Jalen Parmele facts for kids
Parmele (#34) at practice during his time with the Ravens
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| No. 34, 38 | |||||||||
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| Position: | Running back / Kickoff returner | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | December 30, 1985 Boynton Beach, Florida, U.S. |
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| Height: | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 224 lb (102 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Midland (MI) Dow | ||||||||
| College: | Toledo | ||||||||
| NFL Draft: | 2008 / Round: 6 / Pick: 176 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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| Player stats at PFR | |||||||||
Justin Alexander "Jalen" Parmele (born December 30, 1985) is a former American football player. He played as a running back, which is a player who runs with the ball. He was chosen by the Miami Dolphins in the 2008 NFL draft. Jalen also played for other teams like the Baltimore Ravens and Jacksonville Jaguars. Before playing professionally, he played college football at the University of Toledo. Today, Jalen owns a business in Arizona that helps people with exercise and massage.
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Early Life and High School Football
Jalen Parmele grew up in Midland, Michigan. He went to Herbert Henry Dow High School, where he was a star football player. In his second year, he ran for 705 yards. As a junior, he gained 1,253 yards. In his final year, he rushed for an amazing 1,507 yards and scored 23 touchdowns!
Because of his great performance, Jalen was named his team's Most Valuable Player (MVP). He was also chosen as a first-team all-state player, meaning he was one of the best in the whole state. Jalen was also a good student, making the league's all-academic team three times. Besides football, he also played basketball and ran track.
College Football Career
After high school, Jalen went to the University of Toledo to play college football. He also had offers from other universities.
In his first year (2004), he played in nine games. He ran for 183 yards and scored three touchdowns. The next year, he played in 11 games, gaining 294 yards and scoring three more touchdowns.
Jalen really shined in 2006, his junior year. He rushed for 1,170 yards and eight touchdowns. This earned him a spot on the first-team All-MAC team. He also caught 16 passes for 128 yards. His rushing yards were the third-highest in his conference. In one game against Ball State, he ran for a career-high 173 yards. He even had a 92-yard run, which was one of the longest in his school's history!
In 2007, his senior year, Jalen had his best season ever. He rushed for 1,511 yards and 14 touchdowns. This was the ninth-highest rushing total in the entire nation that year! He was again named first-team All-MAC. He also caught 17 passes for 157 yards and scored his only college receiving touchdown. In a game against Ohio, he set a new personal record with 241 rushing yards.
Jalen finished his college career with a total of 3,119 rushing yards. He scored 28 touchdowns and averaged 5.3 yards every time he ran with the ball.
Professional Football Career
Before the 2008 NFL draft, Jalen showed off his skills at the NFL Scouting Combine. This is where college players are tested by professional teams. He ran the 40-yard dash in 4.47 seconds, which is very fast! He also showed his strength and jumping ability.
| Height | Weight | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 ft 11+1⁄2 in (1.82 m) |
224 lb (102 kg) |
4.47 s | 1.48 s | 2.54 s | 4.29 s | 6.96 s | 34 in (0.86 m) |
10 ft 5 in (3.18 m) |
19 reps | |||
| All values from NFL Combine | ||||||||||||
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins picked Jalen in the sixth round of the 2008 NFL draft. The Dolphins' general manager thought Jalen would be their third-string running back. He also believed Jalen would be good at returning kickoffs. During practices, Jalen worked with the second-string offense and even returned punts.
Jalen was not active for the first three games of the 2008 season. On September 24, he was released by the Dolphins. However, he was quickly re-signed to their practice squad the very next day. A practice squad is a group of players who train with the team but are not on the main roster.
Baltimore Ravens
On December 9, 2008, the Baltimore Ravens signed Jalen from the Dolphins' practice squad. He played his first NFL game on December 28 against the Jacksonville Jaguars. In that game, he ran the ball twice for 27 yards.
In 2009, his second season with the Ravens, Jalen became a more important player. He became the team's main kick returner after another player got injured. He returned nine kickoffs for a total of 283 yards, averaging 31.4 yards per return! His longest return was 53 yards. He also carried the ball five times for 17 yards and made six tackles on special teams.
In 2010, Jalen continued his role as a backup returner but did not run the ball. The Ravens released him on September 3, 2011.
Jacksonville Jaguars
Jalen signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars on May 1, 2012. He started the season playing on special teams, which includes returning kicks. When the team's main running back and two others got injured, Jalen became the starting running back!
He played in the Jaguars' first 11 games. However, he then got a groin injury on November 27. This injury meant he had to go on injured reserve, which ended his season. For the Jaguars, he carried the ball 40 times for 143 yards. He also caught seven passes for 60 yards and returned 10 kicks for 233 yards. He became a free agent in 2013.
Tennessee Titans
Jalen signed with the Tennessee Titans on May 8, 2013. However, he was released by the team on August 30, 2013, before the regular season began.
Arizona Cardinals
On May 27, 2014, Jalen signed with the Arizona Cardinals. He played in one game for the Cardinals in Week 3. He was released by the team on September 24, 2014.
Cleveland Browns
Jalen signed with the Cleveland Browns on August 3, 2015. He was released by the team on August 31, 2015.
