Michael John Mario Karney (born July 6, 1981) 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 fullback for seven seasons 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

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for the

Arizona State Sun Devils The Arizona State Sun Devils are the sport, athletic teams that represent Arizona State University. ASU has nine men's and eleven women's Varsity team, varsity teams competing at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Divisi ...

. He was selected by 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 ...

in the fifth round of the

2004 NFL draft The 2004 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held from April 24–25, 2004, at the Theate ...

, and also played for the NFL's

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 ...

Early life

Karney was born in

San Jose, California San Jose, officially the City of San José ( ; ), is a cultural, commercial, and political center within Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area. With a city population of 997,368 and a metropolitan area population of 1.95 million, it is ...

. He was raised in

Kent, Washington Kent is a city in King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington, United States. It is part of the Seattle metropolitan area, Seattle–Tacoma–Bellevue metropolitan area and had a population of 136,588 as of the 2020 Unit ...

and attended Kentwood High School in

Covington, Washington Covington is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The population was 20,777 at the 2020 census. Covington was founded in 1900 at a Northern Pacific Railway stop and grew into a suburban bedroom community in the late 20th century. ...

and garnered

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and

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. In football, he was a ''

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'' High School All-American selection, a

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all-region honoree, named the No. 15 player in the Northwest. Karney rushed for 800 yards and 22 touchdowns as a senior as his team went to the Class 4A state title game, its first appearance in 10 years.

College career

While attending

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public university, public research university in Tempe, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 as Territorial Normal School by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, the university is o ...

, Karney played for the Sun Devils football team. He started 28 of 46 games for the Sun Devils and had 78 yards on 32 carries and 37 receptions for 308 yards and a touchdown. Karney is said to have trained in college by strapping his car to his back and attempt to pull it around. As a senior, he recorded 14 catches for 106 yards and in 2002, opened 11 of 14 games, posting 20 rushing yards on eight carries and hauling in 13 passes for 121 yards. All

Pac-10 The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference in the Western United States. It participates at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level for all sports, and its football teams compete in the Football Bowl ...

selection in 2001, opening seven games and playing in every contest. That season had six carries for 18 yards and caught six passes for 39 yards, including a seven-yard touchdown vs.

San Diego State San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California, United States. Founded in 1897, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system. SDSU is ...

Professional career

Pre-draft

Karney was rated as one of the top fullbacks coming out of college.

New Orleans Saints

Karney was selected in the fifth round of the

by the

with the 156th overall pick. Karney was signed to three-year $1.3 million contract on July 29, 2004, and proved to be a solid lead blocker and average receiver out of the backfield. The Saints gave up two picks to draft Karney. In his first two seasons he started 22 of 32 games. He was re-signed to a contract extension prior to the 2006 season (July 13, 2006). The extension was for a reported four-years and $5.6 million including incentives, and included a $1.2 million signing bonus. On December 10, 2006, against the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...

on '' Sunday Night Football'', Karney had his best NFL game, scoring two receiving and one rushing touchdowns, his first three touchdowns in the NFL. After the 2006 season, Karney was voted

All-pro All-Pro is an honor bestowed upon professional American football players that designates the best player at each position during a given season. All-Pro players are typically selected by press organizations, who select an "All-Pro team," a list t ...

St. Louis Rams

Karney signed a three-year, $4.9 million contract with the

on March 11, 2009. The deal includes $1.7 million guaranteed. Karney was needed because, according to

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, "The Rams have been struggling at that position since they released

Madison Hedgecock Madison Smith Hedgecock (born August 27, 1981) is an American former professional football player who was a fullback in the National Football League (NFL) for seven seasons. He played college football for the University of North Carolina. He w ...

early in 2007." Hedgecock ended up starting for the

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

Super Bowl XLII Super Bowl XLII was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion New York Giants and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion ...

and was Second-team

All-Pro All-Pro is an honor bestowed upon professional American football players that designates the best player at each position during a given season. All-Pro players are typically selected by press organizations, who select an "All-Pro team," a list t ...

. On the day of the Karney signing, Rams head coach

Steve Spagnuolo Stephen Christopher Spagnuolo ( ;(Italian: born December 21, 1959) is an American football coach who is the defensive coordinator for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). Nicknamed "Spags", Spagnuolo started his NFL coac ...

said, "Mike has proven to be a solid fullback since entering the league in 2004. We are excited that he is now a Ram and we looking forward to him being an effective part of our offense in the future."

Steven Jackson Steven Rashad Jackson (born July 22, 1983) is an American former professional football player who was a running back for 12 seasons in the National Football League (NFL), primarily with the St. Louis Rams. He played college football for the Or ...

echoed that saying, "I've seen the holes that he's opened up...I'm looking forward to working with him." On February 8, 2011, the Rams released Karney.

Seattle Seahawks

Karney visited with the Seahawks on August 30, 2011, but was not signed to a contract by Seattle.

References

External links

Arizona State Sun Devils bioSt. Louis Rams bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Karney, Mike 1981 births Living people Players of American football from San Jose, California American football fullbacks Arizona State Sun Devils football players New Orleans Saints players St. Louis Rams players Kentwood High School (Washington) alumni