Alex Collins (American football)

Alex Collins

No. 36 Seattle Seahawks
Position:	Running back
Personal information
Date of birth:	(1994-08-26) August 26, 1994
Place of birth:	Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Height:
Weight:
Career information
High school:	Plantation (FL) South
College:	Arkansas
NFL draft:	2016 / Round: 5 / Pick: 171
Career history
Seattle Seahawks (2016–present)
Roster status:	Active
Career NFL statistics
Player stats at NFL.com

Alex Collins (born August 26, 1994) is an American football running back for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Seahawks in the fifth round, 171st overall of the 2016 NFL draft. He played college football at Arkansas.

Early years

Collins attended South Plantation High School in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where he was a letterman in football, basketball, lacrosse and track. He was coached by Doug Gatewood. He was named Broward County Player of the Year as a junior after rushing for 1,786 yards and 28 touchdowns as the Paladins earned seven victories and qualified for the state playoffs. As a senior, he rushed for 1,400 yards and 14 touchdowns despite missing three games due to injury, helping South Plantation to nine wins, the district title and a berth in the 8A state playoffs. Following his senior season, he was selected to play in the Semper Fidelis All-American Bowl, where he was teammates with fellow Arkansas signee Austin Allen.

Also a talented sprinter, Collins ran the third leg on South Plantation’s state-champion 4x100m relay (41.98 s), leading to him being named the 2013 Broward County Male Athlete of the Year.

Recruitment

Collins was ranked as a four-star recruit by Rivals.com and the 13th best running back in his class. Collins committed to play college football at the University of Arkansas in February 2013.

On signing day, Collins' mother provided some momentary drama, when she refused to sign the National Letter of Intent (LOI) for Alex to attend school at Arkansas, and then ran away with the LOI. She wanted Collins to stay close to home and attend classes at the University of Miami, FL. The drama ended the next day when Arkansas head coach Bret Bielema faxed another LOI to Collins, which was signed by his father.

College career

Collins started his career as the first true freshman in SEC history to rush for 300 yards in his first three games. Splitting time with Jonathan Williams, he finished the year with 1,026 rushing yards on 190 carries with four touchdowns. For his play he was named the SEC Freshman of the Year.

In his sophomore season, Collins ran for 1,100 yards and 12 touchdowns on 204 carries, while still splitting time with Williams. He also helped lead Arkansas to a Texas Bowl victory over the Texas Longhorns.

Williams went down with an injury before Collins' junior season, so he became the featured back in Bret Bielema's offense. On November 7th, 2015, Alex became only the third player in SEC history to rush for 1000 plus yards in 3 seasons (Herschel Walker, Darren McFadden).

Collins finished his junior season with a career high 1,577 yards and a school-record 20 rushing touchdowns. He was named second-team all-SEC, mostly because Alabama's Derrick Henry and LSU's Leonard Fournette outrushed him and were All-Americans. Collins led Arkansas to a Liberty Bowl victory over Kansas State on January 2, 2016. He finished the game with 185 yards and three rushing touchdowns, earning MVP honors.

Professional career

Pre-draft

Pre-draft measurables

Ht	Wt	Arm length	Hand size	40-yd dash	10-yd split	20-yd split	20-ss	3-cone	Vert	Broad	BP
5 ft 10 in	217 lb	30​1⁄4 in	9​1⁄4 in				4.59 s	8.02 s	28.5 in	9 ft 5 in	18 reps
Values from NFL Combine and pro day

Seattle Seahawks

On April 30, 2016, the Seattle Seahawks selected Collins with their fifth round pick, 171st overall in the 2016 NFL Draft. On May 6, 2016, Collins signed a 4-year deal worth $2.2 million overall with a $184,000 bonus.

External links

• Seattle Seahawks bio
• Arkansas Razorbacks bio