Nick Ralston (born November 10, 1996) is an

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 ...

fullback who is a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

. 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 ...

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

and

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

. He signed with the Cowboys after going undrafted in the

2021 NFL draft The 2021 NFL draft was the 86th National Football League draft, the annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2021 NFL season. The draft was held in Cleveland, Ohio from April 29 to May ...

Early years

Ralston attended

Argyle High School Argyle High School is a public high school located in the Town of Flower Mound, Texas (though it has an Argyle, Texas mailing address). The high school opened up in 1999 and is now classified as a 5A school by the UIL. It is a part of the Argyle ...

. As a junior, he tallied 1,800 rushing yards and 31 touchdowns, guiding the team to a 16-0 record and the 2013 Class 3A Division II championship. He also played a hybrid

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 ...

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 ...

position on defense. As a senior, he had 337 carries for 2,474 yards and 41 touchdowns, to help his team finish with an undefeated record and lead all Dallas-Fort Worth area rushers (regardless of school classification). He finished high school career after rushing for nearly 6,000 yards, scoring 94 rushing touchdowns and playing in three state championship games.

College career

Ralston accepted a football scholarship from

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 ...

. As a

redshirt Redshirt, Red Shirt, or Redshirts may refer to: Sports * Redshirt (college sports) 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 ...

freshman, he was the third-string running back, collecting 32 carries for 139 yards (4.3-yard avg.) and 2 touchdowns. He had 10 carries for 54 yards against the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a Public university, public research university in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1876, the university is organized into nine colleges and schools and offers 420 undergraduate and gra ...

. As a sophomore, he appeared in all 12 games, providing depth in the backfield after being passed on the depth chart. He had 4 carries for 22 yards (5.5-yard avg.) and 6 receptions for 32 yards. As a junior, he was converted into a

. He was a backup player, making 3 tackles and one fumble recovery. He also played as a

tight end The tight end (TE) is an offense (sports), offensive position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football. It is a hybrid that combines the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a receiver (football), receiv ...

, making 4 receptions for 18 yards and one touchdown. As a senior, he transferred to the

University of Louisiana at Lafayette The University of Louisiana at Lafayette (UL Lafayette, University of Louisiana, ULL, or UL) is a Public university, public research university in Lafayette, Louisiana, United States. It has the largest enrollment within the nine-campus Universi ...

. He played primarily at

and started all 14 games. He registered 15 receptions for 100 yards and 4 touchdowns.

Professional career

After the vast majority of College Pro Days were canceled in 2020 due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, Ralston did not sign with an NFL team. Afterwards, he continued to train for the next year in preparation for 2021 College Pro Days. In March 2021, Ralston had his Pro Day opportunity at the

. His results were among the best in the nation for fullback prospects.

Dallas Cowboys

Ralston was signed as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

by 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 ...

after 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 ...

on May 1. He was waived on August 31, 2021 and re-signed to the practice squad the next day. He was promoted to the active roster on October 16, 2021. He was waived on October 19 and re-signed to the practice squad. He appeared in 4 games and had one

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 ...

tackle. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Cowboys on January 18, 2022. He was waived on July 28, 2022.

References

External links

Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns bioArizona State Sun Devils bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ralston, Nick 1996 births Living people American football fullbacks Arizona State Sun Devils football players Dallas Cowboys players Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football players Players of American football from Dallas