Rodrique Charles "Rod" Wright (born July 31, 1984) 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 ...

coach and former player who is the

defensive line In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line (OL), while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line (D ...

coach for the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team plays its home games at N ...

of 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 for five seasons as a

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 ...

in the NFL and

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). Wright 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 ...

for the

Texas Longhorns The Texas Longhorns are the athletic teams representing the University of Texas at Austin. The teams are sometimes referred to as the Horns and take their name from Longhorn cattle that were an important part of the development of Texas, and ...

, earning consensus

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 ...

honors in 2005 and a National Championship. The

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

chose him in the seventh round of the

2006 NFL draft The 2006 NFL draft, the 71st in league history, took place in New York City, New York, at Radio City Music Hall on April 29 and April 30, 2006. For the 27th consecutive year, the draft was telecast on ESPN and ESPN2, with additional coverage offe ...

, and he also played for the CFL's

Saskatchewan Roughriders The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division. The Roughriders were founded in 19 ...

Early life

Wright was born in

Houston, Texas Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

. He was a three-year

letterman Letterman may refer to: * Letterman (sports), a classification of high school or college athlete in the United States People * David Letterman (born 1947), American television talk show host ** ''Late Night with David Letterman'', talk show that ...

and two-year starting defensive tackle for Alief Hastings High School in Houston. After seeing limited action as a sophomore, he was a first-team all-district selection as a junior after registering 92

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 ...

, nine

quarterback sack In gridiron football, a sack occurs when the quarterback (or another offensive player acting as a passer) is tackle (football move), tackled behind the line of scrimmage before throwing a forward pass, when the quarterback is tackled behind the l ...

s and a blocked

extra point Extra, Xtra, or The Extra may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Film * The Extra (1962 film), ''The Extra'' (1962 film), a Mexican film * The Extra (2005 film), ''The Extra'' (2005 film), an Australian film Literature * Extra (newspaper), ...

attempt. Wright earned first-team high school

All-America 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 ...

honors from ''USA Today'' as a senior. He was also a ''

Parade A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats, or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually some variety ...

'' magazine All-American and was rated among the nation's top 10 defensive line prospects by ''Student Sports''. He was a first-team Class 5A all-state, All-Greater Houston and all-district selection as a senior. He was a finalist for the Greater Houston Touchdown Club Player of the Year award that season during which he posted 104 tackles, six sacks, three fumble recoveries and two blocked point-after attempts in 2001. Wright played in the 2002

U.S. Army All-American Bowl The All-American Bowl (currently branded as the Navy All-American Bowl for sponsorship reasons) is a high school football all-star game, held annually at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. Typically played in January, the All-American Bowl is p ...

alongside fellow Texas Longhorns Kasey Studdard and Justin Blalock. Considered a five-star recruit by Rivals.com, Wright was ranked second among defensive tackle prospects in the nation (behind

Haloti Ngata Etuini Haloti Ngata (; born January 21, 1984) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Oregon Ducks, earning consensus All-American ho ...

Prep awards and honors

* First-team ''

n (2001) * First-team ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (often stylized in all caps) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth in 1980 and launched on September 14, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headq ...

'' All-American (2001)

College career

Wright attended the

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 students as of fall 2 ...

, where he played for coach

Mack Brown William Mack Brown (born August 27, 1951) is an American former college football coach. Brown most recently coached at the University of North Carolina, where he had two stints, first from 1988 until 1997, and again from 2019 until his firing ...

Texas Longhorns football The Texas Longhorns football program is the intercollegiate team representing the University of Texas at Austin (variously Texas or UT) in the sport of American football. The Texas Longhorns, Longhorns compete in the NCAA Division I Football B ...

team from 2002 to 2005. As a true freshman in 2002, he saw action in all 13 games and started nine. He was a first-team Freshman All-America selection by the

Football Writers Association of America The Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) is an organization of college football media members in the United States founded in 1941. It is composed of approximately 1,200 professional sports writers from both print and Internet media out ...

and ''The Sporting News''. He earned

Big 12 The Big 12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference in the United States. It consists of 16 full-member universities (3 private universities and 13 public universities) in the states of Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Kansas, Ohio, Okla ...

Defensive Freshman of the Year honors from the league's coaches, ''Fort Worth Star-Telegram'', ''Houston Chronicle'' and ''The Sporting News''. He shared the Longhorns' Outstanding Defensive Newcomer Award and ranked seventh on the team (first among true freshmen) in tackles (65), second in tackles for loss (13) and third in sacks (4.5) and

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

pressures (15). He ranked in a third-place tie in tackles for loss and tied for fourth in sacks on Texas' freshman lists. Wright was a key member of a Longhorns defense that led the Big 12 and ranked eighth in the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

in pass defense (165.2 ypg), second in the conference and seventh in the nation in pass efficiency defense (96.1 rtg), eighth in the country in scoring defense (16.3 ppg) and 16th nationally in total defense (307.7 ypg). He performed particularly well in Big 12 action, posting 52 tackles (22 solo), 13 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, 10 pressures, one forced fumble and a blocked kick in eight league contests. Wright started all 13 games at defensive tackle in 2003, earning consensus second-team All-Big 12 honors and sharing the Longhorns' Outstanding Defensive Lineman award. He recorded 80 tackles, a team-leading 7.5 sacks, 12 tackles for loss (tied for second on the team), a team-leading 30 pressures, three passes batted down and three forced fumbles. In four games against Top 25 teams, he registered a total of 31 tackles, three sacks, four tackles for loss and eight pressures. While only a sophomore, Wright was a key member of a defense which ranked ninth in the NCAA in pass defense (177.3 ypg), 25th in total defense (329.8 ypg) and 32nd in scoring defense (21.5 ppg). Wright played in 11 games, making 10 starts, at defensive tackle as a junior in 2004. Despite battling an ankle injury for much of the season, he posted 36 tackles, a sack, three tackles for loss and seven quarterback pressures. He recorded 16 tackles, one tackle for loss and two pressures in five games versus Top 25 foes. For his performance during the year, Wright was tabbed second-team All-American by ''The Sporting News'' and honorable mention All-American by ''Pro Football Weekly''. He was also named first-team All-Big 12 by ''The Dallas Morning News'' and ''Fort Worth Star-Telegram''. He earned second-team All-Big 12 honors from the Associated Press, the conference coaches, ''The Austin American-Statesman'' and the ''San Antonio Express-News''. For the second straight year, he shared the team's Outstanding Defensive Lineman Award. In 2005, Wright started all 13 games and posted 46 tackles, 14 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, 15 pressures, three passes defensed, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. He was a finalist for the

Lombardi Award The Rotary Lombardi Award is an award for college football in the United States. Awarded by the Rotary Club of Houston, Texas annually to the college football player "who best embodies the values and spirit of NFL's legendary coach Vince Lombard ...

and tabbed First-team

by the Walter Camp Football Foundation and the Associated Press. To end his career, he won the national championship in a Rose Bowl victory over

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

Awards and honors

Freshman of the Year (2002) * First-team

Freshman All-American (2002) * First-team ''Sporting News'' Freshman All-American (2002) * 2x Longhorns' Outstanding Defensive Lineman Award (2003, 2004) * Second-team All-Big 12 (2003) * Second-team AP All-Big 12 (2004) * Second-team ''Sporting News'' All-American(2004) * First-team All-

(2005) * First-team AP

(2005) * First-team

Walter Camp Football Foundation The Walter Camp Football Foundation (WCFF) is one of the organizations whose College Football All-America Team is recognized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit ...

All-American (2005) *

finalist (2005)

Professional career

Miami Dolphins

Despite being widely regarded as a very good pro prospect and one of the best defensive tackles in the nation at Texas, Wright fell all the way to the seventh round and was selected by the Miami Dolphins with the 226th overall pick in the

. It was later revealed that Wright had a torn

rotator cuff The rotator cuff (SITS muscles) is a group of muscles and their tendons that act to stabilize the human shoulder and allow for its extensive range of motion. Of the seven scapulohumeral muscles, four make up the rotator cuff. The four muscles a ...

, which he underwent surgery to repair in May 2006. In late July, Wright signed a four-year contract with the team. Wright was not healthy enough to play during his

rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience, a rookie is typically considered needing more tra ...

season. He spent all of 2006 on the non-football injury list. Fully recovered from shoulder surgery, Wright practiced at defensive end as the backup to

Vonnie Holliday Dimetry Giovonni Holliday (born December 11, 1975) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the North Carolina Tar Heels and was selected by ...

during the team's April minicamps. Wright started his first game on October 7, 2007, against the

. He played in 13 games with nine starts and registered 38 tackles, 1.5 sacks, a pass defensed and a fumble recovery. Wright was waived on September 5, 2009.

New York Jets

Wright signed with 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 ...

on March 16, 2010. Wright would later be waived by the team on August 29, 2010.

Saskatchewan Roughriders

Wright signed with the

on October 27, 2010 as an injury replacement at the end of the 2010 season., but was waived prior to the 2011 season. The Roughriders went to the Grey Cup game that year.

Dallas Vigilantes

Wright played with the Dallas Vigilantes 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 ...

in 2011.

Coaching career

Sam Houston State

Prior to his time at East Carolina, Wright spent four years at Sam Houston State. During his tenure, the Bearkats posted a 46–12 overall record, a 31-4 Southland Conference mark, reached the semifinals of the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) playoffs three times and the quarterfinals in another year. He also helped Sam Houston State to a pair of conference titles and top-five national ranking all four seasons. Under Wright's tutelage, Sam Houston State defensive lineman P.J. Hall earned a spot on more than 10 All-America teams, including the Associated Press squad. He was a three-time finalist for the Buck Buchanan Award, which is symbolic of FCS Defensive Player-of-the-Year honors. He ranked among the nation's top 10 with 19.0 tackles for loss as a senior and finished his career with a school- and FCS-record 84.0 TFLs before being selected by the Oakland Raiders in the second round of the 2018 NFL Draft.

East Carolina

In Wright's lone season at East Carolina, the defense broke the American Athletic Conference (AAC) single-game record for tackles for loss with 15 against Old Dominion and eclipsed the school and league single-season marks with 105 TFL that season. Under his tutelage at ECU, defensive end Nate Harvey was named AAC Defensive Player of the Year and first-team all-conference after posting 63 tackles, 25.5 tackles for loss, 14.5 sacks, four quarterback hurries, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. Harvey broke the school and AAC single-season TFL record and also matched set the conference single-season sacks standard in 2018.

UTSA

Wright, a former All-America defensive lineman at Texas, came to San Antonio from East Carolina, where he was the Pirates’ defensive line coach for the 2018 season. Wright, who will continue to oversee the defensive line in 2021, played a key role on the defensive staff in 2020, including helping to coordinate the defense during the last two months of the campaign. The Roadrunners finished with a 7–5 record, a second-place finish in Conference USA's West Division with a 5–2 mark and an appearance in the SERVPRO First Responder Bowl. UTSA led C-USA in sacks (25), tackles for loss (85), interceptions (11), takeaways (19) and turnover margin (+7). In fact, the Roadrunners ranked in the top 30 nationally in five categories — 19th in turnovers gained, 23rd in passes intercepted, 25th in fumbles recovered (8), 26th in turnover margin and 29th in tackles for loss per game (7.1). Three of his defensive linemen — Lorenzo Dantzler, Jaylon Haynes and Brandon Matterson — earned honorable mention all-conference recognition, while Christian Clayton was named to the 2020 C-USA All-Freshman Team. Rod Wright is in his third season as a member of UTSA's defensive coaching staff. He was promoted to co-defensive coordinator in January 2021 after serving as run game coordinator and defensive line coach in 2020. Prior to that, he coached the Roadrunners' d-line during the 2019 campaign.

Miami

On March 3, 2022, Wright was hired as the defensive end coach at the

University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private university, private research university in Coral Gables, Florida, United States. , the university enrolled 19,852 students in two colleges and ten schools across over ...

under head coach

Mario Cristobal Mario Manuel Cristobal (born September 24, 1970) is an American college football coach who is the head football coach for the University of Miami. He previously served as the head football coach at Florida International University (FIU) from 200 ...

Houston Texans

On February 25, 2023, Wright was hired as the assistant defensive line coach for the

under head coach DeMeco Ryans. On February 28 when Jacques Cesaire left to be 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 ...

defensive line coach Wright was promoted to defensive line coach.

Personal

Wright's uncle, Elmo Wright, holds the

University of Houston The University of Houston (; ) is a Public university, public research university in Houston, Texas, United States. It was established in 1927 as Houston Junior College, a coeducational institution and one of multiple junior colleges formed in ...

records for receiving yards and receiving touchdowns, and was a first-round pick for 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 ...

in 1971. Wright is a cousin of former Longhorns defensive end Cedric Woodard, who previously played for the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

References

External links

Texas Longhorns bio

Saskatchewan Roughriders bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wright, Rodrique 1984 births Living people All-American college football players American football defensive ends American football defensive tackles East Carolina Pirates football coaches Houston Texans coaches Miami Dolphins players Miami Hurricanes football coaches New York Jets players Players of American football from Houston Players of Canadian football from Houston Sam Houston Bearkats football coaches Saskatchewan Roughriders players Texas Longhorns football coaches Texas Longhorns football players UTSA Roadrunners football coaches Dallas Vigilantes players Coaches of American football from Texas Canadian football defensive linemen