Le'Ron De'Mar McClain (born December 27, 1984) 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 ...

fullback Fullback or Full back may refer to: Sports * A position in various kinds of football, including: ** Full-back (association football), in association football (soccer), a defender playing in a wide position ** Fullback (gridiron football), in Americ ...

who played in 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 ...

for the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and la ...

, and was drafted 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 its ...

137th overall in the fourth round of the 2007 NFL Draft.

Early years and college

McClain was born in

Fort Wayne, Indiana Fort Wayne is a city in and the county seat of Allen County, Indiana, United States. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is west of the Ohio border and south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 as of the 2020 Censu ...

. He played

high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...

Tuscaloosa County High School Tuscaloosa County High School serves grades 9– 12 and is located in Northport, Alabama, America, forming part of the Tuscaloosa County Schools. History The original Tuscaloosa County High was opened near downtown Northport in 1926. In 2000, ...

for the Wildcats. He accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the

, where he played for coach

Mike Shula Mike Shula (born June 3, 1965) is an American football coach who is the senior offensive assistant coach for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). A graduate of the University of Alabama, he was the school's head football coa ...

Alabama Crimson Tide football The Alabama Crimson Tide football program represents the University of Alabama (variously Alabama, UA, or Bama) in the sport of American football. The team competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Asso ...

team from 2003 to 2006.

Professional career

2007 NFL Draft

McClain was considered one of the best fullbacks available in the 2007 NFL Draft, and drew comparisons to William Henderson. He was drafted with the 137th pick during the fourth round by the

Baltimore Ravens

McClain signed with the Ravens on July 27, 2007. He scored his first career

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Ameri ...

on a

Kyle Boller Kyle Bryan Boller (born June 17, 1981) is a former American football quarterback. After playing college football for California, he was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens in the first round (19th overall) of the 2003 NFL Draft. He played for the Rav ...

pass against the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...

on November 25, 2007. He finished his rookie season with eight carries for 18 yards, nine receptions for 55 yards, and 1 touchdown. Ravens vs Steelers 2008 MNF

During the 2008 season, McClain became the team's primary running-back as he rushed for a team-high 902 yards and 10 touchdowns on 232 carries (3.9 yards per carry). He also caught 19 passes for 123 yards and a touchdown. On December 20, 2008, McClain ran for 82 yards to score the final touchdown in

Texas Stadium Texas Stadium was an American football stadium located in Irving, Texas, a suburb west of Dallas. Opened on October 24, 1971, it was known for its distinctive hole in the roof, the result of abandoned plans to construct a retractable roof (Cowboy ...

against the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...

. Along with teammate

Willis McGahee Willis Andrew McGahee III (born October 21, 1981) is a former American football running back. He played college football at Miami, where he was recognized as a consensus All-American, and was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the first round of t ...

's 77-yard touchdown run on the previous Ravens drive, he and McGahee became the first players ever to run two 70+ touchdown runs on back-to-back drives. The run was also the longest run by an opponent in

. In addition, McClain had 139 rushing yards on the day. McClain's performance earned him a

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

selection, in which he scored a touchdown off of a

Fumblerooski In American football, the fumblerooski is a trick play in which the football is intentionally and stealthily placed on the ground (fumbled) by an offensive player, usually the quarterback. The offensive team then attempts to distract and confuse the ...

play handed off by former

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

Jay Cutler Jay Christopher Cutler (born April 29, 1983) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons, primarily with the Chicago Bears. He played college football for the Van ...

. Cutler put the ball between McClain's legs in which he ran in for a touchdown. During his last two years as a Raven, McClain lost carries to

and

Ray Rice Raymell Mourice Rice (born January 22, 1987) is a former American football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for six seasons with the Baltimore Ravens. He played college football at Rutgers, where he received first-t ...

. He publicly complained about not getting enough touches, which led to his departure from the Ravens.

Kansas City Chiefs

McClain signed a one-year deal with 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 tea ...

on August 3, 2011, after the

signed

Vonta Leach Terzell Vonta Leach ( ; born November 6, 1981) is a former American football fullback who played for ten seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He was signed by the Green Bay Packers as an undrafted free agent in 2004. He played college ...

San Diego Chargers

McClain signed a three-year deal with the

on March 14, 2012. On March 3, 2014, McClain was released by the Chargers.

Personal life

His cousin,

Rolando McClain Rolando Marquise McClain (born July 14, 1989) is a former American football linebacker. He played college football at Alabama, where he was recognized as a unanimous All-American and won the 2010 BCS National Championship. He was selected eight ...

, is a linebacker who last played for the

. On November 5, 2014, he was arrested on felony charges of trafficking in synthetic marijuana.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:McClain, LeRon 1984 births Living people Sportspeople from Tuscaloosa, Alabama African-American players of American football American Conference Pro Bowl players American football fullbacks Alabama Crimson Tide football players Baltimore Ravens players Kansas City Chiefs players Players of American football from Alabama San Diego Chargers players 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American people