Jerious Norwood facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Jerious Norwood

Norwood in 2009
No. 32, 34
Position:	Running back / Kick returner
Personal information
Born:	(1983-07-29) July 29, 1983 (age 42) Brandon, Mississippi, U.S.
Height:	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight:	205 lb (93 kg)
Career information
High school:	Brandon
College:	Mississippi State
NFL Draft:	2006 / Round: 3 / Pick: 79
Career history
Atlanta Falcons (2006–2010) St. Louis Rams (2011) Toronto Argonauts (2013)
Career highlights and awards
2005 Conerly Trophy Led NFL in Yards per Attempt (2007) 2× Second-team All-SEC (2004, 2005)
Career NFL statistics
Rushing attempts: 399 Rushing yards: 2,056 Rushing touchdowns: 7 Receptions: 96 Receiving yards: 912 Receiving touchdowns: 3
Player stats at PFR
Player stats at CFL.ca (archive)

Jerious Montreal Norwood (born July 29, 1983) is a former American football player. He was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). Jerious played college football for the Mississippi State Bulldogs. He is known as the school's second all-time leading rusher. The Atlanta Falcons picked him in the third round of the 2006 NFL draft.

Early Life and High School Football

Jerious Norwood grew up in Brandon, Mississippi. He played both football and ran track at Brandon High School. He was an amazing high school athlete. He was even named a high school All-American.

Norwood also received the "Mr. Football" award for Mississippi. This award goes to the best high school football player in the state. During his high school career, he scored 92 touchdowns. This placed him fourth all-time on the state's scoring list. He gained over 8,000 all-purpose yards.

In his junior year, he had 3,229 all-purpose yards and 38 touchdowns. As a senior, he was named Mississippi's Gatorade Player of the Year. He rushed for 2,878 yards and scored 32 touchdowns. He also caught nine passes for 165 yards and three touchdowns. He even returned six kicks for one touchdown, averaging 46.9 yards. In one playoff game, he set a school record by rushing for 367 yards.

Besides football, Jerious was a talented sprinter and high hurdler in track and field.

College Football Career

Jerious Norwood was a three-year starter at Mississippi State. He rushed for over 100 yards in 13 different games. This broke the school record of 12 games. He started 29 out of 46 games. He set a school record with 3,222 career rushing yards. He carried the ball 573 times, averaging 5.6 yards per carry, and scored 15 touchdowns.

Freshman Year (2002)

In 2002, Norwood was recognized as an All-Freshman team member. He was honored for his skills as a kick returner. He was second on his team with 66 rushes for 394 yards. He also caught five passes for 47 yards. He returned 14 kicks for 292 yards.

Sophomore Year (2003)

During the 2003 season, Norwood played in every game. He started eight of those games. He finished the year with 121 carries for 642 yards and two touchdowns.

Junior Year (2004)

In 2004, Norwood started every game. He became the sixth player in school history to rush for over 1,000 yards in a single season. He rushed for 1,050 yards on 195 carries and scored seven touchdowns. He had five games where he rushed for more than 100 yards. One of those games was a huge 200-yard performance!

Senior Year (2005)

As a senior in 2005, Norwood won the Conerly Award. This award goes to the best college football player in Mississippi. He led his team in rushing with 1,136 yards on 191 carries. He averaged 5.9 yards per carry and scored six touchdowns without any fumbles. He also caught 19 passes for 96 yards and two touchdowns. His total of 1,275 all-purpose yards that year ranks eighth in school history.

Professional Football Career

Jerious Norwood was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in 2006. He later played for the St. Louis Rams and the Toronto Argonauts.

Atlanta Falcons (2006-2010)

2006 Season

In his first NFL season in 2006, Norwood played in 14 games. He rushed for 633 yards on 99 carries, averaging an impressive 6.4 yards per carry. He also caught 12 passes for 102 yards. He returned 13 kickoffs for 320 yards.

Norwood made NFL history with his first two career touchdown runs. Both were over 70 yards long! His 78-yard touchdown run against the Arizona Cardinals was the second longest in Falcons history at that time. In that same game, he and quarterback Mike Vick both rushed for over 100 yards. This was a rare achievement for an NFL team.

2007 Season

In 2007, Norwood played in 15 games. He gained 613 yards on 103 carries. He led all NFL running backs with an average of 6.0 yards per carry. He had several strong games, including 87 rushing yards and a touchdown against the New York Giants. He also had 94 rushing yards against the St. Louis Rams.

Norwood with Tyson Clabo and Jason Rader in 2009

St. Louis Rams (2011)

Norwood signed with the St. Louis Rams on August 2, 2011. He played nine games for them that season.

Toronto Argonauts (2013)

On August 14, 2013, Norwood joined the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League. He started his first CFL game on September 21. In that game, he rushed for 68 yards and caught 4 passes for 67 yards. He had his first 100-yard rushing game against the Montreal Alouettes, gaining 108 yards on 8 carries. He finished the season with 342 rushing yards, 234 receiving yards, and 113 kickoff return yards. The Argonauts released him on May 28, 2014.

NFL Career Statistics

Here are Jerious Norwood's career statistics in the NFL:

Regular Season Stats

Playoff Stats

Personal Life

Jerious Norwood has a daughter named Ja'Nyla Norwood.