Maurice Jones-Drew

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Maurice Jones-Drew
Jacksonville Jaguars — No. 32
Running back
Date of birth: March 23, 1985 (1985-03-23) (age 23)
Place of birth: Antioch, California
Height: 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) Weight: 210 lb (95 kg)
National Football League debut
2006 for the Jacksonville Jaguars
Career history
College: UCLA
NFL Draft: 2006 / Round: 2 / Pick: 60
 Teams:
Career highlights and awards
  • NCAA Season Record
    Punt return average
  • Jacksonville Jaguars Record: All-Purpose
    Yards in a Single Game (Week 14, '06 season)
  • Jacksonville Jaguars Record: Single Season All-Purpose Yards (2,250 yards, 2006 season)
Selected NFL statistics
(through Week 17 of the 2007 NFL season)
Rushing yards     1,709
Average     5.1
Rushing Touchdowns     22
Receptions     86
Receiving yards     843
Receiving Touchdowns     2
Stats at NFL.com

Maurice Christopher Jones-Drew[1] (born March 23, 1985 in Antioch, California) is a current American football running back for the Jacksonville Jaguars. He was drafted in the second round (60th overall) of the 2006 NFL Draft. Drew graduated from De La Salle High School in Concord and played three years of college football at UCLA before declaring himself eligible for the NFL draft after his junior year.

Contents

[edit] Early years

Maurice starred at national powerhouse De La Salle High School. De La Salle High School owns the longest winning streak in high school football history at 151 games. The football teams he played on never lost a single game during his 3-year career. He was an elusive, high-scoring running back and return specialist on offense and a punishing linebacker on defense. Maurice somersaulted into the national consciousness on October 6, 2001, when, as a junior, he scored all four of De La Salle's touchdowns (TDs) in a 29-15 nationally-televised victory over Long Beach Poly in the first game that ever matched up the nation's No. 1 and No. 2 ranked high school football teams. On the Spartans' opening drive, Maurice received a short pass in the right flat on third-and-eight from the Poly 25-yard line. He broke a tackle and then sprinted down right sideline before launching a spectacular forward somersault into the end zone. Drew next scored on a 29-yard reception on fourth down in which he ran a circle route out of the backfield down the left sideline and hauled in an over-the-shoulder touch pass at the goal line from quarterback Matt Gutierrez. Drew’s third touchdown came in the second quarter when he burst through the line, shook off two tacklers, before hitting paydirt 17 yards later. Drew’s final score salted away the historic De La Salle victory. It was a similar effort to his third touchdown and came on a 22-yard run with just under 7 minutes remaining. Drew finished with nine carries for 86 yards and three catches for another 79 yards.

During his senior season, Maurice was even better. He rushed for nearly 1,500 yards, averaged nearly 12 yards per carry, and scored 26 touchdowns. He was rated the No. 1 all-purpose back in the nation by rivals.com. He is pictured outrunning a slew of defenders on the cover of the book "When the Game Stands Tall," which chronicles the De La Salle Spartan's all-time-record 151-game winning streak.

[edit] College career

Maurice Jones-Drew played his entire collegiate career at UCLA under head coach Karl Dorrell. Despite being undersized, Jones-Drew led the Bruins in rushing all three years he was on the squad and showed good pass catching ability and big playmaking skills as both a punt and kickoff returner.

In 2005, Maurice set an all-time NCAA single-season record with a 28.5 yards per return average on 15 punt returns, breaking the previous record of 25.9 yards per return held by Bill Blackstock of Tennessee in 1951. His career average of 23.2 yards per punt return ranks second in NCAA history. Jones-Drew also established a number of UCLA records, including the career all-purpose yardage record (4,688 yards). As a sophomore against Washington, Maurice set UCLA's all-time record for yards rushing in a single game (322 yards) and also scored a school-record five touchdowns.

On his first carry of the game he burst to the outside and raced 47 yards to tie the game at 7-7. On his second carry, with UCLA trailing 24-7 and 2:30 remaining in the first quarter, he raced 62 yards for another TD. On his fourth carry, a third-and-12 with 40 seconds left in the first quarter, he sped 58 yards for his third TD. In the first quarter alone, he rushed for 169 yards and three touchdowns on four attempts. He gave the Bruins the lead for good (27-24) with 4:16 remaining in the first half when he scooted around right end for a 15-yard touchdown. In the third quarter, he broke numerous tackles en route to his school-record fifth touchdown, a 37-yard run on the Bruins' first possession of the half. His total of 322 yards rushing was the 3rd most in the history of the Pac-10 Conference, and his overall performance earned him several National Player of the Week awards.

His final year in college, his junior year, he was a consensus first-team All-American as an all-purpose back and a first-team All-Pac 10 selection as a punt returner, ahead of Heisman Trophy-winner Reggie Bush. He was also the first Bruin since Jackie Robinson to lead the country in punt returning. Maurice gave a sign of things to come when, as a freshman, he rushed for 176 yards on only 18 carries against Arizona State, including an 83-yard scamper down the left sideline to the end zone which put UCLA ahead in the game for good in the third quarter. The run was the longest ever by a Bruin true freshman and ranked ninth (tied) overall on the school's list of long runs. His 176-yard day ranks No. 2 on UCLA's all-time list for true freshmen. In his collegiate career, Jones-Drew had 16 touchdowns of 40-plus yards. He was named to the Golden Gridiron Team by the WCBGU Athletic Group.

Year Carry Yards Touchdowns Yards Per Carry Receptions Yards Receiving Touchdowns Return Yards Return Touchdowns
2003 135 582 5 4.3 15 104 0 533 2
2004 160 1007 8 6.3 18 262 3 337 1
2005 186 914 13 4.9 31 453 4 496 3

[edit] NFL career

[edit] 2006 NFL Draft

Maurice Jones-Drew was selected 60th overall in the 2nd round of the 2006 NFL Draft by the Jacksonville Jaguars to perhaps eventually replace Fred Taylor. Represented by agent Adisa Bakari, and marketing agent Robert London II, Maurice is considered a rising young star in the NFL, and is often seen as a model for other short running backs.[2]

Pre-draft measureables
Wt 40y 20ss 3-cone Vert BP Wonderlic
207 lb* 4.39s* 4.41s* 7.08s* 36 in* 18*[3] X

(* represents NFL Combine)

[edit] Jacksonville Jaguars

[edit] 2006 Rookie Season

In the beginning he was used mostly for kick-off returns, but he eventually became the Jaguars' primary third-down back. After a relatively slow start, Jones-Drew suddenly exploded. Against the Colts on December 10, 2006, Jones-Drew set a franchise record with 166 rushing yards and 303 All-Purpose Yards, which included a 93-yard kickoff return for touchdown. He already has broken Jaguars team records by scoring at least one rushing touchdown in eight consecutive games (the previous record was four straight games) and by gaining 2,250 all-purpose yards.

He finished 3rd in the NFL in both kickoff returns (27.7 yd avg) and touchdowns scored (16). He was also one of only two players in the NFL to score at least one TD rushing, receiving, and returning kicks (Reggie Bush was the other). He also led all AFC running backs in scrimmage yards per touch. Narrowly missing 1,000 yards for the season, Jones-Drew's rushing average of 5.7 yds per carry was 1st in the NFL for backs with 100 attempts and was the highest for an NFL running back since Barry Sanders averaged 6.1 yds per rush in 1997. In addition, he had the third-most all-purpose yards of any rookie in history. He was nominated five different times for NFL Rookie of the Week in 2006. According to one NFL scout, "Maurice Jones-Drew should be rookie of the year. He's got the biggest legs for a shorter guy and way more power than anybody gives him credit for. And he's got outstanding speed. He's just a little dynamo." (Source: The Sporting News, Jan. 8, 2007, edition, p. 33.)

Nevertheless, he finished tied for 2nd in the balloting for Offensive Rookie of the Year (Vince Young of the Tennessee Titans was the winner). Experts believe he could be another Joe Morris type running back with short stature but blazing speed. On a more humorous note, Jones-Drew says he likes wearing #32 because it reminds him each and every time he steps on the football field just how many NFL teams bypassed him in the 1st round of the 2006 NFL Draft because of his height.

[edit] 2007 Season

In his two-plus seasons in the NFL, Maurice Jones-Drew has proven to be one of the most versatile running backs in the league.[4] At the beginning of this season, Maurice Jones-Drew was considered arguably the best running back from the Class of 2006.[5] Expectations were high, and although the preseason had it's ups and downs, such as a dropped pass from Byron Leftwich in a 21-13 win against Green Bay, a high was provided by the 38 yard catch and run from Byron Leftwich in a win against Tampa Bay. Overall Maurice Jones-Drew averaged 4.6 yards per carry in the preseason.[6]

In his 2007 season debut Jones-Drew's production was just average. During a 10-13 loss to the Titans, Maurice Jones-Drew had 32 yards on seven carries in a game that produced just 48 rushing yards between Jones-Drew and Fred Taylor combined. Maurice Jones-Drew's fumble at the 8 yard line in the 4th quarter was the last scoring opportunity for the Jaguars in that game.[7][8] Promises that the running game would get better as the season progressed were realized when Maurice Jones-Drew celebrated his first touchdown of the year after the fourth game of the season, in a 17-7 win against the Kansas City.

The following week against the Houston Texans Jones-Drew recorded his first 100 yard rushing game of season, rushing for 125 and 2 touchdowns on 12 carries. He also recorded 4 catches for 59 yards. In week 7 he would score the Jaguars only points in a Monday Night loss against the Indianapolis Colts. In week 10 he reached the 100 yard mark for the second and final time in the season, rushing for 101 yards and a touchdown against the Tennessee Titans. He would score a touchdown in each of the following three weeks.

Although his role as a running back was diminished during the 2007 postseason, he still managed to impact the game with his capabilities as a receiver and a return man. In the Wildcard game against Pittsburgh he totaled 198 all-purpose yards and 2 touchdowns. His first touchdown was a 43 yard pass from David Garrard, his second was a 10 yard run which put the Jaguars up 28-10 in the third quarter. He also returned a kick-off 96 yards to setup the Jaguars first score of the night, a Fred Taylor 1 yard run. He was named co-MVP of the game together with QB David Garrard. One week later against New England, he rushed for just 19 yards on 6 attempts as the Jaguars lost 31-20. He did managed catch 6 passes for an additional 49 yards.

[edit] NFL Career Statistics

Statistics taken from ESPN.com[9] and NFL.com[10]

Year Carries Yards Rushing Touchdowns Yards Per Carry Receptions Yards Receiving Touchdowns Return Yards Return Touchdowns
2006 166 941 13 5.7 46 436 2 860 1
2007 167 768 9 4.6 40 407 0 811 1
2007 postseason 14 48 1 3.4 7 92 1 159 0

[edit] Personal life

Born Maurice Drew to Dana and Andrea Drew, Maurice was raised by his grandparents, Maurice and Christina Jones. During his junior year at UCLA, Jones-Drew's grandfather died of a heart attack while watching him play against Rice University. To honor his late grandfather, Jones-Drew changed his name from Drew to its current form.[11][12]

One common nickname for Jones-Drew is "MoJo," combining the abbreviations of his first and last names. Other nicknames for him include "GoMoJo", "Ewok", "Mighty Mouse", "Beast", "Merlin", "The Tsunami", "Tiny Tim", "Superman", "The Pinball," "The Pinball Wizard," "Pocket Hercules" (Given by CBS analyst Shannon Sharpe), "MJD" and "Mighty MJD". On November 29, 2007, in an interview on the Dan Patrick Show, Patrick told Maurice his new nickname would be "The Chiropractor", in reference to Jones-Drew's powerful block against San Diego Chargers linebacker Shawn Merriman in a game the week before. In this interview Maurice told Patrick his favorite nickname is "Merlin".

According to The Maurice Jones-Drew Radio Show, one fan nickname for Jones-Drew, "GoMoJo", is currently being used for T-Shirts, and has also inspired the possible creation of a cartoon in which the main character is loosely based on Maurice Jones-Drew.

Jones-Drew appeared in a television commercial for ESPN. The commercial featured him being inducted into the mythical Fantasy Football Hall of Fame.

Jones-Drew appeared in a television commercial for Campbell's in fall of 2007, and was the subject of a half-hour program on NFL Network entitled "Who Is Maurice Jones-Drew?".

[edit] References

  1. ^ NFL Players Association's Biography Page - The NFLPA is the union for professional football players in the NFL
  2. ^ NFL: Rice says size isn't everything by Vinny Ditrani, The Record - online edition, February 23, 2008
  3. ^ *Maurice Drew, RB, UCLA - 2006 NFL Draft Scout Profile, Powered by The SportsXchange
  4. ^ Jags’ Jones-Drew packs big punch in his small body
  5. ^ Five NFL trends to watch for in '08
  6. ^ Five things we know we know: Cold, Hard Football Facts for August 8, 2007
  7. ^ Summary - Titans run roughshod over Jaguars in 13-10 victory
  8. ^ Opening week sees early ups and downs By Matt Pitzer USA TODAY, September 10, 2007, Page 13C
  9. ^ ESPN Player Profile
  10. ^ NFL.com Jacksonville Jaguars Player Profile
  11. ^ Running with a spirit - Bruins star's biggest fan was his late grandfather
  12. ^ Late grandfather has lasting impact on Drew

[edit] External links

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