Ryan Broyles

Ryan Broyles (born April 9, 1988) is an American football wide receiver for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Oklahoma, set the all-time NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision record for career receptions, and was twice recognized as a consensus All-American. He was selected by the Detroit Lions in the second round of the 2012 NFL Draft.

Early years

Broyles was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He attended Norman High School, where he was a three-sport star in football, basketball and track. He played as a wide receiver and defensive back for the Norman Tigers high school football team. He finished his career with 79 receptions for 1,688 yards and 18 touchdowns on offense and 157 tackles and 20 interceptions on defense. He was named 6A-2 All-District and OCA All-State. In basketball, he averaged 18 points per game.^[1]

Also an standout track & field athlete, Broyles was one of the state's top performers in the high jump. At the 2006 Mid-State Conference Meet, he tied for first place in the high jump, posting a career-best mark of 2.10 meters (6 ft, 10 in).^[2] He also ran on the Norman 4x100m relay squad.

College career

Broyles attended the University of Oklahoma, where he played for coach Bob Stoops' Oklahoma Sooners football team from 2008 to 2011. He was redshirted in 2007. In his first collegiate game against Cincinnati in 2008, Broyles had seven receptions for a school freshman record 141 yards. He finished the season tying a school freshman record with 46 receptions. His 687 yards were also a Sooners freshman record. He also had six receiving touchdowns and 30 punt returns for 238 yards and a touchdown.

In the 2009 season Broyles caught 76 passes for 964 yards and 12 touchdowns. He had 13 catches for 156 yards and 3 touchdowns in Oklahoma's 31-27 Sun Bowl victory over Stanford University.^[3] In 2010 Broyles caught 131 passes for 1,622 yards and 14 touchdowns. In Oklahoma's 48-20 Fiesta Bowl victory over the University of Connecticut, he had 13 catches for 170 yards and 1 touchdown.^[4]

On October 15, 2011, Broyles broke the all-time FBS career reception record (previously held by Taylor Stubblefield of Purdue) with his 317th career catch versus Kansas.^[5] The record was later broken by Justin Hardy in 2014. Broyles college career ended in a game against Texas A&M on November 5, 2011 when he tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.^[6] His senior season ended with 83 receptions for 1,157 yards and 10 touchdowns in nine games.

Broyles finished his career with 349 receptions for 4,586 yards and 45 touchdowns.

Professional career

Detroit Lions

The Detroit Lions selected him in the second round (54th overall pick) of the 2012 NFL Draft.^[7] He recorded his first NFL touchdown reception in the 4th quarter of Week 7, a 13-7 loss to the Chicago Bears.^[8] On November 16, Broyles was fined $10,000 for an illegal crack-block against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 10.^[9] He was named the 2012 Detroit Lions Rookie of the Year by the Detroit Sports Broadcasters Association.

References

External links

• Oklahoma Sooners bio