Carson Steele
| Kansas City Chiefs | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Running back |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | October 21, 2002 Greenwood, Indiana, U.S. |
| Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Weight: | 225 lb (102 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Center Grove (Greenwood) |
| College: | Ball State (2021–2022) UCLA (2023) |
| Undrafted: | 2024 |
| Career history | |
| |
| Roster status: | Undrafted free agent |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| Career NFL statistics | |
| Player stats at NFL.com | |
Carson Steele (born October 21, 2002) is an American football player who is a running back for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football with the Ball State Cardinals and the UCLA Bruins.
Early years[edit]
Steele was raised in Greenwood, Indiana.[1] He has had a pet alligator named "Crocky-J" since he was in first or second grade; the alligator grew to four or five feet in length.[2] He attended Center Grove High School in Greenwood,[3] rushing for 1,659 yards and 31 touchdowns as a senior in 2020.[4] He tallied a total of 5,907 rushing yards during his high school career.[5] He was selected as Mr. Football in Indiana after the 2020 season.[6]
College football[edit]
Steele signed a letter of intent to play college football at Ball State University in February 2021.[6] Due to his long blonde hair, fitness (less than 10% body fat), and talents as a running back, he received nicknames at Ball State, including "Thor", "Fabio", and "Man of Steele".[7] As a freshman in 2021, he rushed for 891 yards and six touchdowns.[8] During his freshman year, he squatted 615 pounds and was able to bench press 405 lbs.[2] Barstool Sports' podcast "Unnecessary Roughness" called him "the most interesting man in CFB (college football)."[2]
Prior to the 2022 season, Steele was selected by Bruce Feldman of The Athletic to his list of the top 100 "freaks" in college football.[2] On November 8, 2022, he rushed for a career-high 198 yards and three touchdowns against Toledo.[9] He also rushed for 192 yards against Kent State.[10] He was awarded MAC West Offensive Player of the Week twice during the 2022 season.[11][12] Through games played on November 19, 2022, Steele ranked ninth nationally with 1,376 rushing yards on 263 attempts (5.2 yards per carry).[13]
On January 4, 2023, Steele committed to play at the University of California, Los Angeles, for the Bruins.[14]
Statistics[edit]
| Season | Games | Rushing | Receiving | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Att | Yards | Avg | TD | Rec | Yards | Avg | TD | |||||
| Ball State Cardinals | ||||||||||||||
| 2021 | 13 | 7 | 192 | 891 | 4.6 | 6 | 12 | 157 | 13.1 | 1 | ||||
| 2022 | 12 | 12 | 289 | 1,556 | 5.4 | 14 | 29 | 166 | 5.7 | 1 | ||||
| UCLA Bruins | ||||||||||||||
| 2023 | 4 | 4 | 41 | 272 | 6.6 | 2 | 8 | 62 | 7.8 | 1 | ||||
| Career[15] | 29 | 23 | 522 | 2,719 | 5.2 | 22 | 49 | 385 | 7.9 | 3 | ||||
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 0+5⁄8 in (1.84 m) |
228 lb (103 kg) |
30+1⁄2 in (0.77 m) |
9+5⁄8 in (0.24 m) |
4.77 s | 1.60 s | 2.70 s | 4.36 s | 7.07 s | 37.5 in (0.95 m) |
9 ft 8 in (2.95 m) |
28 reps | |
| All values from Pro Day[16] | ||||||||||||
References[edit]
- ^ Ian Hansen (September 29, 2021). "Iron makes Steele: Carson Steele broke records in high school and is already contributing in a big way to Ball State". Ball State Daily News.
- ^ a b c d Bobby General (September 9, 2022). "From alligators to nicknames, who is BSU RBCarson Steele? (part 2)". Muncie Star Press – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Mike Beas (September 18, 2020). "Horse Race: Steele poised to rewrite Center Grove record book". The Daily Journal. p. B1 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Carson Steele". Ball State University. Retrieved November 9, 2022.
- ^ Robby General (September 10, 2021). "'Strangely Successful': BSU freshman Carson Steele shined in 1st game". The Star Press. pp. B1, B2 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Opportunity, loyalty lead Mr. Football Carson Steele on path to sign with Ball State". Indianapolis Star. February 3, 2021.
- ^ Bobby General (September 9, 2022). "From alligators to nicknames, who is BSU RBCarson Steele? (part 1)". Muncie Star Press – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Carson Steele". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 9, 2022.
- ^ Robby General (November 9, 2022). "3 takeaways from Ball State football at Toledo: Rockets dash Cardinals MAC Championship hopes". Muncie Star Press.
- ^ "Carson Steele rushes for 192 yards, Ball State beats Kent State 27-20". Associated Press. November 1, 2022.
- ^ "MAC Announces Week 6 Football Players of the Week". getsomemaction.com. Mid-American Conference. October 10, 2022. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
- ^ "MAC Announces Week 10 Football Players of the Week". getsomemaction.com. Mid-American Conference. November 7, 2022. Retrieved November 8, 2022.
- ^ "College Football Player Rushing Stats 2022". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
- ^ Connon, Sam (January 4, 2023). "Ball State Transfer RB Carson Steele Commits to UCLA Football". Sports Illustrated.
- ^ "Carson Steele College Stats". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
- ^ "2024 NFL Draft Scout Carson Steele College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved April 13, 2024.