time of 10.01.
Prior to the 2009 season, the NFL Draft Scout ranked Ford as the seventh out of 310 available wide receiver prospects for the 2010 NFL Draft
.
In the Tiger's 40-24 victory over the Florida State Seminoles on November 7, 2009, Ford and C.J. Spiller became the greatest all-purpose duo in NCAA history (a record previously held by Marshall Faulk
and Darnay Scott
of San Diego State).
, Ford recorded a 4.28 40-yard dash, the fastest of the 2010 class and the second fastest ever.
On April 24, Jacoby Ford was drafted by the Oakland Raiders
in Round 4 with the 108th pick overall. He had 6 receptions for 148 yards and also returned a kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown against the Kansas City Chiefs
on 11/7/10. This was his career-best receiving total. Ford was a pivotal weapon against the Chiefs recording 148 receiving yards, 47 yards of which came on a pass from Jason Campbell
to set up Sebastian Janikowski
for the 33-yard field goal to beat Kansas City Chiefs
23-20 in overtime. For his spectacular play in Week 9 against Kansas City, Ford was voted as the Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week
. Ford was named the AFC Special Teams Player of the Month for November 2010. He had a 94-yard touchdown on a kickoff return against Kansas City and a 101-yard return for a score against Miami, the latter the third longest in club history. On December 26, Ford returned the opening kickoff for 99 yards, going end-to-end in 11 seconds. Ford also holds the Raiders record for the most kickoff returns for a touchdown in a season at 3. During the Week 6 game of the 2011 season
, Ford set the Raiders franchise record for the most kickoffs returned for touchdowns in franchise history with 4, after his 101-yard kick off return for a touchdown against the Cleveland Browns
.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
wide receiver
Wide receiver
A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
for the Oakland Raiders
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
of the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
. He is also an accomplished track and field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
athlete. He played college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
as a wide receiver
Wide receiver
A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
and return specialist
Return specialist
A Return Specialist is a player on American football or Canadian football special teams who specializes in returning punts and kickoff returns. There are few players who are exclusively return specialists; most play other positions as well. The special teams counterpart of a return specialist is a...
for the Clemson Tigers
Clemson Tigers football
The Clemson Tigers football team is an American football team from Clemson University in South Carolina. It competes in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision and the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference...
at Clemson University
Clemson University
Clemson University is an American public, coeducational, land-grant, sea-grant, research university located in Clemson, South Carolina, United States....
. In track, he competed in sprinting events
Sprint (race)
Sprints are short running events in athletics and track and field. Races over short distances are among the oldest running competitions. The first 13 editions of the Ancient Olympic Games featured only one event—the stadion race, which was a race from one end of the stadium to the other...
.
Early life
His brother, Davy Ford, played football at Florida StateFlorida State Seminoles football
The Florida State Seminoles football team represents Florida State University in college football. The Florida State Seminoles compete in NCAA Division I-FBS and are members of the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference...
. Jacoby attended Cardinal Newman High School
Cardinal Newman High School (West Palm Beach, Florida)
Cardinal Newman High School, also commonly referred to as Cardinal Newman or simply Newman, is a Catholic coeducational secondary school located in West Palm Beach Florida, USA. It is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Palm Beach...
in West Palm Beach, Florida
West Palm Beach, Florida
West Palm Beach, is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and is the most populous city in and county seat of Palm Beach County, the third most populous county in Florida with a 2010 population of 1,320,134. The city is also the oldest incorporated municipality in South Florida...
, where he earned two letters in football and one in track. As a senior, he recorded 22 receptions for 550 yards and ten touchdowns. He was named the Palm Beach County All-Star Game most valuable player and a second-team all-state player. In track, he was the 2005 Florida state 100-meter dash champion reportedly with a time of 10.32 seconds (he ran a wind assisted 10.21 on another occasion), and 200-meter dash champion with a time of 21.25 seconds.
In 2005, he attended preparatory school at the Fork Union Military Academy
Fork Union Military Academy
Fork Union Military Academy is a private, military boarding school located in the town of Fork Union, Virginia. The school is more commonly known by its acronym FUMA ....
in Fork Union, Virginia
Fork Union, Virginia
Fork Union is an unincorporated community in southern Fluvanna County, Virginia, along U.S. Highway 15. Its ZIP code is 23055; the population within that ZIP code was 1148 according to the 2000 Census...
. There he recorded seven kick returns for touchdowns, 57 receptions for 1,254 yards and nine touchdowns, and 12 rushing attempts for 306 yards and three touchdowns. At the Fork Union Military Academy combine, he reportedly ran the 40-yard dash in 4.126 seconds. Rivals.com
Rivals.com
Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting. The network was started in 1996 and currently employs more than 300 personnel.-Schools:The individual collegiate sites can be found...
ranked him the number-17 prep school player in the nation and called him the "fastest player on the East Coast". The head coach John Schuman called him "the fastest player ever at Fork Union", a school which has produced 87 NFL Draft
NFL Draft
The National Football League Draft is an annual event in which the National Football League teams select eligible college football players and it is their most common source of player recruitment. The basic design of the draft is each team is given a position in the drafting order in reverse order...
picks and two Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
winners.
Ford was recruited by Clemson, Florida
Florida Gators football
The Florida Gators football team represents the University of Florida in the sport of American football. The Florida Gators compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletics Association and the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference...
, Michigan State
Michigan State Spartans football
The Michigan State Spartans football program represents Michigan State University in college football as members of the Big Ten Conference at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level...
, Virginia
Virginia Cavaliers football
Virginia Cavaliers football is a college football program that competes in the NCAA Division I-FBS and the Coastal Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference...
, Virginia Tech
Virginia Tech Hokies football
The Virginia Tech Hokies football team is a college football program that competes in NCAA Division I-FBS, in the Coastal Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference. They have more wins in team history than any other program in the ACC. Their home games are played at Lane Stadium which seats over...
, and West Virginia
West Virginia Mountaineers football
The West Virginia Mountaineers football team represents West Virginia University in the NCAA FBS division of college football. Dana Holgorsen is the team's 33rd head coach. He has held the position since he was promoted in June 2011 after the resignation of Bill Stewart. The Mountaineers play their...
.
College career
Ford enrolled at Clemson UniversityClemson University
Clemson University is an American public, coeducational, land-grant, sea-grant, research university located in Clemson, South Carolina, United States....
, where he majored in sociology
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
. In 2006
2006 Clemson Tigers football team
The 2006 Clemson football team represented Clemson University in the 2006 college football season The team was coached by Tommy Bowden and played their homes game in the Memorial Stadium.-Notable:...
as a true freshman, he saw action in 12 of 13 games. He recorded 15 receptions for 187 yards and two touchdowns, and eight rushing attempts for 104 yards, 23 punt returns for 166 yards and one touchdown, and 13 kick returns for 426 yards and one touchdown.
In track and field during 2007, he was named the Atlantic Coast Conference
Atlantic Coast Conference
The Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953 in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC sanctions competition in twenty-five sports in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association for its twelve member universities...
(ACC) Indoor Freshman of the Year. In the 60-meter dash, he set an ACC record, and the national best for the year, at 6.52 seconds. Ford was also named the Southeast Region Indoor Track Athlete of the Year, and he was awarded National Collegiate Athletic Association
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
(NCAA) All-American, All-East Region, and All-ACC honors.
During the 2007 football season
2007 Clemson Tigers football team
The 2007 Clemson football team represented Clemson University in the 2007 college football season. The Tigers were led by head coach Tommy Bowden and played their home games in Memorial Stadium.- Notable :...
, he saw action in eight of 13 games. He recorded 17 receptions for 310 yards and four touchdowns, 14 rushing attempts for 172 yards, 18 punt returns for 108 yards, and eight kick returns for 211 yards. His season ended early when he suffered a broken ankle against Maryland
2007 Maryland Terrapins football team
The 2007 Maryland Terrapins football team represented the University of Maryland in the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football season. It was the Terrapins' 55th season as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference and its third within the...
.
In 2008
2008 Clemson Tigers football team
The 2008 Clemson football team represented Clemson University in the 2008 college football season. The Tigers were led by oft-maligned head coach Tommy Bowden, who resigned six games into his tenth season. The interim head coach was assistant coach Dabo Swinney...
, he saw action in all 13 games. He recorded 55 receptions for 710 yards and four touchdowns, 18 rushing attempts for 96 yards, 21 punt returns for 62 yards, and 17 kick returns for 313 yards. In February 2009, at the Virginia Tech Elite Meet, Ford ran a 6.52-second 60-meter dash, which was one-hundredth of a second shy of the NCAA Championship meet record. In March, he won the 60-meter dash at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships. During the track season, he was again named an NCAA All-American, All-East Region, and All-ACC athlete with a fastest time of 10.01.
Prior to the 2009 season, the NFL Draft Scout ranked Ford as the seventh out of 310 available wide receiver prospects for the 2010 NFL Draft
2010 NFL Draft
The 2010 NFL Draft was the 75th annual meeting of National Football League franchises to select newly eligible football players. Unlike previous years, the 2010 draft took place over three days, at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, with the first round on Thursday, April 22, 2010, at 7:30 pm...
.
In the Tiger's 40-24 victory over the Florida State Seminoles on November 7, 2009, Ford and C.J. Spiller became the greatest all-purpose duo in NCAA history (a record previously held by Marshall Faulk
Marshall Faulk
Marshall William Faulk is a former American football running back who played in the National Football League. He is currently an analyst for NFL Total Access, Thursday Night Football, and NFL GameDay Morning on the NFL Network...
and Darnay Scott
Darnay Scott
Darnay Scott is a former professional American football player who was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the second round of the 1994 NFL Draft.-High school career:...
of San Diego State).
Professional career
At the NFL CombineNFL Combine
The National Invitational Camp or NFL Scouting Combine, as it is more widely known, is a week-long showcase, occurring every February in Indianapolis, Indiana's Lucas Oil Stadium , where college football players perform physical and mental tests in front of National Football League coaches, general...
, Ford recorded a 4.28 40-yard dash, the fastest of the 2010 class and the second fastest ever.
On April 24, Jacoby Ford was drafted by the Oakland Raiders
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
in Round 4 with the 108th pick overall. He had 6 receptions for 148 yards and also returned a kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown against the Kansas City Chiefs
Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. They are a member of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Originally named the Dallas Texans, the club was founded by Lamar Hunt in 1960 as a...
on 11/7/10. This was his career-best receiving total. Ford was a pivotal weapon against the Chiefs recording 148 receiving yards, 47 yards of which came on a pass from Jason Campbell
Jason Campbell
Jason Campbell is an American football quarterback for the Oakland Raiders of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the first round of the 2005 NFL Draft...
to set up Sebastian Janikowski
Sebastian Janikowski
Sebastian Janikowski is a left-footed Polish placekicker who plays for the National Football League's Oakland Raiders. He is nicknamed The Polish Cannon because he is considered to have one of the strongest kicking legs in the league, and leads the NFL in kickoffs for touchbacks. He lives in...
for the 33-yard field goal to beat Kansas City Chiefs
Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. They are a member of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Originally named the Dallas Texans, the club was founded by Lamar Hunt in 1960 as a...
23-20 in overtime. For his spectacular play in Week 9 against Kansas City, Ford was voted as the Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week
Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week
Every week during the NFL season, five finalists are chosen for the Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week award, and a winner is determined by fan voting online at . At the end of the season, total fan voting from the year is tabulated to determine the five finalists for the Diet Pepsi NFL Rookie of the...
. Ford was named the AFC Special Teams Player of the Month for November 2010. He had a 94-yard touchdown on a kickoff return against Kansas City and a 101-yard return for a score against Miami, the latter the third longest in club history. On December 26, Ford returned the opening kickoff for 99 yards, going end-to-end in 11 seconds. Ford also holds the Raiders record for the most kickoff returns for a touchdown in a season at 3. During the Week 6 game of the 2011 season
2011 NFL season
The 2011 NFL season, the 92nd regular season of the National Football League, began on Thursday, September 8, 2011 with the Super Bowl XLV champion Green Bay Packers defeating the New Orleans Saints 42–34 at Lambeau Field and will end with Super Bowl XLVI, the league's championship game, on...
, Ford set the Raiders franchise record for the most kickoffs returned for touchdowns in franchise history with 4, after his 101-yard kick off return for a touchdown against the Cleveland Browns
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional football team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are currently members of the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
.