Loucheiz Purifoy (born December 16, 1992) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

professional

gridiron football Gridiron football,"Gridiron football"
''Encyclopædia Britannica''. Ret ...

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 ...

for the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League (CFL). Purifoy 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 Florida. He signed with the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...

as an undrafted free agent after the

2014 NFL Draft The 2014 NFL draft was the 79th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players to the league. The draft, officially the "Player Selection Meeting", was held at Radio City Music Hall in New Y ...

, and has also been a member of the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...

, BC Lions, Saskatchewan Roughriders, and Ottawa Redblacks.

Early years

Purifoy was born in

Pensacola, Florida Pensacola () is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle, and the county seat and only incorporated city of Escambia County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 54,312. Pensacola is the principal ...

. He attended Pine Forest High School in Pensacola, where he played high school football. He played quarterback, running back and wide receiver in the Eagles' split-back veer offense. He was also a long jumper and sprinter for the Pine Forest track team. Purifoy was a standout in the long jump and triple jump, posting personal marks of 7.21 meters and 14.68 meters, respectively. In addition, he competed in 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 ...

, recording a personal best of 22.08 seconds.

College career

Purifoy accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida, where he played for coach Will Muschamp's Florida Gators football team from

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. As a true freshman in 2011, he played in all thirteen games as a reserve cornerback and on special teams. As a sophomore in 2012, he started twelve of thirteen games, recording 51 tackles. As a junior in 2013, he started seven of eleven games, recording 24 tackles, two interceptions and two

quarterback sack In gridiron football, a sack occurs when the quarterback (or another offensive player acting as a passer) is tackled behind the line of scrimmage before throwing a forward pass, when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage in th ...

s. On November 30, 2013, Purifoy announced that he would forgo his senior season and enter the

Professional career

Indianapolis Colts

Purifoy's problems off the field may have contributed to a slip from a late draft pick to an undrafted free agent. On May 12, 2014, it was announced that the

agreed to terms with Purifoy. Purifoy went into the preseason with a competition with fellow cornerback Marcus Burley. Both performed well and cutting either would be difficult, so the Colts traded Burley to the

for a sixth round draft pick. The Colts kept Purifoy and was on their initial 53-man roster. Purifoy dressed for 11 games during the 2014 season, seeing his snap count increase over the course of the year. He was waived on November 27.

Seattle Seahawks

Purifoy was claimed off waivers by the

on November 28, 2014, but was waived after a failed physical on December 1, 2014. Whilst a free agent, Purifoy was suspended by the NFL for the first ten weeks of the 2015 season, most likely for violating the substance abuse policy.

BC Lions

On March 21, 2016, Purifoy signed a contract with the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League. According to Lions head coach Wally Buono, Purifoy had a very impressive first season in the CFL. He was, however, deemed ineligible for rookie of the year consideration based on the fact that he had dressed for an NFL regular season game in the past. Purifoy had a strong second season with the Lions in

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, amassing 49 defensive tackles, three special teams tackles and three interceptions. Following the 2017 season, Purifoy was not re-signed by the Lions and became a free agent.

Ottawa Redblacks

On the first day of free agency, February 13, 2018, Purifoy was signed to a one-year contract by the Ottawa Redblacks. He played in the Redblacks first seven games of the season and contributed with 29 tackles, one interception and a forced fumble. Purifoy was released by the Ottawa RedBlacks on August 6, 2018.

Saskatchewan Roughriders

One day after being released by the Redblacks, Purifoy signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

BC Lions (II)

On the first day of free agency, on February 8, 2022, Purifoy signed with the BC Lions. Purifoy played in all 18 regular season games for the Lions and contributed with 55 tackles, nine special-teams tackles, three interceptions and a sack. He was named a CFL All-Star for his performance. He was released on January 4, 2023. He was due a $30,000 roster bonus in mid-February 2023.

Edmonton Elks

On January 9, 2023, it was announced that Purifoy had signed with the Edmonton Elks.

References

External links

Edmonton Elks bioFlorida Gators bioNFL Combine profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Purifoy, Loucheiz 1992 births Living people African-American players of American football African-American players of Canadian football American football cornerbacks BC Lions players Canadian football defensive backs Edmonton Elks players Florida Gators football players Indianapolis Colts players Ottawa Redblacks players Players of American football from Pensacola, Florida Seattle Seahawks players Players of Canadian football from Pensacola, Florida Saskatchewan Roughriders players 21st-century African-American sportspeople