Branden Dozier (born November 28, 1993) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

for the

Hamilton Tiger-Cats The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional Canadian football team based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are currently members of the East Division (CFL), East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Tiger-Cats play their home game ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

(CFL). He played

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with the UNC-Charlotte 49ers.

Early life and college

Dozier played running back and defensive back at

Washburn Rural High School Washburn Rural High School is a public high school located in southwest Topeka, Kansas, operated by Auburn–Washburn USD 437, and serves students in grades 9–12. The school is next to Washburn Rural Middle School. In 2007, Edward Raines became ...

, where he earned All-City honors before graduating in 2012. He then played at Butler County Community College, where he garnered all- Kansas Jayhawk honors as a defensive back. While at UNC Charlotte, he set a single-season tackle record.

Professional career

Dozier attended a

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

rookie

mini-camp A mini-camp, also spelled minicamp, is a short camp held by National Football League (NFL) and Canadian Football League (CFL) teams usually in spring of each year. The camp usually only lasts 3 days, but the length varies by a day or two depending ...

in 2016 but was not offered a contract.

Montreal Alouettes

After sitting out a year to complete his studies, he reached out to a member of the

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes (Canadian French, French: ''Les Alouettes de Montréal'') are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has disbanded twice and been re-established thrice. The Alouettes compe ...

front office, did a private workout, and was promptly signed to his first pro contract. For the

2017 CFL season Seventeen or 17 may refer to: *17 (number) * One of the years 17 BC, AD 17, 1917, 2017, 2117 Science * Chlorine, a halogen in the periodic table * 17 Thetis, an asteroid in the asteroid belt Literature Magazines * ''Seventeen'' (American ...

, Dozier recorded 60 defensive tackles, including two sacks, as well as 14 special teams tackles. He also scored a touchdown on a 20-yard fumble return. He was the team's nominee for the league's Most Outstanding Rookie award. In

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

, he played in 17 games while recording 84 defensive tackles, 18 special teams tackles, and five interceptions en route to being named a 2018 CFL Eastern All-Star at

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. He was released by the Alouettes on May 13, 2019.

BC Lions

Dozier signed with the

BC Lions The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division (CFL), West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place. The Lions playe ...

on June 25, 2019. He played in 16 regular season games where he had 70 defensive tackles, seven special teams tackles, one interception, and one forced fumble.

Calgary Stampeders

As a free agent, he signed with

Calgary Stampeders The Calgary Stampeders are a professional Canadian football team based in Calgary, Alberta. The Stampeders compete in the West Division (CFL), West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The club plays its home games at McMahon Stadium a ...

on February 11, 2020. After the CFL canceled the 2020 season due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, Dozier chose to opt-out of his contract with the Stampeders on September 3, 2020. Despite opting out, he was technically still under contract with the Stampeders and signed an extension to remain with the club on February 2, 2021. On February 4, 2024, the Stampeders announced that Dozier had signed a contract extension with the team. He played in 14 regular season games in

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

where he had 51 defensive tackles and three special teams tackles. He became a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

upon the expiry of his contract on February 11, 2025.

Hamilton Tiger-Cats

On April 24, 2025, it was announced that Dozier had signed with the

References

External links

Hamilton Tiger-Cats bio
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dozier, Branden Living people 1993 births American football defensive backs Canadian football defensive backs Players of Canadian football from Kansas Montreal Alouettes players Charlotte 49ers football players Players of American football from Kansas Sportspeople from Topeka, Kansas Butler Grizzlies football players BC Lions players Calgary Stampeders players Hamilton Tiger-Cats players