Gabe Ikard (born September 26, 1990) 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 center 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 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

Oklahoma Sooners The Oklahoma Sooners are the college athletics in the United States , athletic teams that represent the University of Oklahoma, located in Norman, Oklahoma, Norman. The 19 men's and women's varsity teams are called the "Sooners", a reference to ...

, earning consensus

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

honors in 2013. He was signed by the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. They play the ...

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 2014. He spent parts of four seasons on the active rosters of the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

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and

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) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

. Ikard was a radio host of “The Franchise Players” on 107.7 The Franchise in Oklahoma City. He also co-hosts “Big 12 Today” on Big 12 Radio (SiriusXM channel 375). He currently co-hosts "The Oklahoma Breakdown" a bi-weekly podcast dedicated primarily to

Oklahoma Sooners football The Oklahoma Sooners football team represents the University of Oklahoma (OU) in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level in the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The program began in 1895 and is one of the most succ ...

with fellow former Sooner Teddy Lehman.

Early life

Ikard attended Bishop McGuinness High School in

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Oklahoma, most populous city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat ...

. He had 29 receptions for 542 yards and nine touchdowns as a

tight end The tight end (TE) is an offense (sports), offensive position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football. It is a hybrid that combines the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a receiver (football), receiv ...

in 2008, and also recorded 68 tackles and two interceptions, including six sacks and one defensive touchdown. He was named district 4A-1 Defensive Player of the Year, and earned ''

The Oklahoman ''The Oklahoman'' is the largest daily newspaper in Oklahoma, United States, and is the only regional daily that covers the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, Greater Oklahoma City area. The Alliance for Audited Media (formerly Audit Bureau Circul ...

'' Little All-City Defensive Player of the Year. Considered a three-star recruit by '' Rivals.com'', he was rated as the 15th best

prospect in the nation. He committed to

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

over offers from

Oklahoma State Oklahoma State University (informally Oklahoma State or OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Stillwater, Oklahoma, United States. The university was established in 1890 under the legislation of the Morrill Act. Originally known ...

, Notre Dame and

Stanford Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth governor of and th ...

College career

After redshirting in 2009, Ikard would become the starting

left guard In American football, a guard (G), otherwise known as an offensive guard (OG), is an offensive line player who lines up between the center and the tackles. Like other offensive line positions, guards are used primarily for blocking. Right ...

for Oklahoma in the final 12 games of the 2010 season, while appearing in all 14. In 2011, he started the first three games at left guard before sliding over to center for seven games due to an injury, then returning to left guard for the final three games of the season. He was named a third-team

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

n by the

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and first-team All-

Big 12 The Big 12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference in the United States. It consists of 16 full-member universities (3 private universities and 13 public universities) in the states of Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Kansas, Ohio, Okla ...

. In 2012, he played in 12 games, starting all 12 at center, while earning first-team All-

honours once again. In his final season in 2013, he started all 13 games while being named first-team All-

for the third consecutive season. During his tenure, he was named an Academic

n three times, and was named the Academic All-American of the Year in 2013.

Professional career

Tennessee Titans

Ikard signed with the

as an

in 2014. He spent his entire rookie season on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in ...

following a knee injury in the preseason. He was released during final roster cuts in 2015.

Buffalo Bills (first stint)

On September 6, 2015, Ikard was claimed off waivers by the

. On December 5, 2015, the

released Ikard.

Cleveland Browns (first stint)

On December 7, 2015, the

claimed Ikard off waivers from the

after placing

offensive guard Offensive may refer to: * Offensive (military), type of military operation * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative (Netherlands), Socialist Alternative * Fighting words, spoken words which would have a tende ...

Joel Bitonio on injured reserve. Ikard was waived on December 14, 2015 and was replaced by

offensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line (OL), while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line ( ...

Kaleb Johnson.

Detroit Lions

On December 15, 2015, the

signed Ikard to the active roster after cutting right guard LaAdrian Waddle and placing

Brandon Pettigrew on injured reserve. On September 3, 2016, he was waived by the Lions.

Buffalo Bills (second stint)

On September 5, 2016, Ikard was signed to the Bills' practice squad. On September 15, 2016, Ikard was promoted to the Bills' active roster He was released on October 21, 2016.

Cleveland Browns (second stint)

Ikard was claimed off waivers by the Browns on October 24, 2016. On August 28, 2017, Ikard was released by the Browns.

Denver Broncos

On October 26, 2017, Ikard was signed to the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...

' practice squad. He was released on December 5, 2017.

New Orleans Saints

On December 20, 2017, Ikard was signed to the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...

' practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Saints on January 16, 2018. On April 5, 2018, Ikard announced his retirement from professional football, citing discomfort with having to maintain a weight over and a general frustration with how his NFL career turned out.

Radio career

In summer of 2017, before he was signed to the Denver Broncos, Gabe Ikard joined the "Franchise Players" radio show on local

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Oklahoma, most populous city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat ...

radio station 107.7 The Franchise with fellow Sooner Kelly Gregg

References

External links

Oklahoma Sooners bioTennessee Titans bio

Detroit Lions bio

Buffalo Bills bio

Cleveland Browns bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ikard, Gabe 1990 births Living people All-American college football players American football centers Buffalo Bills players Cleveland Browns players Denver Broncos players Detroit Lions players New Orleans Saints players Oklahoma Sooners football players Players of American football from Oklahoma City Tennessee Titans players