Mario Edwards, Jr.

Mario Edwards, Jr.

No. --  Oakland Raiders
Position:	Defensive end
Personal information
Date of birth:	(1994-04-19) April 19, 1994
Place of birth:	Gautier, Mississippi
Height:	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight:	279 lb (127 kg)
Career information
High school:	Denton (TX) Ryan
College:	Florida State
NFL draft:	2015 / Round: 2 / Pick: 35
Career history
Oakland Raiders (2015–present)
Roster status:	Unsigned draft pick
Career highlights and awards
USA Today High School All-American (2011) USA Today High School Defensive Player of the Year (2011) Third-team All-ACC (2013) First-team All-ACC (2014) ACC Champion (2013, 2014) BCS National Champion (2014)
Career NFL statistics
Stats at NFL.com

Mario Edwards, Jr. (born April 19, 1994) is an American football defensive end for the Oakland Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Florida State. He was taken 35th overall by the Raiders in the 2015 NFL Draft.

Early years

Mario was raised in Denton, Texas, where his father played for the Dallas Cowboys. Edwards attended Prosper High School for his freshman and sophomore year, where he was a three-sport athlete in football, basketball and track. He started at defensive end for the state champion Eagles as a freshman.^[1] Edwards recorded 69 tackles and three sacks as a freshman on top of catching 17 passes for 361 yards and three TDs. He then transferred to Billy Ryan High School. As a junior, he recorded 127 tackles, 50 tackles for loss and 18 sacks leading Denton Ryan to a state runner-up finish against Austin Lake Travis led by Michael Brewer.^[2] As a senior in 2011, he recorded 72 tackles and 11 sacks and was the USA Today High School Defensive Player of the Year.^[3] Further, he earned All-American honors by USA Today, Parade, Sports Illustrated, and ESPN. In track & field, Edwards competed as a shot putter during his final two years at Denton, recording a top-throw of 15.08 meters (49 ft, 3 in) at the 2012 Richardson Invitational, where he placed first.^[4]

Recruiting

Regarded as a five-star recruit by Rivals.com, Edwards was ranked as the No. 1 defensive tackle prospect in his class.^[5] In fact, he was ranked No. 3 overall,^[6] which was Rivals.com’s highest ranking for a defensive tackle prospect since Haloti Ngata (No. 2) in 2002. According to ESPN recruiting analyst Craig Haubert, Edwards was similar to Da'Quan Bowers at the same stage of their careers.^[1] Recruited by numerous schools, Edwards took official visits to Texas, Oklahoma, Florida State, and Louisiana State, before committing to the Seminoles on January 24, 2012.^[7][8]

College career

In his true freshman year in Tallahassee, Edwards was initially projected to redshirt, but then forced into action due to the loss of Brandon Jenkins in week one. Edwards appeared in 11 games and made his first career start in the 2012 ACC Championship Game replacing Cornellius Carradine. He was the only true freshman to register a start for the Seminoles on the defensive side of the ball. For the season he had 17 tackles and 1.5 sacks. As a sophomore in 2013, Edwards recorded 28 tackles, 3.5 sacks and an interception. Returning as a starter his junior season in 2014, Edwards recorded 23 tackles and three sacks.

After his junior season, Edwards entered the 2015 NFL Draft.^[9][10]

Professional career

Drafted to the Oakland Raiders at pick 35 in the second round of the 2015 NFL Draft.

Personal

Edwards was born while his father, Mario Edwards Sr., was still in high school. While the elder Edwards played college football at Florida State, the younger stayed in Mississippi with his grandmother, Ruth Chambers, and Mario Sr.'s sister and two brothers.^[1] After Edwards Sr. was drafted by Dallas Cowboys in 2000, the family moved to the northern Dallas area.^[1][12]

References

External links

• Florida State Seminoles bio