A. J. Ouellette (born July 20, 1995) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

professional

gridiron football Gridiron football,"Gridiron football"
''Encyclopædia Britannica''. Ret ...

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...

for the

Toronto Argonauts The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), based in Toronto, Ontario ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

(CFL).

College career

Ouellette played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

for the

Ohio Bobcats The Ohio Bobcats are the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Ohio University, located in Athens, Ohio, United States. Ohio University is a charter member (1946) of the Mid-Amer ...

from 2014 to 2018 while using a medical redshirt season in 2017 after suffering an injury in his first game that year. He finished his collegiate career having played in 50 games where he had 719 carries for 3,833 yards and 32 rushing touchdowns and 64 receptions for 516 yards and six receiving touchdowns.

Awards and recognition

*Two time Team captain. *Rushed for 1,000 yards in 2017 and 2018. *Second Team All-MAC Offense 2017. *Honored by the touchdown Club of Columbus, 2015. *In 2015 lead team in rush attempts and rushing yards. *in 2014 was two-time MAC East Offensive Player of the Week (Nov. 6 and 24). * DXL Frisco Bowl Offensive MVP.

College statistics

Professional career

New Orleans Saints

In May 2019, Ouellette signed with the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

. New Orleans waived Ouellette on May 28, 2019.

Cleveland Browns

On July 27, 2019, Ouellette signed with the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...

. However, he was waived by Cleveland on August 31, 2019.

Toronto Argonauts

On September 17, 2019, it was announced that Ouellette had signed with the

. He played in his first career game on October 18, 2019, against the

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes (Canadian French, French: Les Alouettes de Montréal) are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has folded and been revived twice. The Alouettes compete in the Canadian F ...

where he had four carries for 20 yards. In the following game, he recorded his first career touchdown on a 15-yard pass from

Dakota Prukop Dakota Prukop (born October 17, 1993) is an American professional gridiron football quarterback for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football for Montana State from 2013 to 2015 and for Oregon ...

in a game against the

Ottawa Redblacks The Ottawa Redblacks (officially stylized as REDBLACKS) ( French: Le Rouge et Noir d'Ottawa) are a professional Canadian football team based in Ottawa, Ontario. The team plays in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). Startin ...

on October 26, 2019. He played in three regular season games in

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where he had 23 carries for 114 yards and five receptions for 39 yards and one touchdown. Ouellette did not play in 2020 due to the cancellation of the

2020 CFL season The 2020 CFL season would have been the 67th season of modern-day Canadian football. Officially, it would have been the 63rd season of the Canadian Football League. It was originally scheduled to begin on June 11; on April 7, the start of the s ...

, but signed a contract extension with the Argonauts on December 15, 2020. In

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...

, he played in just six games while spending time on the injured list and practice roster, but recorded 23 carries for 143 yards. Ouellette made his post-season debut, on December 5, 2021, after playing in the East Final where he had four carries for eight yards in the loss to the

Hamilton Tiger-Cats The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional Canadian football team based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are currently members of the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Tiger-Cats play their home games at Tim Hortons Fiel ...

. Ouellette began the 2022 season on the injured list and played in just three of the team's first eight games as the back up running back. However, following a season-ending injury to the team's starting running back, Andrew Harris, Ouellette became the team's starting running back on August 20, 2022, where he had six carries for 18 yards and seven catches for 92 yards against the Calgary Stampeders. He scored his first career rushing touchdown on September 10, 2022, in the victory over the Ottawa Redblacks. Ouellette finished the season having played in 13 regular season games carrying the ball 98 times for 516 yards with two touchdowns. He also caught 38 passes for 350 yards and a score. On February 11, 2023, Ouellette and the Argos agree to a contract extension.

Personal life

Ouellette was born to parents Phil and Jody Ouellette and has one older sister, Ashlie. Ouellette is married to Haley Ouellette.

References

External links

Toronto Argonauts bio

Ohio Bobcats football bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ouellette, Aj 1995 births Living people American players of Canadian football American football running backs Canadian football running backs Players of American football from Ohio Players of Canadian football from Ohio Ohio Bobcats football players Toronto Argonauts players