Lorenzo Malik Mauldin IV (born October 1, 1992) 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 end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

for the

Ottawa Redblacks The Ottawa Redblacks (officially stylized as REDBLACKS) (Canadian French, French: ) are a professional Canadian football team based in Ottawa, Ontario. The team plays in the East Division (CFL), East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL ...

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 was drafted by the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

in the third round of the

2015 NFL draft The 2015 NFL draft was the 80th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football, football players. It took place in Chicago at the Auditorium Theatre and in Grant Park (Chicago), Grant Park ...

. 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 ...

Louisville Louisville is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city; however, by populatio ...

Early life

Lorenzo Malik Mauldin IV was born in

Sacramento, California Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat, seat of Sacramento County, California, Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento Rive ...

on October 1, 1992. He spent most of his childhood with 16 different

foster parents Foster care is a system in which a minor has been placed into a ward, group home (residential child care community or treatment centre), or private home of a state-certified caregiver, referred to as a "foster parent", or with a family member ...

as both of his parents were in jail. Mauldin attended Maynard H. Jackson High School in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

, where he played

and

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 competed in track. In

high school football High school football, also known as prep football, is gridiron football played by High school (North America), high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular high school sports, interscholastic sports in both c ...

, Mauldin was named to Class AA All-State Team. In track & field, Mauldin competed in events ranging from the

high jump The high jump is a track and field event in which competitors must jump unaided over a horizontal bar placed at measured heights without dislodging it. In its modern, most-practiced format, a bar is placed between two standards with a crash mat f ...

to the

discus throw The discus throw (), also known as disc throw, is a track and field sport in which the participant athlete throws an oblate spheroid weight (object), weight called a discus in an attempt to mark a further distance than other competitors. It is a ...

. At the 2010 Whitefield Meet, he took fourth in the discus throw (114 ft 4 in) and second in the

shot put The shot put is a track-and-field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical Ball (sports), ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. For men, the sport has been a part of the Olympic Games, modern Olympics since their 1896 Summer Olym ...

(44 ft 7 in). Regarded as a three-star prospect by '' Rivals.com'', Mauldin was rated as the 82nd-best player in

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

. He was rated as the 67th-best

by '' ESPN.com'', and the 133rd-best defensive end by '' Scout.com''. He chose Louisville over Kentucky, Middle Tennessee, South Alabama, Troy and South Carolina, where he originally committed.

College career

As a true freshman at the

University of Louisville The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public university, public research university in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. Chartered in 1798 as the Jefferson Seminary, it became in the 19t ...

in 2011, Mauldin played in all 12 of the Cardinals games and recorded six

tackles Tackle may refer to: * In football: ** Tackle (football move), a play in various forms of football ** Tackle (gridiron football position) A tackle is a playing position in American football. Historically, in the one-platoon system prevalent ...

. As a sophomore in 2012, Mauldin started six of 11 games, recording 22 tackles and a team-leading 4.5 sacks. In August 2013, prior to his junior season, Mauldin was involved in a

hit and run In traffic laws, a hit and run or a hit-and-run is the criminal act of causing a traffic collision and not stopping afterwards. It is considered a supplemental crime in most jurisdictions. Additional obligation In many jurisdictions, there ma ...

moped A moped ( ) is a type of small motorcycle, generally having a less stringent licensing requirement than full motorcycles or automobiles. Historically, the term exclusively meant a similar vehicle with both bicycle pedals and a motorcycle eng ...

accident. He recovered and started all 13 games that season. He finished the year with 40 tackles and 9.5 sacks. Prior to his senior season in 2014, Mauldin was moved from defensive end to

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...

Professional career

New York Jets

Mauldin was selected by the

in the third round (82nd overall) of the

. He signed a four-year, $3 million contract on May 7, 2015. Mauldin played his first regular season game on September 13, 2015, against 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 ...

, where he forced a

fumble A fumble in gridiron football occurs when a player who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed (tackled), scoring, or going out of bounds. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking, punting, or successful h ...

off Johnny Manziel. However, after forcing the fumble, he suffered an apparent neck injury, was rendered unconscious for a few minutes, carted off the field, and taken to a local hospital. After undergoing tests, he was diagnosed with a concussion and no serious neck injury. During his rookie season in 2015, Mauldin played 15 games making 10 tackles, 4 sacks, and a fumble recovery. On September 4, 2017, Mauldin was 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 ...

after dealing with a back injury throughout

training camp A training camp is an organized period in which military personnel or athletes participate in a rigorous and focused schedule of training in order to learn or improve skills. Athletes typically utilise training camps to prepare for upcoming events ...

. On September 1, 2018, Mauldin was released by the Jets.

Hamilton Tiger-Cats

Mauldin signed with 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

(CFL) on April 15, 2019. He played in 11 regular season games where he recorded seven defensive tackles, seven

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their position. Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

tackles, and three sacks. He did not play in 2020 due to the cancellation of the 2020 CFL season, and opted to sign a one-year contract extension on January 4, 2021. He played in six games where he had six defensive tackles, five special teams tackles, one sack, and one forced fumble.

Ottawa Redblacks

On February 8, 2022, it was announced that Mauldin had signed with the

of the CFL. 2022 was a breakout year for Mauldin. He led the league with 17 sacks and won the

CFL's Most Outstanding Defensive Player Award The Most Outstanding Defensive Player Award is annually awarded to the best defensive player in the Canadian football League. The winner of the award is selected by members of the Football Reporters of Canada along with the head coaches in the CFL. ...

. As a pending free agent, Mauldin and the Redblacks agreed to a one-year contract extension on January 18, 2023. On January 10, 2025, Mauldin and the Redblacks agreed to a one-year contract extension.

Personal life

On June 11, 2017, it was revealed that Mauldin attacked another customer at a Manhattan nightclub two months prior to the announcement. The battle started when the customer spilled champagne on Mauldin, triggering his attack. The victim was punched twice, left with a black eye, and hospitalized. On June 21, 2017, Mauldin turned himself in to police, and was charged with misdemeanor assault.

References

External links

Ottawa Redblacks bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mauldin, Lorenzo 1992 births Living people Players of American football from Atlanta American football defensive ends American football linebackers Louisville Cardinals football players New York Jets players Hamilton Tiger-Cats players Ottawa Redblacks players Canadian Football League Most Outstanding Defensive Player Award winners Canadian football defensive linemen Players of Canadian football from Atlanta