Gerald Antonio Riggs Jr. (born September 28, 1983) is a former

gridiron football Gridiron football,"Gridiron football"
''Encyclopædia Britannica''. Ret ...

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at Tennessee. He is the son of former Pro Bowl running back Gerald and ex-wife Dana Riggs.

Early years

Riggs attended

Red Bank High School Red Bank High School is a public school located in the city of Red Bank, Tennessee, United States. History Red Bank High School began as an extension to the one-year-old Red Bank Junior High School in 1938. Recognizing that the original plans for ...

in Red Bank, Tennessee. He helped lead the team to an undefeated season, 15–0, and the school's first state championship in football during the 2000 season. Riggs also won the Tennessee Mr. Football trophy that season. He played in the 2002

U.S. Army All-American Bowl The All-American Bowl is a high school football all-star game, held annually at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. Typically played in January, the All-American Bowl is played between all-star teams representing the eastern and western United S ...

College career

Riggs contributed to the Volunteers' back field from 2002 to 2005. Riggs, along with

Cedric Houston Cedric Leonard Houston (born June 28, 1982) is a former American football running back of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the New York Jets in the sixth round of the 2005 NFL Draft. He played college football at Tennessee. ...

, was one of two different 1,000 plus yard rushers for Tennessee in the 2004 season. This was the first time in Tennessee football history to have multiple 1,000 yard rushers in a season. Riggs was a preseason All-American and Heisman Trophy candidate in 2005, but a lower leg injury ended his senior season. Riggs finished with over 2,000 all-purpose yards and 18 touchdown despite injuries early in career that kept him off the field.

Professional career

Miami Dolphins

Riggs entered the

2006 NFL Draft The 2006 National Football League Draft, the 71st in league history, took place in New York City, New York, at Radio City Music Hall on April 29 and April 30, 2006. For the 27th consecutive year, the draft was telecast on ESPN and ESPN2, with ad ...

, but was not selected, partly due to concerns about his injury status. After the draft, Riggs signed a free agent contract with the Miami Dolphins. He was released by the team on September 2, re-signed to the practice squad on September 3 and then released again on September 5. He spent the season out of football.

Chicago Bears

Riggs was signed by the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...

on February 9, 2007. He was assigned to the Rhein Fire of

NFL Europa NFL Europe League (simply called NFL Europe and known in its final season as NFL Europa League) was a professional American football league that functioned as the developmental minor league of the National Football League (NFL). Originally f ...

during the offseason. The Bears released him on May 23.

Detroit Lions

Riggs worked out at a

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) North Division. The team play their home games at Ford ...

minicamp in May 2009 but was not signed.

Toronto Argonauts

On May 31, 2011, Riggs signed with the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League. Riggs received 35 rushing attempts during the

2012 CFL season The 2012 CFL season was the 59th season of modern-day Canadian football. Officially, it was the 55th season for the Canadian Football League. The pre-season began on June 13, 2012, and the regular season started on June 29, 2012. Rogers Centre ...

, amassing 220 yards and one touchdown. On June 22, 2013, Riggs was released by the Argos.

Personal life

His father,

Gerald Riggs Gerald Antonio Riggs (born November 6, 1960) is a former American football running back in the National Football League (NFL) for the Atlanta Falcons from 1982 to 1988 and the Washington Redskins from 1989 to 1991. Before his NFL career, he at ...

, was a three-time Pro Bowl running back for the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...

and Washington Redskins. His brother,

Cody Riggs Cody Tyler Riggs (born December 30, 1991) is a former American football cornerback. He played college football at Florida and Notre Dame. High school career Riggs attended St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He was p ...

, played cornerback for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in college and signed as an undrafted free agent with the Tennessee Titans in 2015.

References

External links

Tennessee Volunteers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Riggs, Gerald Jr. 1983 births Living people Players of American football from Atlanta Players of Canadian football from Atlanta Sportspeople from Chattanooga, Tennessee American football running backs Canadian football running backs Tennessee Volunteers football players Miami Dolphins players Chicago Bears players Rhein Fire players Toronto Argonauts players 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American people