Nathan Cottrell (born August 2, 1996) is a former

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

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 ...

. Cottrell 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 ...

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology (commonly referred to as Georgia Tech, GT, and simply Tech or the Institute) is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Established in 1885, it has the lar ...

Early life

Cottrell played high school football at Knoxville West High School.

College career

Cottrell played college football at Georgia Tech. During his senior season under head coach Geoff Collins, Cottrell mostly played

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 ...

, particularly as a gunner on punts and kickoffs. He finished the season with nine total tackles. He was also switched from running back, which he played in the

triple option offense The triple option is an American football play used to offer six ways to move the football forward on the field of play. The triple option is based on the option run, but uses three players who might run with the ball instead of the two used in ...

under previous head coach Paul Johnson, to

slot 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, WR gets its name from the player being split ...

Professional career

Cottrell went undrafted in the

2020 NFL draft The 2020 NFL draft was the 85th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2020 NFL season. The first round was held on April 23, followed by the second and third rounds on April 24. The ...

. During Georgia Tech's pro day, he had a 4.38 seconds

40-yard dash The 40-yard dash is a sprint covering . It is primarily run to evaluate the speed and acceleration of American football players by scouts, particularly for the NFL draft but also for collegiate recruiting. A player's recorded time can have a he ...

time. He reached a deal with the

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...

on April 25, 2020. He was waived during final roster cuts on September 5, 2020, and signed to the team's

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 ...

two days later. He was elevated to the Jaguars' active roster just before the team's season opener against the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. Since the 2008 India ...

, and reverted to the practice squad after the game. He was placed on the practice squad/

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list by the team on October 17, 2020, and was restored to the practice squad on October 22. He was elevated to the active roster again on November 21 for the team's week 11 game against the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

, and reverted to the practice squad again following the game. He was signed to the active roster on November 24. On August 31, 2021, Cottrell was waived by the Jaguars and re-signed to the practice squad the next day. He was released on September 6, 2021, and re-signed with their practice squad on September 20, 2021. He signed a reserve/future contract on January 10, 2022. He was waived on August 7, 2022. Cottrell has since retired from professional football and is currently a real estate agent.

References

External links

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cottrell, Nathan Living people 1996 births Jacksonville Jaguars players American football running backs Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football players Players of American football from Knoxville, Tennessee