Chris Ivory Biography

Christopher Lee Ivory (born March 22, 1988) is an American football running back for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL). He was signed by the New Orleans Saints as an undrafted free agent in 2010 and has also played on the New York Jets. He played college football at Washington State and Tiffin.

Early years

Ivory earned letters in both football and track and field in high school at Longview High School in Longview, Texas, playing on a team that also included future NFL players Trent Williams, Malcolm Kelly, and Robert Henson. He was listed as a two-star recruit by both Rivals.com and Scout.com.

College career

Ivory played three years for Washington State. Limited by injuries, in 22 games he had 91 rushes for 534 yards and four touchdowns, as well as 23 kickoff returns averaging 22.8 yards. When the coaches who had recruited him were replaced by a new coaching staff, Ivory found himself far down on the Cougars' depth chart. In August 2009, he was dismissed from the Washington State team for violating team rules.

Ivory then transferred to Tiffin University, a Division II school in Tiffin, Ohio, whose team was coached by Dave Walkosky, a former Washington State assistant coach. In Ivory's final year of college football, he had 39 rushes for 223 yards in five games before suffering a season-ending knee injury. Walkosky attempted to obtain a medical redshirt exemption to allow Ivory to play another year, but this was unsuccessful. Despite his brief stint at Tiffin University, Ivory's performance and speed attracted attention from NFL scouts, and he was thought to have a chance of becoming the first Tiffin University player to be drafted by the NFL. The Saints became interested in Ivory, despite his injuries, after one of their scouts was impressed by Walkosky's enthusiastic recommendations.

Professional career

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New Orleans Saints

Ivory was not drafted during the 2010 NFL Draft, but he reached a deal with the Saints immediately after the draft, and signed as an undrafted free agent on May 3, 2010. He had an impressive performance in training camp and preseason games, highlighted by a strong performance against the San Diego Chargers that included a 76-yard touchdown on a swing pass.

Early season injuries to Reggie Bush and Pierre Thomas left Ivory as the Saints' starting running back. He had a breakout game in Week 6 against Tampa Bay: his 158 yards on 15 carries were the most by any Saints running back since Deuce McAllister rushed for 165 yards in a 2003 game, and the most by a Saints rookie since a 179-yard effort by Ricky Williams in 1999. The performance earned him awards as both Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week and FedEx Ground Player of the Week. Another strong performance in Week 11, with 23 rushes for 99 yards in a 34-19 win over against Seattle, led Seahawks coach Pete Carroll to call Ivory "a freaking stud out there." Ivory ended the regular season with 137 rushes for 716 yards (leading the team) and 5 touchdowns, but he also suffered repeated injuries during the year; after a foot injury in the Saints' last regular season game, he was placed on the injured reserve list and was unable to play in the post-season.

Ivory spent the first six games of the 2011 season on the PUP list; after he was activated, he played in six games, with 79 rushes for 374 yards, and 22 carries for 70 yards in the Saints' two playoff games. In May 2012, the Saints paid Ivory an additional signing bonus to make up for the income he lost on the PUP list. He became a restricted free agent after the 2012 season.

New York Jets

Ivory was traded to the New York Jets on April 26, 2013 during the 2013 NFL Draft for the Jets' fourth round draft pick (106th overall). He signed a three-year contract worth $10 million.

On September 7, 2014, he had a 71-yd touchdown run. It was the second longest touchdown run in Jets history; Bruce Harper ran for 78 yards in 1983.

On October 4, 2015, during an NFL International Series matchup against the Miami Dolphins at Wembley Stadium, Ivory rushed for 166 yards and a touchdown, setting a career high in rushing yards. Ivory won the AFC rushing title in the 2015 season beating Latavius Murray by four yards, finishing the year with 1,070 rushing yards and his first Pro Bowl selection.

Jacksonville Jaguars

Ivory signed a three-year deal with the Jacksonville Jaguars on March 10, 2016.

On October 16, 2016, Ivory had 11 carries for 32-yards and scored his first rushing touchdown as the Jaguars defeated the Bears 17-16.

Career awards and highlights

• Pro Bowl selection (2015)
• PFWA All-AFC selection (2015)
• AFC rushing yards leader (2015)
• 4× FedEx Ground Player of the Week
  (Week 6, 2010, Week 7, 2013, Week 4, 2015, Week 6, 2015)
• Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week (Week 6, 2010)
• NFL All-Rookie Team ()