Alexander Wright (American football)

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Alexander Wright
Date of birth: July 19, 1967 (1967-07-19) (age 40)
Place of birth: Flag of the United States Albany, Georgia
Career information
Position(s): Wide receiver
Jersey №: 81, 89
College: Auburn
NFL Draft: 1990 / Round: 2 / Pick 26
Organizations
 As player:
1990-1992
1992-1994
1995-1996		 Dallas Cowboys
Los Angeles Raiders
St. Louis Rams
Stats at DatabaseFootball.com

Alexander Wright (born July 19, 1967 in Albany, Georgia) is a former NFL wide receiver, two-time winner of the NFL's "Fastest Man" competition and current athletic director and head football coach for San Jacinto Christian Academy in Amarillo, Texas.[1] His speed caused many to consider him to have great potential, but difficulties playing wide receiver led him to retire early.

Contents

[edit] Pre-NFL career

Wright attended Auburn University from 1986 to 1989, earning a Bachelor of Arts in adult education. While at Auburn, he was a wide receiver on the football team and caught 56 passes for 1,320 yards and 11 touchdowns. He set and still holds an Auburn record of 23.6 yards per reception.[2][3]

[edit] NFL career

Wright was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the second round of the 1990 NFL draft, the first wide receiver to be chosen and the first pick of the round. He was intended to complement Emmitt Smith, chosen in the first round. He did not perform as well as expected, however, and when later asked about his performance, he admitted "I was never a polished package."[4] His chief talent was on special teams as a kick returner, in which capacity he scored both of his touchdowns with the Cowboys. On December 22, 1991, he set a Cowboys record, still standing, for longest play with a 102-yard kick return[5] Wright was one of the fastest sprinters in the NFL, winning the NFL's "Fastest Man" competition in 1990 and 1991.[6] In May 1991 he was recorded to have run the 40 yard dash in 4.09 seconds.[7] However, he was traded to the Los Angeles Raiders (now the Oakland Raiders) in 1992 for a fourth-round draft pick when he still had no receptions following the first four games of the season.

His most productive season was in 1994 when he caught 27 passes for 462 yards. Wright played his final two seasons with the St. Louis Rams, then retired in 1996.

[edit] Statistics

Receiving Rushing Fumbles
Year Team GP Rec Yds Avg TD Lng Att Yds Avg TD Lng Tot OwR Yds
1990 DAL 15 11 104 9.5 0 20 3 26 8.7 0 14 1 1 0
1991 DAL 16 10 170 17.0 0 53 2 -1 -0.5 0 3 0
1992 DAL 4 0 0 0
1992 LAD 10 12 175 14.6 2 41t 0 1 0 0
1993 LAD 15 27 462 17.1 4 68t 0 0
1994 LAD 16 16 294 18.4 2 76t 0 0 1 0
1995 STL 8 23 368 16.0 2 50 1 17 17.0 0 17 0
1996 STL 3 2 24 12.0 0 13 0 0
7 seasons 87 101 1597 15.8 10 76t 6 42 7.0 0 17 2 2 0

[edit] Post-NFL

In 1999, Wright earned the Master of Arts in sports management from Lindenwood University. In 2002 he served as the interim head coach of the River City Renegades, a National Indoor Football League team. In 2004, he was the wide receiver coach for West Texas A&M University. In 2005, he was hired to be the offensive coordinator at Greensboro College. He was the offensive coordinator for Southwestern Assemblies of God University. He is currently the Athletic Director and head football coach for San Jacinto Christian Academy in Amarillo, TX.

[edit] References

A feature article outlining Wright's NFL career and life since retiring.
Press release, including biographical information.
  • Thomas, Landon. The SEC team of the '80s: Auburn football 1980-1989. Woodstock, GA: Tigers Publishing, 2005. ISBN  ?. (Dewey 796.33263 T4587s.) [1][2]

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ San Jacinto Christian Academy: overview
  2. ^ Auburn records page
  3. ^ Opening day best in SEC history
  4. ^ Whitt
  5. ^ Cowboys Records, Whitt. Note, however, that databaseFootball statistics do not show that Wright ever returned a kickoff in the NFL; for example, the 1992 Cowboys statistics listed on databaseFootball omit Wright, while JT-SW.com and Blue Star Boys statistics include him; the cause of this discrepancy is unknown.
  6. ^ Whitt
  7. ^ Whitt. This time may be inaccurate for several reasons; see criticism of the 40 yard dash.

[edit] External links

  • Staff page at Southwestern Assemblies of God University
v • d • e
Dallas Cowboys 1990 NFL Draft selections
Emmitt Smith • Alexander Wright • Jimmie Jones • Kenneth Gant • Dave Harper