Jason Leon Chery (born May 31, 1985) 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 ...

wide receiver in the

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...

for the

Tampa Bay Storm The Tampa Bay Storm were a professional arena football team based in Tampa, Florida, US. It played in the Arena Football League (AFL). Originally the team was located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and operated as the Pittsburgh Gladiators. The f ...

. He was also a member of the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. T ...

and

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 ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

. 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 ...

at the

University of Louisiana at Lafayette The University of Louisiana at Lafayette (UL Lafayette, University of Louisiana, ULL, or UL) is a public research university in Lafayette, Louisiana. It has the largest enrollment within the nine-campus University of Louisiana System and the s ...

Early years

Chery was born in Boynton Beach and moved to Haiti as a child, returning to Delray Beach when he was 9 years old. He attended

Spanish River Community High School Spanish River Community High School is a public, coeducational high school in Boca Raton, Florida, USA. It is part of the School District of Palm Beach County and serves the cities of Boca Raton and Delray Beach. History Spanish River Community ...

. He lettered in football, track and wrestling. As a junior, he registered 1,375 rushing yards and 14 rushing touchdowns. As a senior, he rushed for 1,789 yards and 28 touchdowns. In track, he was a three-time district champion.

College career

Chery accepted a football scholarship from the

. As a freshman, he opted to switch from

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 ...

to wide receiver instead of being

redshirted Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically, a student's athletic eligibility in a given sport is four seasons, aligning with the ...

. He appeared in 11 games as a backup wide receiver. He tallied 7 receptions for 54 yards, 8 kickoff returns for a 17.9-yard average, 15 special teams tackles and one fumble recovery. As a sophomore, he appeared in 12 games, starting the first 11 at wide receiver, while making 16 receptions for 222 and 2 receiving touchdowns. He did not start the season finale against the

University of Louisiana at Monroe The University of Louisiana Monroe (ULM) is a public university in Monroe, Louisiana. It is part of the University of Louisiana System. History ULM opened in 1931 as Ouachita Parish Junior College. Three years later it became the Northeast Cen ...

to allow injured offensive tackle Brandon Cox to start in the slot and break the school record with 46 consecutive starts. He was second on the team in receptions and receiving yards, tied for the team lead with two receiving touchdowns. He posted 5 kickoff returns, 12 special teams tackles and 2 blocked punts. He had 5 receptions for 93 yards and 2 touchdowns against

Eastern Michigan University Eastern Michigan University (EMU, Eastern Michigan or simply Eastern), is a public research university in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Founded in 1849 as Michigan State Normal School, the school was the fourth normal school established in the United Sta ...

. He was named

Sun Belt Conference The Sun Belt Conference (SBC) is a collegiate athletic conference that has been affiliated with the NCAA's Division I since 1976. Originally a non-football conference, the Sun Belt began sponsoring football in 2001. Its football teams participa ...

Special Teams Player of the Week against

North Carolina A&T State University North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (also known as North Carolina A&T State University, North Carolina A&T, N.C. A&T, or simply A&T) is a public, historically black land-grant research university in Greensboro, North Caro ...

, after blocking a punt that was returned for a touchdown. As a junior, he appeared in 12 games, starting the last 11 at wide receiver. He registered 36 receptions (led the team) for 442 yards (second on the team), 2 receiving touchdowns, 21 rushes for 209 yards, 2 rushing touchdowns, 14 kickoff returns for 270 yards (19.3-yard avg.) and 15 special teams tackles. He led the team in receptions, with 36 for 442 yards. He had 101 receiving yards against

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...

. He made 7 receptions for 107 yards against the

. He was named

Special Teams Player of the Week against the University of South Carolina, after making every solo tackle on special teams in the game, including three tackles on kickoff coverage and one on punt coverage, helping to hold the Gamecocks to less than 20 yards per kickoff return. As a senior, he led the team with 46 receptions for 656 yards and 7 receiving touchdowns. He also had 25 carries for 312 yards and 3 rushing touchdowns. He finished his college career with 3,518 all-purpose yards (third in school history), 105 receptions for 1,374 yards, 11 receiving touchdowns, 46 carries for 521 yards, 5 rushing touchdowns, 80 kickoff returns for 1,607 yards and one touchdown return.

Professional career

Carolina Panthers

Chery was signed by the

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 ...

after the

2009 NFL Draft The 2009 NFL Draft was the seventy-fourth annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, on April 25 and 26, 2009. T ...

on May 1. He was waived on September 5 and re-signed to the

practice squad In sports, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, ...

the following day. He was cut on October 12.

Pittsburgh Steelers

On December 23, 2009, he was signed to the

. He was re-signed on January 6, 2010. He was released on June 15.

Green Bay Packers

On August 5, 2010, he signed as a

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 ...

with 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 ...

. He was released on September 4, before the start of the regular season.

Hartford Colonials

In 2010, he signed with the

Hartford Colonials The Hartford Colonials, originally the New York Sentinels, were a professional American football team that played in the United Football League in its 2009 and 2010 seasons. A charter member of the UFL, the Sentinels began play in 2009 nominally ...

of the United Football League. He was a backup wide receiver, making 8 receptions for 182 yards and one touchdown.

Saskatchewan Roughriders

On January 31, 2012, he signed with the

Saskatchewan Roughriders The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division. The Roughriders were founded in 1 ...

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 released during training camp on June 17.

Tampa Bay Storm

On November 11, 2012, he was signed as a

by the

of the

. He registered 21 receptions for 261 yards and 5 touchdowns.

Personal life

Chery is of

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...

an descent. His sister Jennifer was a

track medalist. He is currently training for the

MMA Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorp ...

with the intention of turning pro.

References

External links

Ragin' Cajuns bioSaskatchewan Roughriders bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chery, Jason 1985 births Living people Sportspeople from Boca Raton, Florida Players of American football from Palm Beach County, Florida American football wide receivers Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football players Carolina Panthers players Pittsburgh Steelers players Hartford Colonials players Saskatchewan Roughriders players Tampa Bay Storm players American sportspeople of Haitian descent