Junior Colson
 Colson with Michigan in 2024 | |
| Los Angeles Chargers | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Linebacker |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | December 6, 2002 Mirebalais, Haiti |
| Height: | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
| Weight: | 238 lb (108 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Ravenwood (Brentwood, Tennessee) |
| College: | Michigan (2021–2023) |
| NFL draft: | 2024 / Round: 3 / Pick: 69 |
| Career history | |
| |
| Roster status: | Unsigned draft pick |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Career NFL statistics as of 2024 | |
| Player stats at NFL.com | |
Junior Colson (born December 6, 2002) is a Haitian-American football linebacker for the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at the University of Michigan, winning the national championship and the Lott Trophy in 2023. Colson was selected by the Los Angeles Chargers in the third round of the 2024 NFL draft.
Early life and high school career[edit]
Colson was born in Mirebalais, Haiti. His father died when he was seven years old, and he was placed in an orphanage in Port-au-Prince operated by his uncle. At age eight, he met Americans Steve and Melanie Colson who visited Haiti on a church mission after the 2010 Haiti earthquake. He was adopted by the Colsons and, after a lengthy adoption and immigration process, moved to Tennessee at age nine in May 2012.[1][2][3] He recalled that, on arriving at the airport in the United States, "The first thing I saw in America was a Michigan hat. That's what all of my family members were wearing, they're big Michigan fans."[4]
Colson grew up speaking Haitian Creole and learned English only after moving to Tennessee. He also grew up playing soccer and took up American football, playing linebacker at Ravenwood High School in Brentwood, Tennessee.
Considered a four-star recruit by the 247Sports Composite rankings, Colson was rated as a top 100 player in the nation, the #10 overall linebacker, and the second best player in Tennessee in 2021. He committed to play college football at Michigan, over offers from LSU, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Oregon and Tennessee.
College career[edit]
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Colson met Michigan Wolverines football coach Jim Harbaugh at the Michigan football camp and was offered a scholarship to play football. He enrolled at Michigan in 2021 and started seven games as a true freshman for the Wolverines. He totaled 60 tackles (fourth most on the team), and earned his first career sack on November 13, 2021, in a 12 tackle performance versus Penn State. He was selected as a Freshman All-American.[5][6]
As a sophomore, in 2022, Colson started all 14 games, recording a team high 101 tackles and 2 sacks. He was voted second team All-Big Ten by the coaches. In the Big Ten Championship Game victory versus Purdue, Colson recorded a career high 15 tackles.[7]
As a junior, in 2023, Colson started all 15 games and led the Michigan Wolverines to a national championship with a team high 95 tackles.[8] Colson was named Second-team All-Big Ten by both the coaches and media.[9] He also won the Lott IMPACT Trophy.[8][10]
Professional career[edit]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 2+1⁄4 in (1.89 m) |
238 lb (108 kg) |
32+1⁄2 in (0.83 m) |
9+3⁄8 in (0.24 m) | |||||||||
| All values from NFL Combine[11][12] | ||||||||||||
Colson was selected 69th overall by the Los Angeles Chargers in the third round of the 2024 NFL draft.
References[edit]
- ^ Orion Sang (June 27, 2020). "Father's dying wish made him an orphan. Now he's Michigan football's best linebacker recruit". Detroit Free Press.
- ^ "Michigan X-factor: LB Junior Colson, who 'really has it all'". Mlive.com. May 17, 2022.
- ^ "From Haiti to Ann Arbor, Michigan's Junior Colson knows how to adapt". The Athletic. May 20, 2022.
- ^ "Junior Colson's Incredible Journey To Michigan". SI.com. June 2, 2022.
- ^ "Junior Colson". University of Michigan. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
- ^ "Junior Colson more comfortable, playing faster as he enters his second season with Michigan football". USA Today. August 12, 2022.
- ^ "Junior Colson". University of Michigan.
- ^ a b "Lott IMPACT® Trophy – 2023 Winner Michigan's Junior Colson - Lott IMPACT® Trophy". lottimpacttrophy.org. December 10, 2023. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
- ^ "Big Ten all-conference football team: Defense, special teams selections for 2023 season". Detroit Free Press. November 28, 2023.
- ^ Tony Garcia (December 11, 2023). "Michigan football's Junior Colson earns prestigious honor as Lott IMPACT Trophy winner". Detroit Free Press.
- ^ "Junior Colson Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ "2024 NFL Draft Scout Junior Colson College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
External links[edit]
- 2002 births
- Living people
- American football linebackers
- Haitian emigrants to the United States
- Michigan Wolverines football players
- People from Brentwood, Tennessee
- Sportspeople from the Nashville metropolitan area
- People from Centre (department)
- Players of American football from Tennessee
- Haitian players of American football
- Los Angeles Chargers players