Jerraud Powers

Jerraud Powers

At a game in Denver in September, 2010.
No. 25     Indianapolis Colts
Cornerback
Personal information
Date of birth: July 19, 1987 (1987-07-19) (age 24)
Place of birth: Decatur, Alabama
Height: 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	Weight: 192 lb (87 kg)
Career information
College: Auburn
NFL Draft: 2009 / Round: 3 / Pick: 92
Debuted in 2009 for the Indianapolis Colts
Career history
Indianapolis Colts (2009-present)
Roster status: Active
Career highlights and awards
Freshman All-SEC (2006) Second-team Preseason All-SEC (2008)
Career NFL statistics as of Week 6, 2011
Tackles	145
Sacks	0.0
Interceptions	3
Forced Fumbles	1
Stats at NFL.com

Jerraud Powers (born July 19, 1987) is an American football cornerback for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Colts in the third round of the 2009 NFL Draft after declaring following his junior year.^[1] He played college football at Auburn.

Early years

Powers attended Decatur High School and was an all-state player^[2] He was named All-Region his senior year and was rated a 3-Star prospect and the #13 player in the state of Alabama by scout.com.^[3] Rivals.com rated Powers the #8 player in Alabama following his senior season.^[4]

College career

2006 season

Powers broke his foot during preseason workouts and it appeared at the time that he would have only a small chance to get on the field, but he was able to play.^[2] Powers earned playing time on special teams as a freshman. Powers recovered a critical onside kick in Auburn's 24-17 win over South Carolina.^[5] Powers also made a name for himself by blocking Eric Wilbur's third quarter punt in a home game against the eventual national champion Florida Gators.^[6] As a sophomore, Powers earned a starting spot at cornerback and played the entire season. He was selected to the Southeastern Conference All-Freshman Team on a pass defense that rated second in the SEC this season.^[7]

2007 season

Powers had a very successful 2007 season and received the Zeke Smith Award, presented each year to Auburn's Defensive Player of the Year.^[8] Jerraud Powers is also remembered as the cornerback covering LSU receiver Demetrius Byrd on his one-handed touchdown grab with one second remaining in the 2007 Auburn-LSU game.^[9][10] Powers also received a lot of attention from ESPN when an Auburn police dog bit Powers hand after a play in the 2007 Iron Bowl. The incident prompted a review of security procedures at Auburn.^[11]

2008 season

Powers returned for his junior season with high expectations after an impressive sophomore season. His matchup against Florida's wing right Percy Harvin was considered a key to the big game.^[12] Powers was impressive early in the season, leading Auburn to a shutout in the season opener. However, Powers played with an injured hamstring and struggled through much of the season.^[13] Powers was just one of many injured players on Auburn's 2008 football team, Auburn finished with a disappointing 5-7 record and missed the postseason for the first time this decade. Powers was interviewed by Opelika and Auburn TV ^[14] After the season, Powers decided to forgo his senior season at Auburn and enter the 2009 NFL Draft.

Professional career

Pre-draft

Powers was projected to be a possible NFL draft pick.^[15] Powers was rated 14 out of 239 cornerbacks and 110 out of 2,497 total players evaluated.^[15]

Indianapolis Colts

Despite being considered a prospect for a lower round, Jerraud was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the third round. He signed with the Colts on July 28, 2009, for a 4-year contract.^[16]

Powers began the 2009 season as a starter due to injuries to Marlin Jackson, and went on to start 12 of 16 games for the Colts. Despite injuries to three of the Colts' projected Defensive Backfield starters, Powers (along with fellow rookie Jacob Lacey) played well enough to put the Colts' pass defense at third in the league in Yards/Attempt. Powers recorded 66 tackles and an interception. On December 7, 2010 he was placed on season ending injury reserve due to an arm injury.

In 2010, Powers played in 10 games, starting all of them. Powers had 53 tackles and 2 interceptions. On November 6, 2011, Powers had a pick six against Matt Ryan of the Atlanta Falcons. This was his first career touchdown. The Colts lost the game, 7-31.

References

1. ^ Auburn's Jerraud Powers leaving early for NFL
2. ^ ^{a b} "Prime time for Powers -- in practice: As AU works out for bowl, redshirt from Decatur gets his chance to shine" By Bradley Handwerger Decatur Daily Dec. 20 http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-17138256_ITM
3. ^ http://recruiting.scout.com/a.z?s=73&p=8&c=1&nid=1190615
4. ^ http://footballrecruiting.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=28204
5. ^ "Then with the Gamecocks feeling good about holding Auburn out of the end zone, coach Tommy Tuberville took a page from Spurrier's book and stunned the Gamecocks with a perfectly executed onside kick... Jerraud Powers recovered for Auburn." Game Summary September 28, 2006 USA Today [1]
6. ^ "Auburn’s Jerraud Powers, right, blocking a punt by Eric Wilbur last night. Tre Smith scored on the play to give Auburn an 18-17 lead early in the third quarter." by Ray Glier October 15, 2006
7. ^ "Jerraud Powers, who made the SEC All-Freshman Team in 2006, is solid in all aspects of the game." Tiger aerial assault: Clemson passing offense v. Auburn secondary By Hugo Guzman December 24, 2007 RF365 http://www.realfootball365.com/articles/auburn/10258
8. ^ Auburn player profile http://auburntigers.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/powers_jerraud00.html
9. ^ http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=272930099
10. ^ "Byrd cradled in the touchdown with a second left, the ball barely sneaking under the outstretched arm of Auburn defensive back Jerraud Powers. If the ball had been tipped away, the game probably would have ended with Auburn on top. Instead, LSU celebrated." -- "With so many twists and turns, 6 plays stood out as the ones that altered the season" By Ralph D. Russo 1/3/2008 USA Today http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/football/2008-01-03-1143376796_x.htm
11. ^ "Powers was celebrating breaking up a pass in the end zone when the dog bite him on the hand in the fourth quarter, a scene that received more television and Internet airtime than any other moment in the game." -- "Auburn reviewing dog bit" November 28, 2007 Associated Press story in the New York Times
12. ^ "University of Florida keys" By ANTONYA ENGLISH, Times Staff Writer Published September 29, 2007 http://www.sptimes.com/2007/09/29/Sports/University_of_Florida.shtml
13. ^ Alabama Press Register story http://www.al.com/auburnfootball/mobileregister/index.ssf?/base/sports/1224062130187230.xml&coll=3
14. ^ Video interview By OANow Staff December 15, 2008 http://www.oanow.com/oan/sports/college/article/video_interview_with_jerraud_powers/51250/
15. ^ ^{a b} profile NFL Draft scout http://www.nfldraftscout.com/ratings/dsprofile.php?pyid=67927&draftyear=2010&genpos=CB
16. ^ [2]

External links

• Jerraud Powers Fan Page
• Official Site
• Colts.com Bio
• Auburn Tigers Bio