Isaiah D'Vaughn Pead (born December 14, 1989) 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 with ...

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 ...

. He 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 ...

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

. Pead was drafted by the

St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis from 1995 to the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, where the team had played from 1946 to 1994. The arri ...

in the second round of the

2012 NFL Draft The 2012 NFL draft was the 77th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players for their rosters. The draft, which is officially called the "NFL Player Selection Meeting", was held ...

. He was also a member of the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...

and

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...

Early years

Pead attended Eastmoor in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

, where he was a letterman in football and track. In

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

, he was a four-year letterwinner at

and

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

. He rushed for 1,696 yards (10.7 yards per carry) and 24 touchdowns, and also caught 10 passes for 250 yards, including two scores on his way to being named Ohio's Division IV Player of the Year in 2006. He earned the Ohio Division III Player of the Year award after rushing for 2,204 yards (11.5 yards per carry) and scored 39 touchdowns as a senior. He concluded his prep career with 4,443 rushing yards and 63

touchdowns A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether Rush (gridiron football), running, Forward pass, passing, returning a Kickoff (gridiron football), kickoff or Punt (gridiron football), punt, or recovering a Turno ...

. He is Eastmoor Academy's all-time rushing leader, surpassing two-time Heisman Trophy Winner

Archie Griffin Archie Mason Griffin (born August 21, 1954) is a former American football running back. He played seven seasons in the NFL with the Cincinnati Bengals. As college football's only two-time Heisman Trophy winner, he is considered one of the grea ...

. In

track & field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

, Pead was one of the state's top performers in the sprinting events. He was the 2007 Ohio Division II State

400-meter dash The 400 metres, or 400-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1964 for women. On a standard outdoor running track, it is on ...

champion, with a PR of 48.16 seconds. He took gold in the

100 meters The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been contest ...

at the 2008 Eastmoor Academy Invitational, recording a personal-best time of 10.89 seconds. He also ran the

200 meters The 200 metres, or 200-meter dash, is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 metre racetrack, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques is needed to successfully run the race. A slightl ...

in 22.05 seconds.

College career

Pead attended the

University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrollment of over 44,00 ...

from 2008 to 2011. He finished his career with 3,288 rushing yards on 545 carries with 27

. As a senior in 2011, Pead was the MVP of the 2012 Senior Bowl.

Professional career

Pead was considered one of the top running back prospects for the

. He was drafted in the second round, 50th overall by the

St. Louis Rams

On May 31, 2013, the NFL announced that Pead would be suspended for the season opener for violating the substance abuse policy. During the Rams' second preseason game against the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

in 2014, Pead tore his ACL on a kickoff return. He was placed on IR a few days later.

Pittsburgh Steelers

Pead was signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers on November 2, 2015, after

Le'Veon Bell Le'Veon Andrew Bell Sr. ( ; born February 18, 1992) is an American football running back who is a free agent. He played college football at Michigan State and was drafted 48th overall by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the second round of the 2013 ...

was placed on season-ending injured reserve with an MCL tear. On November 27, 2015, Pead was released by the Steelers.

Miami Dolphins

On March 31, 2016, Pead signed with the

. On October 11, 2016, he was released by the Dolphins.

Statistics

''Source
NFL.com
'

Car crash and personal life

On November 12, 2016, at approximately 2:30 AM, Pead was involved in a serious car crash, in which he was not wearing a seatbelt. According to the Columbus Division of Police, at about 2:32am, Saturday, Pead was driving his 2011 Cadillac CTS eastbound on I-670 near E. 5th Avenue, when he lost control of the vehicle, and drove off the right side of the roadway. The Cadillac struck the metal guardrail and continued through it. After going through the guardrail the Cadillac became airborne and struck several trees on the way down the embankment. It came to rest about 95 feet from the roadway. Police said two witnesses stopped and called 911 and provided assistance to Pead and a passenger in the Cadillac, Wesley Richardson, 27, until police arrived at the crash scene. Pead was taken to Grant Medical Center and had emergency surgery. Pead's injuries were career-ending.

football coach,

Tommy Tuberville Thomas Hawley Tuberville ( ; born September 18, 1954) is an American retired college football coach and politician serving as the junior United States senator from Alabama since 2021. Before entering politics, Tuberville was the head football co ...

, said Pead lost his left leg in the accident. Pead reportedly started a trucking company and has one son.

References

External links

*
Cincinnati Bearcats bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pead, Isaiah 1989 births Living people American football running backs American amputees Sportspeople with limb difference Cincinnati Bearcats football players Miami Dolphins players Pittsburgh Steelers players Players of American football from Columbus, Ohio St. Louis Rams players