Johnathan Gray (born April 22, 1993) is a former American football running back. He played for the Frisco Fighters of the Indoor Football League (IFL) in 2021. He played college football for the University of Texas at Austin. He attended Aledo High School in Aledo, Texas. Gray earned a 2011 USA Today High School All-American nomination, and was also named Gatorade National Player of the Year.[1] After becoming the first junior to win ESPN HS's Mr. Football USA,[2] he became the first two-time winner of the award following the 2011 high school football season.[3]
| No. 32 | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Running back |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | April 22, 1993 Aledo, Texas, U.S. |
| Height: | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
| Weight: | 207 lb (94 kg) |
| Career information | |
| Undrafted: | 2016 |
| Career history | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
Gray chose the University of Texas over Arkansas, Auburn, TCU, and Texas A&M.
Early life
editGray attended Aledo High School in Aledo, Texas, where he broke the all-time high school touchdown record with 205 eclipsing Mike Hart's record of 204 touchdowns.[4][5] As a junior, he rushed for 323 yards and eight touchdowns in the Texas Class 4A Division II championship game against La Marque High School on December 17 at Cowboys Stadium, which gave him a total of 59 rushing touchdowns for the 2010 high school football season and surpassed Kenneth Hall's single-season record of 57 set in 1953.[2] Gray had rushed for 252 yards and four touchdowns in the 2009 state championship victory over Brenham High School.[2] In 2011, Gray led Aledo to its third straight state championship with 241 rushing yards.[6] Along the way, he scored his 205th touchdown establishing the national high school career record.[4] He finished his high school career first all-time in touchdowns and second all-time in points scored.[7]
| Year | Attempts | Yards | Average | Touchdowns |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 140 | 969 | 6.9 | 15 |
| 2009 | 372 | 2,798 | 7.5 | 50 |
| 2010 | 351 | 3,223 | 9.2 | 59 |
| 2011 | 346 | 3,891 | 11.2 | 65 |
| Total | 1,209 | 10,881 | 8.7 | 189 |
Gray was also on the school's track & field team, where he competed as a sprinter. He was a 3 time district champion in the 100-meter dash. As a junior in 2009, he won the 100 meters at the 4th Johnny Perkins Pirate Relays, with a career-best time of 10.58 seconds.[9] He also competed in the 200 meters, placing fifth at the 2009 Elk Relays.[10]
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | 40‡ | Commit date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Johnathan Gray RB |
Aledo, Texas | Aledo HS | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | 4.53 | Apr 22, 2011 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: | ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 1 (RB) Rivals: 1 (RB) ESPN: 1 (RB) | ||||||
Sources:
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College career
editGray tore his right Achilles tendon in 2013, and his left Achilles in 2015.[11] The tendon tears put Gray's career on hold, and Gray went undrafted in the 2016 NFL draft.[12]
College statistics
edit| Year | GP–GS | Rushing | Receiving | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Att | Yds | Avg | TD | Long | Rec | Rec–Yards | Avg | TD | Long | ||
| 2012 | 13-5 | 149 | 701 | 4.7 | 3 | 49 | 11 | 151 | 13.7 | 1 | 34 |
| 2013 | 9-8 | 159 | 780 | 4.9 | 4 | 45 | 15 | 61 | 4.1 | 0 | 10 |
| 2014 | 13–13 | 147 | 637 | 4.3 | 7 | 42 | 20 | 122 | 6.1 | 0 | 17 |
| 2015 | 11–11 | 123 | 489 | 4.3 | 3 | 46 | 6 | 84 | 14.0 | 0 | 26 |
| Totals | 43-36 | 578 | 2607 | 4.5 | 17 | 49 | 52 | 418 | 8.0 | 1 | 34 |
Professional career
editSeveral NFL teams showed interest in Gray as a free agent following the draft.[13] In 2017, after demonstrating a 4.5-second 40-yard dash and a 36-inch vertical leap at the annual Texas Pro Day workout, Gray landed a tryout with the New York Giants.[14] After attending the Giants' rookie camp, Gray received invites to rookie camps for the Calgary Stampeders, Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League; however, Gray ultimately never played for any of them.[15]
On April 8, 2021, the Frisco Fighters announced that they had signed Gray for the 2021 season.[16]
References
edit- ^ Gray receives Gatorade national award
- ^ a b c Jennings, Randy & Mark Tennis (January 19, 2011). "Aledo's Johnathan Gray becomes first junior to win Mr. Football USA". ESPN HS. Archived from the original on January 12, 2012. Retrieved January 28, 2012.
- ^ McCormick, Jim (December 21, 2011). "Johnathan Gray named Mr. Football USA". ESPN HS. Retrieved January 28, 2012.
- ^ a b Jennings, Randy (December 17, 2011). "Johnathan Gray sets high school mark". ESPN Dallas. Retrieved December 23, 2011.
- ^ McDaniel, Jason (December 17, 2011). "Aledo's Gray breaks career TDs record as Manvel falls in state final". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved December 23, 2011.
- ^ Andrews, Jeff (December 17, 2011). "Bishop, Gray lift Aledo to 3rd straight state title". ESPN HS. Retrieved January 28, 2012.
- ^ "All-time points and touchdowns leaders". ESPN HS. December 17, 2011. Retrieved January 28, 2012.
- ^ "Johnathan Gray". Rivals.com. Retrieved December 23, 2011.
- ^ "Track & Field, Cross Country Results, Statistics".
- ^ "Track & Field, Cross Country Results, Statistics".
- ^ Lambert, Erik (March 30, 2016). "Johnathan Gray, RB, Texas: 2016 NFL Draft Scouting Report". Retrieved August 2, 2021.
- ^ Brandt, Gil (April 30, 2016). "Top undrafted free agents following the 2016 NFL Draft". National Football League. Retrieved August 2, 2021.
- ^ Martinez, Matthew (September 5, 2016). "Former Aledo great Johnathan Gray hasn't given up on NFL dream". Retrieved August 2, 2021.
- ^ Eberts, Wescott (May 2, 2017). "Former Texas RB Johnathan Gray lands tryout with the New York Giants". Burnt Orange Nation. Retrieved August 2, 2021.
- ^ "Longhorns running back Johnathan Gray on life after football". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. August 7, 2018. Retrieved August 2, 2021.
- ^ "Star RB Johnathan Gray Returns to Football with the Fighters". Frisco Fighters. April 8, 2021. Retrieved August 2, 2021.