Brandon Anderson (born December 10, 1985) is an American former 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 ...

player who was a

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He was signed by the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. Since the 2008 India ...

as an

undrafted 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 ...

in 2009. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Akron Zips The Akron Zips are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Akron in Akron, Ohio, United States. The Zips compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the NCAA Division I, Division I level as a memb ...

. Anderson was also a member of the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...

and

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (colloquially known as the Bucs) are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC S ...

Early life

Anderson attended Pulaski County High School in

Dublin, Virginia Dublin is a town in Pulaski County, Virginia, United States. The population was 2,682 as of the 2020 Decennial Census. It is part of the Blacksburg– Christiansburg Metropolitan Statistical Area. The town was named after Dublin in Irelan ...

. While at Pulaski, Anderson played football,

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

and ran

track & field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and ...

. As a member of the football team, Anderson played both

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

and defensive back. After Pulaski, Anderson attended

Hargrave Military Academy Hargrave Military Academy (HMA) is a private school, private, all-male, Military school, military boarding school located in the town of Chatham, Virginia. Hargrave is affiliated with the Baptist General Association of Virginia emphasizing Chr ...

Chatham, Virginia Chatham is a town in Pittsylvania County, Virginia, United States. It is the county seat of Pittsylvania County. Chatham's population was 1,232 at the 2020 census. It is included in the Danville, Virginia metropolitan area. The town was originally ...

. Anderson chose to attend the

University of Akron The University of Akron is a public university, public research university in Akron, Ohio, United States. It is part of the University System of Ohio. As a STEM fields, STEM-focused institution, it focuses on industries such as polymers, advance ...

, accepting a football scholarship from the Zips on December 26, 2004. Anderson also received scholarship offers from

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Mem ...

and

Central Florida Central Florida is a Regions of the United States#Florida, region of the U.S. state of Florida. Different sources give different definitions for the region, but as its name implies it is usually said to comprise the central part of the state, in ...

College career

In 2005 as a freshman, Anderson recorded 22 tackles and one interception playing as a special teams player and reserve

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 ...

In 2006, he returned 11 kickoffs for 157 yards with a long of 28 yards. Recorded 27 tackles and one interception. He also forced a fumble. He recorded 17 tackles and one sack in 2007. His senior year, he returned one kickoff for 17 yards. Had a career high 42 tackles and had one interception. During his college career, he recorded 108 tackles, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble, and 3 interceptions.

Professional career

Pre-draft

Prior to the

2009 NFL draft The 2009 NFL draft was the 74th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, on April 25 and 26, 2009. The draft c ...

, Anderson was projected to be undrafted by NFLDraftScout.com. He was rated as the 79th-best cornerback in the draft. Anderson averaged 4.42 on his 40-yard dash, but ran a 4.34 on his fastest attempt. He was not invited to the

NFL Scouting Combine The NFL Scouting Combine is a week-long showcase occurring every February at Lucas Oil Stadium (and formerly at the RCA Dome until 2008) in Indianapolis, where college football players perform physical and mental tests in front of National Foot ...

, he posted the following numbers during his Akron pro-day workouts:

Indianapolis Colts

Anderson signed with the

after going undrafted.

Cleveland Browns

Anderson was a practice squad member of the

in 2009.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Anderson signed with the

in 2009. After a season on the practice squad, the Buccaneers dressed Anderson for 3 games in 2009, where he did not record any statistics.

San Jose SaberCats

In January 2012, Anderson signed with the

San Jose SaberCats The San Jose SaberCats were a professional arena football team based in San Jose, California. The SaberCats had been members of the Arena Football League (AFL) since 1995 (the year in which the team was founded); and until 2015, they belonged to ...

of the

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 Arena Football League season, 1987 season, making it the third longest-runnin ...

Chicago Rush

Anderson was assigned to the

Chicago Rush The Chicago Rush were a professional arena football team based in Rosemont, Illinois. The team was founded in 2001 and played in the Arena Football League's Central Division. The Rush qualified for the playoffs in 11 of 12 AFL seasons, during w ...

for the 2013 season, but was placed on recallable reassignment by the Rush before the season began.

Cleveland Gladiators

Two days after the Rush placed Anderson on recallable reassignment, he was claimed by the

Cleveland Gladiators The Cleveland Gladiators were an arena football team based in Cleveland, Ohio, and members of the Arena Football League (AFL). The Gladiators played their home games at Quicken Loans Arena, which they shared with the Cleveland Cavaliers of the ...

. Anderson played the 2013 season with the Gladiators. He was reassigned on November 21, 2013. Anderson now lives at home with his parents and works with youth of Pulaski County in Virginia.

References

External links

Akron Zips bioTampa Bay Buccaneers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Anderson, Brandon 1985 births Living people People from Dublin, Virginia Players of American football from Virginia American football cornerbacks Akron Zips football players Indianapolis Colts players Cleveland Browns players Tampa Bay Buccaneers players San Jose SaberCats players Chicago Rush players Cleveland Gladiators players