Tony Pollard (American football)


Tony Pollard is an American football running back for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League. He played college football at the University of Memphis, and was drafted by the Cowboys in the fourth round of the 2019 NFL Draft.

Early years

Pollard attended Melrose High School. As a senior, he was a two-way starter at wide receiver and cornerback on the high school football team. He helped the team reach the playoffs, while making over 1,200 receiving yards, 20 touchdowns and being named All-District 16-AAA.

College career

Pollard accepted a football scholarship from the University of Memphis. As a redshirt freshman, he appeared in 13 games, registering 29 receptions for 298 yards, 31 carries for 159 yards and 3 touchdowns. He finished among the national leaders in kickoff return average. He had 2 returns for touchdown and was named the American Athletic Conference's Special Teams Player of the Year.
As a sophomore, he posted 36 receptions for 536 yards and 30 carries for 230 yards and 6 touchdowns. He also led the nation with a school-record 40-yard average per kickoff return and 4 returns for touchdowns. He repeated as the American Athletic Conference's Special Teams Player of the Year.
As a junior, even though he shared the backfield with Darrell Henderson, he totaled 78 receptions for 552 yards, 39 carries for 458 yards, 10 touchdowns with one kickoff return for a touchdown. In the 2018 Birmingham Bowl, he recorded 318 all-purpose yards and one rushing touchdown.
Pollard was considered one of the best kickoff return specialists in college football, tying a FBS record with 7 career kick-return touchdowns, 87 kickoff returns, 2,616 kickoff return yards, 30.1 kick-return average and 4,680 all-purpose yards.
On January 11, 2019, Pollard declared for the 2019 NFL Draft. Just six days later, on January 17, 2019, Pollard was added to the 2019 North Senior Bowl roster.

Statistics

Professional career

Pollard was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the fourth round in the 2019 NFL Draft. He had 13 carries for 24 yards in his NFL debut in Week 1 of the 2019 season against the New York Giants in the 35–17 victory. During Week 3 against the Miami Dolphins, Pollard posted his first career 100+-yard game as he finished with 103 rushing yards on 13 carries and a touchdown as the Cowboys won 31-6. During Week 15 against the Los Angeles Rams, Pollard finished with 131 rushing yards on 12 attempts, including a 44-yard touchdown as the Cowboys won 44–21. Overall, in his rookie season, he finished with 455 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns to go along with 15 receptions for 107 receiving yards and one receiving touchdown.