JaMarcus Trenell Russell was born on August 9,1985 and is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League for three seasons with the Oakland Raiders.
51 Facts About JaMarcus Russell
2.
JaMarcus Russell played college football at Louisiana State University, where he won the Manning Award as a junior en route to becoming MVP of the 2007 Sugar Bowl.
3.
JaMarcus Russell would be released from Oakland in 2010 and, despite attempts at returning to the NFL, was unable to sign with another team.
4.
JaMarcus Russell passed for 2,616 yards and 20 touchdowns during his sophomore year and led the team to the semifinals.
5.
JaMarcus Russell was at the center of an ESPN Outside the Lines story on high school sports in Mobile.
6.
JaMarcus Russell played basketball and threw the javelin in track and field.
7.
In February 2003 on National Signing Day, JaMarcus Russell committed to Louisiana State University over Florida State University, becoming the LSU Tigers' 28th and final recruit of the 2003 season.
8.
JaMarcus Russell redshirted his freshman year and by the fall of the 2005 season, Russell was the starting quarterback.
9.
JaMarcus Russell improved statistically, completing 60 percent of his passes for 2,443 yards and 15 touchdowns.
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JaMarcus Russell received an honorable mention on the AP's All-SEC Team.
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JaMarcus Russell led the Tigers to two come-from-behind wins in the regular season.
12.
JaMarcus Russell injured his shoulder in a loss to Georgia in the SEC Championship Game, and missed the team's bowl game.
13.
JaMarcus Russell was the starting quarterback again at LSU in 2006, beating out Matt Flynn and highly touted redshirt freshman Ryan Perrilloux.
14.
JaMarcus Russell threw for 3,129 yards, 28 touchdowns and eight interceptions.
15.
JaMarcus Russell was second in the SEC with 2,923 yards from scrimmage.
16.
JaMarcus Russell won the SEC Offensive Player of the Week award three times during the regular season.
17.
On January 10,2007, JaMarcus Russell stated that he had decided to skip his final season of NCAA eligibility to enter the 2007 NFL Draft.
18.
JaMarcus Russell was selected by the Oakland Raiders as the first overall pick.
19.
JaMarcus Russell was one of four LSU players taken in the first round, along with safety LaRon Landry, and wide receivers Dwayne Bowe and Craig Davis.
20.
Raiders head coach Lane Kiffin stated in 2016 he did not want to draft JaMarcus Russell, preferring future Pro Football Hall of Fame wide receiver Calvin Johnson.
21.
JaMarcus Russell made his first professional appearance on December 2,2007, against the Denver Broncos.
22.
On December 23,2007, against the Jacksonville Jaguars, JaMarcus Russell threw his first career touchdown pass, a two-yard pass to Zach Miller.
23.
JaMarcus Russell finished the game with seven completions on 23 pass attempts for 83 yards, with one touchdown pass, three interceptions and a lost fumble.
24.
JaMarcus Russell made his first career start in the final game of the season against the San Diego Chargers.
25.
JaMarcus Russell was intercepted twice and lost a fumble, which led to 17 points off turnovers for the Chargers.
26.
In that first start, JaMarcus Russell completed 23 of 31 passes for 224 yards, one touchdown, two interceptions, and a lost fumble.
27.
JaMarcus Russell finished his rookie season with 36 completed passes on 66 attempts, 373 yards, two touchdowns and four interceptions.
28.
JaMarcus Russell was named the starter for the opening game of the 2008 season, which was against division rival, Denver Broncos.
29.
JaMarcus Russell completed 17 of 26 pass attempts for 180 yards and threw for two touchdowns, finishing with a passer rating of 111.1.
30.
JaMarcus Russell fumbled once early in the redzone while looking to complete a throw to Darren McFadden in the flat.
31.
JaMarcus Russell passed for 55 yards and completed 6-of-17 passes with no touchdowns or interceptions.
32.
JaMarcus Russell completed 17-of-30 passes for 203 yards and one touchdown.
33.
JaMarcus Russell led the team on a 43-yard drive to set up Sebastian Janikowski's game-winning field goal.
34.
JaMarcus Russell finished the 2008 season winning back to back games against the Houston Texans and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
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In those last three games, JaMarcus Russell threw for six touchdowns and two interceptions.
36.
When Frye was injured against the Denver Broncos, JaMarcus Russell played near the end of the game.
37.
JaMarcus Russell finished the 2009 season with the lowest quarterback rating, lowest completion percentage, fewest passing touchdowns, and fewest passing yards among qualifying quarterbacks in the NFL.
38.
At the time, Cable said JaMarcus Russell could compete for the starting job.
39.
That is why JaMarcus Russell was forced to hold out and miss all of training camp as a rookie.
40.
New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton said in May 2010, that the time was not right for the Saints to consider signing JaMarcus Russell, but added in that it was "newsworthy" when a high draft pick is released so soon, and said players like JaMarcus Russell often get second chances in the NFL.
41.
JaMarcus Russell had a workout with the Washington Redskins on November 2,2010, but was not signed.
42.
In 2013, JaMarcus Russell stated that he was interested in returning to the NFL, and would train with various NFL players, including Marshall Faulk and Jeff Garcia, along with Olympian Ato Boldon.
43.
In May 2013, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported JaMarcus Russell had returned to his rookie weight of 265 pounds.
44.
JaMarcus Russell tried out for the Bears on June 7,2013, and, according to a report from ESPN, presented a "solid" performance while working out alongside fellow free-agent quarterbacks Trent Edwards and Jordan Palmer.
45.
In June 2022, after spending many years out of public eye, Russell wrote a personal essay for The Players Tribune, titled "Y'all Don't Know a Damn Thing About Jamarcus Russell".
46.
JaMarcus Russell's uncle Ray Ray Russell was a long-time DJ and radio host for the Mobile, Alabama-based station WBLX until his death in 2009.
47.
On July 5,2010, JaMarcus Russell was arrested at his Mobile, Alabama home for being in possession of codeine syrup without a valid prescription.
48.
JaMarcus Russell's arrest was the culmination of a two-month investigation that did not initially target Russell, but his name and address surfaced repeatedly during the investigation.
49.
JaMarcus Russell was bailed out, and a bond hearing was scheduled for July 7,2010.
50.
At his July 20,2010 arraignment, JaMarcus Russell pleaded 'not guilty' to a state felony charge of possession of a controlled substance.
51.
Rumors of "purple drank" use by JaMarcus Russell had been noted by local journalists for some time during his tenure with the Raiders, but not reported due to the lack of evidence or corroboration.