Arthur Lewis Nichols III (born August 16, 2001) 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 ...

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 ...

for the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

of 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 Central Michigan Chippewas. During the 2021 regular season, he led the

NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision The NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), formerly known as Division I-A, is the highest level of college football in the United States. The FBS consists of the largest schools in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). As ...

with 1,710 rushing yards.

Early life

Nichols attended

Cass Technical High School Cass Technical High School (simply referred to as Cass Tech) is a four-year Public magnet high school in Midtown Detroit, Michigan, United States. from the University Cultural Center Association, retrieved June 9, 1001 It was established in 19 ...

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

. He played football under Cass Tech head coach Thomas Wilcher. As a senior in 2018, Nichols rushed for 1,078 yards and 23 touchdowns on 84 carries. He was named to all-state teams selected by the ''

Detroit Free Press The ''Detroit Free Press'' (commonly referred to as the ''Freep'') is a major daily newspaper in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest local newspaper owned by Gannett (the publisher of ''USA Today''), and is operated by the Detro ...

'', ''

The Detroit News ''The Detroit News'' is one of the two major newspapers in the U.S. city of Detroit, Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United S ...

'', and the

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College career

During the 2019 season, Nichols appeared in four games for Central Michigan, carrying 19 times for 89 yards. As a redshirt freshman during the COVID 19-shortened 2020 season, Nichols rushed for 196 yards and two fourth-quarter touchdowns in a 31–23 victory over rival

Eastern Michigan Eastern Michigan University (EMU, EMich, Eastern Michigan or simply Eastern) is a public research university in Ypsilanti, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1849 as the Michigan State Normal School, it was the fourth normal school (teachers' ...

. For the season, he rushed for 508 yards on 78 carries, an average of 6.5 yards per carry. He won the

Mid-American Conference The Mid-American Conference (MAC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference with a membership base in the Great Lakes region (North America), Great Lakes region that stretches from Western New York to Illinois. Its members co ...

(MAC) freshman of the year award. Due to special eligibility rules enacted for the 2020 season, Nichols repeated as a redshirt freshman in 2021. He led all players in

(FBS) with 1,710 rushing yards during the 2021 regular season. He also led the nation with 311 carries. His He had nine 100-yard rushing games in 2021, including totals of 219 yards against Ball State, 215 yards against Kent State, 194 yards against

, 192 yards against

Northern Illinois Northern Illinois is a region generally covering the northern third of the U.S. state of Illinois. The region is by far the most populous of Illinois, with nearly 9.7 million residents as of 2010. Economics Northern Illinois is dominated by ...

, and 186 yards against

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

. His 1,710 yards was the second highest single-season total in Central Michigan history (behind Brian Pruitt's 1,890 yards in 1994). After the 2021 season ended, Nichols was named the MAC Offensive Player of the Year. Despite leading the nation in rushing, Nichols was not selected as a semifinalist for the

Doak Walker Award The Doak Walker Award honors the top running back in college football in the United States. Established in 1990, it is named in honor of Doak Walker, a former running back who played for the SMU Mustangs from 1945 to 1949 and in the National Foot ...

Professional career

Green Bay Packers

Nichols was selected 235th overall by the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

in the

2023 NFL draft The 2023 NFL draft was the 88th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2023 NFL season, 2023 season. The NFL draft, draft was held outside of Kansas City Union Station, Union Station i ...

. He signed his rookie contract on May 5. He was

waived/injured The following terms are used in American football, both conventional and indoor. Some of these terms are also in use in Canadian football; for a list of terms unique to that code, see '' Glossary of Canadian football''. 0–9 ...

on August 29, 2023, and placed 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 ...

, then released on September 7.

Philadelphia Eagles

On October 16, 2023, the

signed Nichols to their

practice squad In gridiron football, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. They serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scou ...

. He signed a reserve/future contract on January 18, 2024. He was waived on August 27. Nichols was re-signed to the practice squad on December 26. However, he was released again on December 31. On January 30, 2025, Nichols was re-signed to the practice squad.

References

External links

Philadelphia Eagles bioCentral Michigan Chippewas bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nichols, Lew 2001 births Living people Players of American football from Detroit American football running backs Central Michigan Chippewas football players Cass Technical High School alumni Green Bay Packers players Philadelphia Eagles players