Kenneth Gainwell

Kenneth Gainwell (born March 14, 1999) is an American football running back for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL) He played college football for Memphis.

Kenneth Gainwell
Gainwell with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2021
No. 14 – Philadelphia Eagles
Position:Running back
Personal information
Born: (1999-03-14) March 14, 1999
Vicksburg, Mississippi
Height:5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight:200 lb (91 kg)
Career information
High school:Yazoo County (Yazoo County, Mississippi)
College:Memphis (2018–2020)
NFL Draft:2021 / Round: 5 / Pick: 150
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
  • First-team All-AAC (2019)
  • AAC Rookie of the Year (2019)
Career NFL statistics as of 2021
Rushing yards:291
Rushing average:4.3
Rushing touchdowns:5
Receptions:33
Receiving yards:253
Receiving touchdowns:1
Return yards:137
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Early life and high school

Gainwell grew up in Yazoo City, Mississippi and attended Yazoo County High School. He was a three-year starter at quarterback for the Panthers. As a junior, he passed for 1,184 yards and nine touchdowns and rushed for 1,292 yards and 20 touchdowns. During the summer going into his senior season Gainwell committed to play college football at Memphis over offers from Ole Miss and Tulane.[1] As a senior, he passed for 1,139 yards and 10 touchdowns and ran for 1,834 yards and 32 touchdowns. Gainwell was named Class 3A Mr. Football as he led the Panthers to a 14–1 record and an appearance in the Class 3A state championship game.[2][3][4] Gainwell finished his high school career with 3,682 yards passing and 32 passing touchdowns and 4,730 rushing yards and 75 rushing touchdowns with one kickoff returned for a touchdown.[5]

College career

Gainwell moved to running back during summer training camp and played in four games as a true freshman before deciding to redshirt the rest of the season. He finished the season with four carries for 91 yards and a touchdown, a 73-yard run, and six receptions for 52 yards.[6]

As a redshirt freshman, Gainwell was named the Tigers' starting running back following the departure of Tony Pollard. He was named the co-American Athletic Conference (AAC) player of the week after rushing for 104 yards and a touchdown and gaining 204 yards and scoring two touchdowns on nine receptions on October 19, 2019, in a 47–17 win over Tulane.[7] He rushed for 1,459 yards with 13 touchdowns on 231 carries and caught 51 passes for 610 yards and three touchdowns and was named the AAC Freshman of the Year and first team All-AAC.[8][9] He was named a second team All-American by the Sporting News and the American Football Coaches Association and the National Freshman of the Year by the Football Writers Association of America.[10][11][12]

Gainwell opted out of his final college season six days before the season opener after multiple family members died from COVID-19.[13]

Professional career
Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeightArm lengthHand span40-yard dash10-yard split20-yard split20-yard shuttleThree-cone drillVertical jumpBroad jumpBench press
5 ft 8+3⁄8 in
(1.74 m)		 201 lb
(91 kg)		 30+5⁄8 in
(0.78 m)		 9+7⁄8 in
(0.25 m)		4.44[14] s1.62 s2.57 s4.46 s7.26 s35.0 in
(0.89 m)		10 ft 1 in
(3.07 m)		21 reps
All values from NFL Combine[15][16]

2021

Gainwell was selected in the fifth round (150th overall) by the Philadelphia Eagles in the 2021 NFL Draft.[17] Gainwell was happy to be drafted by Philadelphia, as he grew up an Eagles fan, and his favorite player while growing up, Darren Sproles, works for the team as a consultant. Gainwell also said that he modeled his game after Sproles.[18] He signed his four-year rookie contract with Philadelphia on June 3, 2021.[19] Gainwell found moderate success as a rookie, as he ended the year with 68 carries for 291 yards and 5 touchdowns, while adding 33 receptions for 253 yards and 1 touchdown.[20] Gainwell appeared in 16 games as a rookie, as he was a healthy scratch for the Eagles' week 11 showdown with the New Orleans Saints.[21]

Personal life

Gainwell's younger brother, Kory, played defensive back and running back at Yazoo County and is committed to play at Memphis.[22] Gainwell is the cousin of fellow Eagles player Fletcher Cox.[23]

References
  1. Claxton, Ben (June 28, 2017). "Yazoo County QB Kenny Gainwell Commits To Memphis". DeltaDailyNews.com. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
  2. Jordan, Jonah (October 17, 2019). "Older brother helps Kory Gainwell tackle recruiting process". The Daily Memphian. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
  3. "Yazoo County's Gainwell steps up". Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal. November 18, 2017. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
  4. "2017 Class 3A Mr. Football: Kenneth Gainwell". MissHSAA.com. Mississippi High School Activities Association. December 15, 2017. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
  5. "Gainwell relishes lead running back role as Tigers face Navy". The Daily Memphian. September 26, 2019. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
  6. Vannini, Chirs (June 13, 2019). "State of the Program: Memphis is the team to beat in the AAC West, and it has its sights set higher". The Athletic. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
  7. Greer, Jarvis (October 22, 2019). "Tigers' Gainwell earns top weekly honor in AAC". WMCActionNews5.com. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
  8. Fowler, Christian (January 14, 2020). "Gainwell has fifth best odds to win Heisman Trophy in 2020". 247Sports.com. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
  9. "Memphis' Antonio Gibson, Kenneth Gainwell among Tigers honored in 2019 All-AAC awards". The Commercial Appeal. December 4, 2019. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
  10. "Memphis Tigers running back Kenneth Gainwell named freshman player of the year". LocalMemphis.com. January 13, 2020. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
  11. Greer, Jarvis (December 18, 2019). "Tigers running back, Kenny Gainwell, earns All-American status". WMCActionNews5.com. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
  12. "Memphis freshman Kenneth Gainwell earns second-team All-American honors from Sporting News, AFCA". The Commercial Appeal. December 17, 2019. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
  13. "Memphis running back ready for NFL draft after opting out". AP NEWS. 2021-04-20. Retrieved 2021-05-15.
  14. "Philadelphia Eagles select Memphis Tigers running back Kenneth Gainwell with No. 150 pick in 2021 draft". NFL.com. Retrieved June 4, 2021.
  15. "Kenneth Gainwell Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved June 4, 2021.
  16. "Kenneth Gainwell, Memphis, RB, 2021 NFL Draft Scout, NCAA College Football". draftscout.com. Retrieved June 4, 2021.
  17. McPherson, Chris (May 1, 2021). "Eagles draft RB Kenneth Gainwell". PhiladelphiaEagles.com.
  18. "Philadelphia Eagles' rookie RB Kenneth Gainwell says he's a 'rare breed'".
  19. "Eagles Sign Three More Draft Picks".
  20. "Kenneth Gainwell 2021 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  21. "Eagles vs. Saints inactives: Kenneth Gainwell a healthy scratch with Miles Sanders returning". theeagleswire.com/. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  22. Cook, Joe (January 28, 2020). "Yazoo County's Kory Gainwell commits to Memphis". WAPT.com. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
  23. Kerr, Jeff (2021-05-01). "Eagles select Kenneth Gainwell: Three things to know about Philly's fifth-round pick". CBS Sports. Retrieved 2021-05-01.
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