Marshawn "Mardy" Gilyard (born December 2, 1986) 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 ...

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

. He was selected by the

St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis, Missouri, from 1995 through the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, California, where the team had played ...

in the fourth round of the

2010 NFL draft The 2010 NFL draft was the 75th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The 2010 NFL draft, draft took place over three days, at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, with the first ...

. 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 ...

at the University of Cincinnati.

Early life

Gilyard attended

Flagler Palm Coast High School Flagler Palm Coast High School (FPCHS) is a public high school located in Palm Coast, Florida, United States. It serves the residents of Flagler County. Academics The school has four flagship programs: * International Baccalaureate * i3 New Te ...

Palm Coast, Florida Palm Coast is a city in Flagler County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 89,258, an increase of almost 200% since the 2000 count of 32,832. The population was estimated to be 98,411 as of July 1, ...

, where he was a first-team Class 5A all-state selection. He capped his career with over 2,500 yards and 30 touchdowns and was named MVP of the Florida Coast All-Star Game. Considered only a two-star recruit by '' Rivals.com'', Gilyard was not ranked among the nation's best wide receiver prospects. He committed to Cincinnati on February 2, 2005.

College career

Gilyard played

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 ...

as a freshman in 2005. He finished the season with seven tackles. As a sophomore in 2006 he was

redshirted Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically, a student's athletic eligibility in a given sport is four seasons, aligning with the ...

due to academic reasons. In 2007 Gilyard started 7 of 12 games at wide receiver for the Bearcats. He finished the season with 36 receptions for 536 yards and 3

touchdowns A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

. In 2008, he recorded 81 receptions for 1,276 yards and 11 touchdowns. As a senior in 2009 he was an

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 ...

after he had 87 receptions for 1,191 yards and 11 touchdowns. He was selected to play in the 2010 Senior Bowl and was the offensive player of the game after he had 103 yards on five receptions and a touchdown. Gilyard finished his college career with 204 receptions for 3,003 yards and 25 touchdowns.

Professional career

St. Louis Rams

Gilyard was selected in the fourth round with the 99th overall pick by the

in the

. On June 28, 2010, Gilyard signed a four-year $2.32 million contract with a signing bonus of $552,000. In his rookie season, he saw action in 11 games (including two starts), totaling six receptions for 63 yards (a 10.3 average) and 16 kick returns for 356 yards (a 22.3 average) He was released by the Rams in the final cutdown after the fourth preseason game in the 2011 preseason.

New York Jets (first stint)

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 ...

claimed Gilyard off waivers on September 4, 2011. However, he was waived by the Jets on September 9.

Philadelphia Eagles

Gilyard worked out 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 ...

in September 2011 and met with the team again on January 5, 2012. He was signed to a futures contract the following day. On August 31, 2012 Gilyard was released by the Eagles. On September 11, 2012, he was signed by the Eagles. In six games with the Eagles, his only stats were two punts returned for 15 yards. On November 23, 2012, he was released to make room for Greg Salas.

New York Jets (second stint)

Gilyard was signed to the Jets' active roster on November 28, 2012. The Jets waived Gilyard on December 24, 2012. In two games with the Jets, he caught two passes for 15 yards.

Kansas City Chiefs

Gilyard was signed by the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Established in 1959 ...

on February 9, 2013. On July 25, 2013, Gilyard was released by the Kansas City Chiefs.

Montreal Alouettes (first stint)

On October 3, 2013, Gilyard signed with the Montreal Alouettes.

Jacksonville Sharks (first stint)

On October 31, 2013, Gilyard was assigned to the

Jacksonville Sharks The Jacksonville Sharks are a professional indoor football team based in Jacksonville, Florida, that competes in the Indoor Football League (IFL). The team plays its home games at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena. They were members of the Are ...

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 ...

Montreal Alouettes (second stint)

During the 2014 season, he caught two passes for 16 yards.

Jacksonville Sharks (second stint)

On June 1, 2016, Gilyard was activated by the Sharks. On June 22, 2016, Gilyard was placed on recallable reassignment.

Monterrey Steel

On February 28, 2017, Gilyard signed with the

Monterrey Steel The Monterrey Steel was a professional indoor football team and a charter member of the National Arena League (NAL) that played in the 2017 season. Based in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, the Steel played their home games at Arena Monterrey. The Steel ...

of the

National Arena League The National Arena League (NAL) is a professional indoor football league that began play in 2017. As of the end of the 2024 season, the league consisted of five teams. A team's typical payroll budget is $600,000 per season, but as of the 2022 ...

(NAL). On June 21, 2017, Gilyard was released.

Massachusetts Pirates

On December 6, 2017, Gilyard signed with the Massachusetts Pirates of the

(NAL). During the 2018 season, Gilyard recorded 69 receptions, 747 receiving yards, and 19 TDs. Gilyard re-signed with the Pirates for the 2019 season and produced 84 receptions, 950 receiving yards, and 29 TDs. Gilyard was named to the 1st-Team All-NAL for the 2019 season. During the 2021 IFL season, Gilyard appeared in 2 games for the Massachusetts Pirates while making 4 receptions for 41 yards.

Tiburones de Cancún

In 2022, Gilyard signed and played for the

Tiburones de Cancún The Tiburones de Cancún (English: ''Cancún Sharks'') were an American football team based in Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico. The Tiburones competed in Fútbol Americano de México (FAM) for a single season in 2022, finishing with a league-worst 1 ...

Fútbol Americano de México Mexican American Football ('', FAM'') was a professional American football minor league in Mexico, founded in 2018. Due to sponsorship reasons, the league was also known as FAM-YOX for the 2022 season. Starting with five teams, the FAM expanded ...

(FAM).

Coaching

In 2019, Gilyard joined the football coaching staff at

Nichols College Nichols College is a Private college, private business college in Dudley, Massachusetts. Founded in 1931 as Nichols Junior College, Nichols College offers both bachelor's and master's degrees, as well as certificate programs. History Nichol ...

Dudley, Massachusetts Dudley is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 11,921 at the 2020 census. History Dudley was first settled in 1714 and was officially incorporated in 1732. The town was named for landholders Paul and Wil ...

. He will serve as defensive backs coach for the Bison, whom are an

NCAA Division III NCAA Division III (D-III) is the lowest division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States. D-III consists of athletic programs at colleges and universities that do not offer athletic scholarships to student- ...

program in the

Commonwealth Coast Conference The Conference of New England (CNE), formerly known as the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC), is an List of NCAA conferences, intercollegiate athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA's NCAA Division ...

References

External links

*
Montreal Alouettes bio

Philadelphia Eagles bioNichols State Bison bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gilyard, Mardy 1986 births Living people Players of American football from Daytona Beach, Florida Players of Canadian football from Florida American football wide receivers Canadian football wide receivers Cincinnati Bearcats football players St. Louis Rams players New York Jets players Philadelphia Eagles players Kansas City Chiefs players Jacksonville Sharks players Monterrey Steel players Montreal Alouettes players Massachusetts Pirates players Nichols Bison football coaches American expatriate players of American football American expatriate sportspeople in Mexico Coaches of American football from Florida Indoor Football League coaches