Cory Ross (born September 22, 1982) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

Canadian football Canadian football () is a sport played in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposing team's scoring area ( ...

and indoor football

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 handoffs from the quarterback to rush the ball, to line up as a receiver to catch the ball, and block. Ther ...

. He is now the head coach of the

Quad City Steamwheelers The Quad City Steamwheelers were a professional arena football team. They were a charter member of the AF2 and played their home games at iWireless Center in Moline, Illinois. The team was founded on September 1, 1999 when the Quad Cities was ...

of the

Indoor Football League The Indoor Football League (IFL) is a professional indoor American football league created in 2008 out of the merger between the Intense Football League and United Indoor Football. It has one of the largest number of currently active teams am ...

(IFL). He most recently played for the Edmonton Eskimos 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 ...

. He was signed by the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays it ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

in 2006. He played college football at

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the sout ...

Early years

Ross attended Thomas Jefferson High School in

Denver, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

. While in high school, Ross played in the first ever U.S. Army All-American Bowl game on December 30, 2000 alongside fellow Nebraska Cornhusker Titus Adams.

College career

Ross played college football at

, where he earned the nickname "Porkchop" because he was significantly heavy for his small stature, weighing more than fellow I-backs who were all at least 5 inches taller. His 2,743 rushing yards ranked ninth on the team's all-time list. He majored in sociology.

Professional career

Baltimore Ravens

Ross signed with the

as an undrafted rookie free agent on May 12, 2006. In his rookie season he played in four games. With the injury to B.J. Sams during the

2006 NFL season The 2006 NFL season was the 87th regular season of the National Football League. Regular season play was held from September 7 to December 31, 2006. The season began with the reigning Super Bowl XL champion Pittsburgh defeating the Miami in t ...

, Ross became the

kick returner A return specialist or kick returner is a player on the special teams unit of a gridiron football team who specializes in returning punts and kickoffs. There are few players who are exclusively return specialists; most also play another positio ...

for the Baltimore Ravens. He made his NFL debut on December 10 at the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The ...

. In the Ravens' 2007 season finale, Ross rushed for 78 yards and a touchdown against the Pittsburgh Steelers. He was released prior to the 2008 season.

Sacramento Mountain Lions

After spending the 2008 season out of football, Ross was signed by the

California Redwoods ''Sequoia sempervirens'' ()''Sunset Western Garden Book,'' 1995:606–607 is the sole living species of the genus '' Sequoia'' in the cypress family Cupressaceae (formerly treated in Taxodiaceae). Common names include coast redwood, coastal ...

of the United Football League on August 18, 2009. For the 2010 season, the Redwoods relocated to Sacramento and were renamed the Sacramento Mountain Lions. He was named the 2010 UFL Offensive Season MVP.

Edmonton Eskimos

On May 17, 2012, Ross was signed by the Edmonton Eskimos, but was released during training camp on June 17, 2012.http://www.oursportscentral.com/services/releases/?id=4403730 Eskimos Add Depth at Running Back

Omaha Beef

In early January 2015, Ross joined the

Omaha Beef The Omaha Beef is an indoor football team and a charter member of the Champions Indoor Football (CIF) league. Based in Omaha, Nebraska, the Beef play their home games at Liberty First Credit Union Arena in nearby Ralston. History First 13 se ...

Champions Indoor Football Champions Indoor Football (CIF) is a professional indoor American football minor league created in 2014 out of the merger between the Champions Professional Indoor Football League (CPIFL) and Lone Star Football League (LSFL), plus one team fr ...

as the team's new head coach.

Quad City Steamwheelers

On August 16, 2017, Ross was announced as the inaugural head coach of the revived

that began play in

for the 2018 season. The Steamwheelers joined the

for the 2019 season.

References

External links

Just Sports StatsNebraska Cornhuskers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ross, Cory 1982 births Living people American football return specialists American football running backs Baltimore Ravens players Sacramento Mountain Lions players Edmonton Elks players Nebraska Cornhuskers football players Sportspeople from Denver Players of American football from Denver Lincoln Haymakers players Champions Indoor Football coaches