Charlie Garner
{{Short description|American football player (born 1972)}}
{{Use American English|date=February 2023}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2024}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| name = Charlie Garner
| number = 25, 30
| position = Running back
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1972|2|13}}
| birth_place = Falls Church, Virginia, U.S.
| height_ft = 5
| height_in = 10
| weight_lb = 190
| high_school = Stuart (Falls Church, Virginia)
| college = Tennessee
| draftyear = 1994
| draftround = 2
| draftpick = 42
| pastteams =
- Philadelphia Eagles ({{NFL Year|1994|1998}})
- San Francisco 49ers ({{NFL Year|1999|2000}})
- Oakland Raiders ({{NFL Year|2001|2003}})
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers ({{NFL Year|2004}})
| highlights =
| statlabel1 = Rushing yards
| statvalue1 = 7,097
| statlabel2 = Rushing average
| statvalue2 = 4.6
| statlabel3 = Rushing touchdowns
| statvalue3 = 39
| statlabel4 = Receptions
| statvalue4 = 419
| statlabel5 = Receiving yards
| statvalue5 = 3,711
| statlabel6 = Receiving touchdowns
| statvalue6 = 12
| pfr = GarnCh00
}}
Charlie Garner III (born February 13, 1972) is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Tennessee Volunteers. Garner was selected by the Philadelphia Eagles in the second round of the 1994 NFL draft. He also played in the NFL for the San Francisco 49ers, Oakland Raiders, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Early life
Garner grew up in Falls Church, Virginia and attended J.E.B. Stuart High School (now known as Justice High School). His senior year, he was selected first-team All-Metropolitan (Northern Virginia, Suburban Maryland and the District of Columbia), first-team All-State, and named Virginia's player of the year after rushing for more than 2,000 yards and 38 touchdowns.
On October 16, 2009, Garner had his JEB Stuart High School number 30 jersey retired during a halftime ceremony.
College career
In 1991, Garner set junior college records for rushing yards in a game (430) and yards in two consecutive games (765) at Scottsdale (Ariz.) Community College. Garner then transferred to the University of Tennessee and graduated with a business degree.{{Cite web |date=October 7, 2011 |title=Catching Up: Charlie Garner |url=https://utsports.com/news/2011/10/7/catching_up_charlie_garner.aspx |access-date=March 16, 2024 |website=University of Tennessee Athletics |language=en}} He is notable for starting ahead of fellow NFL RB James Stewart at Tennessee.
- 1992: 154 carries for 928 yards with 2 TD. 5 catches for 25 yards.
- 1993: 159 carries for 1161 yards with 8 TD. 12 catches for 81 yards.{{Cite web |title=Charlie Garner College Stats, School, Draft, Gamelog, Splits |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/players/charlie-garner-1.html |access-date=March 16, 2024 |website=College Football at Sports-Reference.com |language=en}}
Professional career
{{NFL predraft
| height ft = 5
| height in = 9 1/8
| weight = 182
| arm span = 31 1/2
| hand span = 9 3/4
}}
Garner was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the second round (42nd overall) of the 1994 NFL draft.{{Cite web |title=1994 NFL Draft Listing |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1994/draft.htm |access-date=March 31, 2023 |website=Pro Football Reference |language=en}}
He was a multi-talented running back and an excellent receiver. In Week 6 of the 1995 season, he had nine carries for 120 yards and three touchdowns in the win over Washington.{{Cite web |title=Washington Redskins at Philadelphia Eagles - October 8th, 1995 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/199510080phi.htm |access-date=March 16, 2024 |website=Pro Football Reference |language=en}} In the 2002–03 season with the Oakland Raiders, he was the team's leading rusher with 962 yards and seven touchdowns, while also leading all NFL running backs in receiving with 91 receptions for 941 yards and another four touchdowns.{{Cite web |title=Charlie Garner 2002 Game Log |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/G/GarnCh00/gamelog/2002/ |access-date=March 16, 2024 |website=Pro Football Reference |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=2002 NFL Receiving |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/2002/receiving.htm |access-date=March 16, 2024 |website=Pro Football Reference |language=en}} The 91 receptions for 941 yards were the fifth and fourth most in NFL history by a running back, respectively.{{cite web|last=Mayer|first=Larry|url=http://www.chicagobears.com/news/article-1/Peete-following-in-his-fathers-footsteps/bf72a845-4047-40f6-9726-cc805ce13209|title=Peete following in his father's footsteps|publisher=Chicago Bears|date=July 10, 2013|accessdate=July 11, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130715001256/http://www.chicagobears.com/news/article-1/Peete-following-in-his-fathers-footsteps/bf72a845-4047-40f6-9726-cc805ce13209#|archive-date=July 15, 2013|url-status=dead}} He also previously held the record for most rush yards in a game by a 49er (201) later broken by Frank Gore.{{Cite web |title=San Francisco 49ers at Dallas Cowboys - September 24th, 2000 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/200009240dal.htm |access-date=March 16, 2024 |website=Pro Football Reference |language=en}} The crossed forearm symbol he displayed after scoring was a tribute to his neighborhood of Bailey's Crossroads, Virginia.
In August 2005, Garner was released by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after suffering a knee injury the previous season. During his career, he rushed 1,537 times for 7,097 yards scoring 39 touchdowns, caught 419 passes for 3,711 yards and 12 touchdowns.{{Cite web |title=Charlie Garner Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/G/GarnCh00.htm |access-date=March 16, 2024 |website=Pro Football Reference |language=en}}
During his career, Garner was nicknamed "IO," which stood for "Instant Offense," because he excelled at both rushing and receiving.{{Cite web |date=August 19, 2021 |title=Kenyan Drake: Gruden's new Charlie Garner |url=https://lvchronicle.com/raiders/kenyan-drake-grudens-new-charlie-garner/ |access-date=March 16, 2024 |website=Las Vegas Chronicle |language=en-US}}
Personal life
In 2017, post football, doctors told Garner they believe he has chronic traumatic encephalopathy, which in recent years has become a plague for former NFL players. It can only be diagnosed post-mortem.{{Cite web |last=Yasinskas |first=Pat |date=April 4, 2017 |title=Charlie Garner's post-football life ruled by fear as his brain fails him |url=https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nfl/news/charlie-garner-cte-concussions-brain-disease-nfl-career-raiders-49ers-eagles-buccaneers/1rffdra72ph0k1e3fmmftqte0j |access-date=March 16, 2024 |website=Sporting News |language=en-us}}
"I don't have all my faculties anymore," Garner said. "I can't remember things. When I go to the mall or grocery store, I have to take one of my kids with me to remember where the car is parked. I have trouble remembering conversations I had five minutes ago. Bright lights bother me. I just don't feel right all the time."
NFL career statistics
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" | |||||||||||||
| rowspan="2"| Year
! rowspan="2"| Team ! rowspan="2"| GP ! colspan="6"| Rushing ! colspan="6"| Receiving ! colspan="2"| Fumbles | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | FD | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | FD | Fum | Lost |
| 1994 || PHI
| 10 || 109 || 399 || 3.7 || 28 || 3 || 24 || 8 || 74 || 9.3 || 28 || 0 || 3 || 3 || 2 | |||||||||||||
| 1995 || PHI
| 15 || 108 || 588 || 5.4 || 55 || 6 || 25 || 10 || 61 || 6.1 || 29 || 0 || 4 || 2 || 1 | |||||||||||||
| 1996 || PHI
| 15 || 66 || 346 || 5.2 || 46 || 1 || 16 || 14 || 92 || 6.6 || 13 || 0 || 4 || 1 || 1 | |||||||||||||
| 1997 || PHI
| 16 || 116 || 547 || 4.7 || 26 || 3 || 31 || 24 || 225 || 9.4 || 27 || 0 || 9 || 1 || 1 | |||||||||||||
| 1998 || PHI
| 10 || 96 || 381 || 4.0 || 40 || 4 || 18 || 19 || 110 || 5.8 || 21 || 0 || 5 || 1 || 1 | |||||||||||||
| 1999 || SF
| 16 || 241 || 1,229 || 5.1 || 53 || 4 || 51 || 56 || 535 || 9.6 || 53 || 2 || 22 || 3 || 1 | |||||||||||||
| 2000 || SF
| 16 || 258 || 1,142 || 4.4 || 42 || 7 || 53 || 68 || 647 || 9.5 || 62 || 3 || 28 || 4 || 3 | |||||||||||||
| 2001 || OAK
| 16 || 211 || 839 || 4.0 || 38 || 1 || 31 || 72 || 578 || 8.0 || 27 || 2 || 28 || 2 || 2 | |||||||||||||
| 2002 || OAK
| 16 || 182 || 962 || 5.3 || 36 || 7 || 47 || 91 || 941 || 10.3 || 69 || 4 || 44 || 0 || 0 | |||||||||||||
| 2003 || OAK
| 14 || 120 || 553 || 4.6 || 33 || 3 || 27 || 48 || 386 || 8.0 || 46 || 1 || 15 || 1 || 0 | |||||||||||||
| 2004 || TB
| 3 || 30 || 111 || 3.7 || 25 || 0 || 3 || 9 || 62 || 6.9 || 31 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 0 | |||||||||||||
| colspan="2"| [https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/G/GarnCh00.htm Career] || 147 || 1,537 || 7,097 || 4.6 || 55 || 39 || 326 || 419 || 3,711 || 8.9 || 69 || 12 || 163 || 18 || 12 |
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [https://utsports.com/sports/football/roster/charlie-garner/15223 Tennessee Volunteers bio]
{{Tennessee Volunteers football rushing leaders navbox}}
{{Eagles1994DraftPicks}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Garner, Charlie}}
Category:Players of American football from Virginia
Category:American football running backs
Category:National Conference Pro Bowl players
Category:Oakland Raiders players
Category:Philadelphia Eagles players
Category:San Francisco 49ers players
Category:Tampa Bay Buccaneers players
Category:Tennessee Volunteers football players
Category:Sportspeople from Falls Church, Virginia
Category:Players of American football from Fairfax County, Virginia
Category:Scottsdale Fighting Artichokes football players
Category:21st-century African-American sportsmen