Jalen A. Graham (born January 11, 2001) is an American football linebacker for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). 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 ...

Purdue Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...

Early life

Graham was born on January 11, 2001, and grew up in Detroit, Michigan. He attended Detroit Country Day School for his

freshman A freshman, fresher, first year, or frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. Ara ...

and

sophomore In the United States, a sophomore ( or ) is a person in the second year at an educational institution; usually at a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. In ...

years, before transferring to

Cass Tech High School Cass Technical High School (simply referred to as Cass Tech) is a public high school in Midtown Detroit, Michigan, United States.

. He played quarterback 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 ...

, being named first-team all-state at the latter position as a

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

. A three-star recruit, Graham committed to play

for the Purdue Boilermakers as a defensive back.

College career

Graham saw immediate playing time as a true

in 2019, playing in 11 games and starting eight while recording 37 tackles and 2.5 . He appeared in five games in 2020, posting 16 tackles, two

fumble A fumble in gridiron football occurs when a player who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed (tackled), scoring, or going out of bounds. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking, punting, or successful ...

recoveries and one forced fumble. Graham started 13 games in 2021, tallying 64 tackles, two interceptions, seven

pass breakups In American football, a pass deflected, also known as a pass deflection, a pass defended, a pass , a pass knockdown, or a pass breakup, is an incomplete pass that is caused by a defensive player. This is done by slapping or blocking the ball with ...

and a sack. He was named honorable mention All- Big Ten for his performance. As a senior, Graham appeared in only nine games due to injury but still managed to post 52 tackles, second-best on the team, five TFLs, one sack and one interception. Despite having remaining eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he opted to declare for the NFL Draft, finishing his stint at Purdue with 169 tackles, 12.5 TFLs, three forced fumbles and 13 pass breakups in 38 games.

Professional career

Graham was selected in the seventh round (255th overall) of the

2023 NFL Draft The 2023 NFL Draft will be the 88th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players. The draft is scheduled to be held in the plaza outside of Union Station in Kansas City, Missouri, on April 27–29, ...

by the San Francisco 49ers.

References

External links

San Francisco 49ers bio

Purdue Boilermakers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Graham, Jalen 2001 births Living people Players of American football from Detroit Detroit Country Day School alumni Cass Technical High School alumni Purdue Boilermakers football players San Francisco 49ers players American football linebackers