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Tyjae Spears

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Tyjae Spears
refer to caption
Spears with the Tennessee Titans in 2024
No. 2 – Tennessee Titans
Position:Running back
Personal information
Born: (2001-06-15) June 15, 2001 (age 23)
Hammond, Louisiana, U.S.
Height:5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight:195 lb (88 kg)
Career information
High school:Ponchatoula (Ponchatoula)
College:Tulane (2019–2022)
NFL draft:2023 / round: 3 / pick: 81
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of 2024
Rushing yards:765
Rushing average:4.2
Rushing touchdowns:6
Receptions:82
Receiving yards:609
Receiving touchdowns:2
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Tyjae Armon Spears (born June 15, 2001) is an American professional football running back for the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Tulane.

Early life

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Spears grew up in Ponchatoula, Louisiana and attended Ponchatoula High School.[1] As a senior, he rushed for 920 yards and had 880 receiving yards with 18 total touchdowns.[2] Spears was rated a three-star recruit and committed to play college football at Tulane University after considering an offer from Kansas State.[3]

College career

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Spears rushed for 192 yards and one touchdown and caught five passes for 133 yards and one touchdown in four games during his freshman season at Tulane.[4][5] He began his sophomore season as the Green Wave's starting running back and rushed 37 times for 274 yards and two touchdowns before suffering a season-ending injury in Week 3 and using a medical redshirt.[6] As a redshirt sophomore, Spears gained 863 yards and scored nine touchdowns on 129 carries.[7] He was named the American Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year as a redshirt junior.[8] He was ranked the 6th best college football player nationwide among the "100 Best Players of the College Football Bowl Season 2022–2023" by College Football News.[9]

Professional career

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Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
5 ft 9+5⁄8 in
(1.77 m) 		201 lb
(91 kg) 		30+3⁄4 in
(0.78 m) 		10 in
(0.25 m)		 4.54 s 1.57 s 2.57 s 4.32 s 7.27 s 39.0 in
(0.99 m)		 10 ft 5 in
(3.18 m)		 18 reps
Sources:[10][11]

Spears was drafted by the Tennessee Titans in the third round, 81st overall, of the 2023 NFL draft.[12] He shared a backfield that had Derrick Henry as the primary running back.[13] In Week 5, against the Indianapolis Colts, he scored his first professional touchdown on a 19-yard rush.[14] He finished his rookie season with 453 rushing yards and two touchdowns along with 52 catches for 385 yards and one touchdown.[15]

Spears returned for the 2024 season, now sharing the backfield with newly signed Tony Pollard after Henry's departure. He was the only Titans player that season to record two touchdowns in two consecutive games during Week 15 and Week 16. He appeared in 12 games, missing parts of the season due to injury. He finished the season with 84 carries for 312 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns, along with 30 receptions for 224 yards and a receiving touchdown.[16]

NFL career statistics

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Regular season

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Year Team Games Rushing Receiving Fumbles
GP GS Att Yds Avg Lng TD Att Yds Avg Lng TD Fum Lost
2023 TEN 17 1 100 453 4.5 23 2 52 385 7.4 48 1 1 0
2024 TEN 12 1 84 312 3.7 23 4 30 224 7.5 43 1 1 0
Career 29 2 184 765 4.2 23 6 82 609 7.4 43 2 2 0

References

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  1. ^ Bailey, Jarrett (March 29, 2023). "Remember Your Why: How Tyjae Spears went from small Louisiana town to top running back prospect". Bears Wire. USA Today. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  2. ^ Smith, Guerry (September 16, 2020). "Special gifts: Tulane running back Tyjae Spears broke out in his first start". NOLA.com. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
  3. ^ Smith, Guerry (September 16, 2022). "Battle of the backs: Tulane's Tyjae Spears, Kansas State's Deuce Vaughn in spotlight". NOLA.com. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
  4. ^ Smith, Guerry (March 10, 2020). "Corey Dauphine delighted to get another year as Tulane running back". NOLA.com. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
  5. ^ Mills, Richie (September 22, 2020). "Tyjae Spears' Journey to Tulane Starting Role". WGNO.com. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
  6. ^ Smith, Guerry (August 3, 2022). "Back to his old self, Tulane's Tyjae Spears looks to build on 264-yard 2021 finale". NOLA.com. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
  7. ^ Brooks, Jesse (November 4, 2022). "Tulane running back Tyjae Spears visits high school alma mater". Fox8Live.com. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
  8. ^ "Tulane's Tyjae Spears, coach Willie Fritz take top AAC awards, with Cincy LB Ivan Pace Jr". ESPN.com. Associated Press. December 1, 2022. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
  9. ^ "100 Best Players of the College Football Bowl Season 2022-2023". College Football News. March 2, 2023. Retrieved July 8, 2023.
  10. ^ "Tyjae Spears Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved April 17, 2023.
  11. ^ "2023 NFL Draft Scout Tyjae Spears College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved April 17, 2023.
  12. ^ Wyatt, Jim (April 28, 2023). "Titans Select Tulane RB Tyjae Spears in the Third Round of Friday's NFL Draft". TennesseeTitans.com. Retrieved July 8, 2023.
  13. ^ "2023 Tennessee Titans Rosters, Stats, Schedule, Team Draftees, Injury Reports". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 2, 2025.
  14. ^ "Tennessee Titans at Indianapolis Colts - October 8th, 2023". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  15. ^ "Tyjae Spears 2023 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  16. ^ "Tyjae Spears 2024 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
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