Laremy Tunsil
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Laremy Alexander Tunsil (born August 2, 1994) is an
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 ...
offensive tackle Offensive may refer to: * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Offensive (military), an attack * Offensive language ** Fighting words or insulting language, words that by their very utterance inflict inj ...
for the
Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division, and play their home ga ...
of 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 ...
(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 ...
at Ole Miss.


High school career

A native of
Lake City, Florida Lake City is a city in northern Florida. It is the county seat of Columbia County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 12,329. It is the principal city of the Lake City Micropolitan Statistical Area, which ...
, Tunsil attended
Columbia High School Columbia High School may refer to: *Columbia High School (Huntsville, Alabama) *Columbia High School (Georgia) *Columbia High School (Florida) *Columbia High School (Idaho) *Columbia High School (Illinois) *Columbia High School (Mississippi), a Mis ...
, where he played
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 ...
and competed in
track and 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 ...
as a
shot putter The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. The shot put competition for men has been a part of the modern Olympics since their revival in 1896, and women's ...
. He was a two-time All-State offensive lineman for the Tigers football team. Tunsil credits his development as an offensive tackle to going up against defensive lineman
Timmy Jernigan Timothy Lenord Jernigan Jr. (born September 24, 1992) is a former American football defensive end. He was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He played college football at Florida State. High school care ...
, his Columbia teammate, in practice. "He's always trying to get better every day. He's strong and he's fundamentally sound. He's got all the tools you need to be one of the best," said his high school coach Brian Allen. In his senior year, Tunsil helped Columbia High School rush for 275 yards per game en route to the
FHSAA The Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) is an organization whose purpose is to organize sports competition for high schools in Florida. It is a member of the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS). Florida uses ...
Class 6A state quarterfinals, where they lost 28–21 to
Navarre High School Navarre High School is one of six public high schools in the Santa Rosa County School District located in Navarre, Florida. It was established in 1996 and currently enrolls 2,309 students. Campus Navarre High School has a suburban-style campus. ...
. After the season, Tunsil played in the 2013
U.S. Army All-American Bowl The All-American Bowl is a high school football all-star game, held annually at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. Typically played in January, the All-American Bowl is played between all-star teams representing the eastern and western United S ...
. Regarded as a five-star recruit by ''
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'', Tunsil was listed as the highest ranked offensive tackle prospect of his class. Tunsil had offers from every major BCS program, including every SEC school. From early on, he made depth chart, i.e. the possibility of starting as a
true freshman 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 ...
, one of his priorities. He eliminated his home-state
Florida Gators The Florida Gators are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Florida, located in Gainesville. The University of Florida, its athletic program, its alumni and its sports fans are often collectively referred to as t ...
early in the process, because the Gators had signed five-star offensive tackle
D. J. Humphries Dierrias J. Humphries Jr. (born December 28, 1993) is an American football offensive tackle for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Florida. Humphries won the 2011 Anthony Muñoz Award, ...
from the previous class. For a long period of time, Tunsil was believed to be leaning towards
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...
, since the Bulldogs started true freshman
John Theus John Bailey Theus (born January 19, 1994) is a former American football offensive tackle. He played college football at the University of Georgia. High school career A native of Jacksonville, Florida, Theus attended Bolles School where he was co ...
at right tackle in every game of the 2012 season, and Tunsil hoped to do so at left tackle in 2013 as incumbent starter Kenarious Gates was graduating. But after a visit to Ole Miss in late January, Tunsil reportedly changed his mind and was considered a "done deal" for the Rebels. Tunsil made his announcement on
National Signing Day National Signing Day has traditionally been the first day that a high school senior can sign a binding National Letter of Intent for a collegiate sport with a school that is a member of the United States National Collegiate Athletic Association ( ...
on ''
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'', where he indeed committed to Ole Miss.


College career

At Ole Miss in 2013, Tunsil played every game, starting all but four games— Vanderbilt,
Southeast Missouri State Southeast Missouri State University (SEMO) is a public university in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. In addition to the main campus, the university has four regional campuses offering full degree programs and a secondary campus housing the Holland Col ...
,
Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...
, and
Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...
. He was one of only two true freshmen serving as his team's full-time starting left tackle, the other being
Virginia Tech Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also ...
's Jonathan McLaughlin. Tunsil had his first start against
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
, competing against Longhorns defensive end
Jackson Jeffcoat Jackson Jeffcoat (born December 26, 1990) is a Canadian football defensive end for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League (CFL). Jeffcoat won the 107th and 108th Grey Cup when the Blue Bombers defeated the Hamilton Tiger-Cats ...
, who finished the game with only three tackles and no sacks. Following the Rebels' 34–24 victory over SEC West rival
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...
, Tunsil was named SEC Offensive Lineman of the Week, after helping the offense piling up 531 total yards and a near-school record 428 passing yards. Tunsil earned SEC All-Freshman honors by the league's coaches, and first-team Freshman All-American honors by ''
The Sporting News The ''Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a pr ...
'', after allowing only one sack throughout his freshman season. As a sophomore, started at the left tackle position in all 11 games that he played in, only missing the
Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...
and
Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...
games due to a partially torn bicep. Tunsil was back in the starting line-up for the
Peach Bowl The Peach Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played in Atlanta, Georgia since December 1968. Since 1997, it has been sponsored by Chick-fil-A and is officially known as the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. From 2006 to 2013, it was officially re ...
, but fractured his
fibula The fibula or calf bone is a leg bone on the lateral side of the tibia, to which it is connected above and below. It is the smaller of the two bones and, in proportion to its length, the most slender of all the long bones. Its upper extremity is ...
in the first half when quarterback
Bo Wallace William Robert Wallace, Jr. (born June 23, 1992), nicknamed Dr. Bo, is an American football coach and former player. He played college football at Ole Miss and was the Rebels starting quarterback from 2012 to 2014. College career Wallace atte ...
fell on the back of his right leg. After the season, Tunsil was named All-SEC by the
Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...
. In June 2015, before his junior season, Tunsil was accused by his stepfather, Lindsey Miller, of having accepted improper benefits from sports agents. Coach
Hugh Freeze Hugh may refer to: *Hugh (given name) Noblemen and clergy French * Hugh the Great (died 956), Duke of the Franks * Hugh Magnus of France (1007–1025), co-King of France under his father, Robert II * Hugh, Duke of Alsace (died 895), modern-day ...
decided to bench Tunsil for the season-opener against Tennessee–Martin on September 5, as a “precautionary measure.” Tunsil was suspended by the NCAA and missed the first seven games of the season. He was reinstated before the #15 Texas A&M game on October 24. His matchup with defensive end
Myles Garrett Myles Lorenz Garrett (born December 29, 1995) is an American football defensive end for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Texas A&M, where he received unanimous All-American honors in 2016, ...
, who entered the game with quarterback sacks, was highly anticipated. According to analysts Tunsil emerged as “the big winner,” not giving up a sack and helping the Rebels to a 23–3 upset win over the Aggies. Having missed the first half of the season, Tunsil was not selected to any All-American team despite solid performance. During the
Sugar Bowl game The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in New Orleans, Louisiana. Played annually since January 1, 1935, it is tied with the Orange Bowl and Sun Bowl as the second-oldest bowl games in the country, surpassed only ...
against
Oklahoma State Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New M ...
, Tunsil had a two-yard rushing touchdown as time expired in the first half. Ole Miss won the Sugar Bowl, 48–20.


Professional career

Shortly after Ole Miss's bowl game, Tunsil announced his decision to forgo his final college year and enter the
2016 NFL Draft The 2016 NFL Draft was the 81st annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. As in 2015, the draft took place at the Auditorium Theatre and Grant Park in Chicago. The draft beg ...
. In February, a number of
mock draft Mock draft is a term used by sports websites and magazines in reference to a simulation of a sports league draft or fantasy sports league's draft. ESPN has run mock drafts on the front page of its website, allowing any visitor to vote towards a sp ...
s projected him to be the No. 1 overall selection by the
Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their h ...
. NFL Media analyst
Lance Zierlein Lance Zierlein is a sports analyst and commentator. He has hosted sports talk shows on KILT 610, KBME 790, KGOW 1560 AM, and KFNC 97.5 FM in Houston, Texas Career Zierlein graduated from Lamar Consolidated High School in 1988. Following high sc ...
compared Tunsil to
All-Pro All-Pro is an honor bestowed upon professional American football players that designates the best player at each position during a given season. All-Pro players are typically selected by press organizations, who select an "All-Pro team," a list th ...
offensive tackle
Tyron Smith Tyron Jerrar Smith (born December 12, 1990) is an American football offensive tackle for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at USC where he won the Morris Trophy, recognizing the best offensiv ...
. After an outstanding performance in offensive line drills at the
NFL Combine The NFL Scouting Combine is a week-long showcase occurring every February at Lucas Oil Stadium (and formerly at the RCA Dome until 2008) in Indianapolis, where college football players perform physical and mental tests in front of National Footba ...
, Tunsil further established himself as the No. 1 draft prospect. On April 14, the Titans announced a trade of their first overall draft pick to the
Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...
, who were widely believed to be looking for a quarterback rather than an offensive lineman, and eventually selected quarterback
Jared Goff Jared Thomas Goff (born October 14, 1994) is an American football quarterback for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at California, where he set the Pac-12 Conference season records for passing ...
out of
California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
. Ten minutes before the draft was set to begin, Tunsil's
Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
account showed a video of him wearing a gas mask and smoking a substance from a
bong A bong (also known as a water pipe) is a filtration device generally used for smoking cannabis, tobacco, or other herbal substances. In the bong shown in the photo, the gas flows from the lower port on the left to the upper port on the right. ...
. Although Tunsil's agent
Jimmy Sexton Jimmy Dale Sexton (born December 15, 1951) is an American former professional baseball infielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners, Houston Astros, Oakland Athletics, and St. Louis Cardinals. Sexton signed his fi ...
immediately explained that the account was hacked, it resulted in some teams taking Tunsil off their draft boards entirely. 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 ...
(at No. 6) and
Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their h ...
(at No. 8), both in need of an offensive tackle, passed over Tunsil and chose
Ronnie Stanley Ronnie Garrison Stanley (born March 18, 1994) is an American football offensive tackle for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Notre Dame. Stanley was drafted by the Ravens 6th overall in th ...
and
Jack Conklin Jonathan Jackson Conklin (born August 17, 1994) is an American football offensive tackle for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Michigan State. Early years Conklin was born in Plainwell, M ...
, respectively. The
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 ...
eventually selected him with the 13th overall pick. In a parallel incident, Tunsil's
Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...
account published a screenshot of a text requesting money from Ole Miss assistant athletic director John Miller for rent and so Tunsil's mother could pay her electric bill. During a post-draft press conference, Tunsil admitted that he took money from an Ole Miss coach while a member of the school, but explained his Instagram account had also been hacked.


Miami Dolphins

On April 28, 2016, the
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 ...
selected Tunsil with the 13th overall selection in the
2016 NFL Draft The 2016 NFL Draft was the 81st annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. As in 2015, the draft took place at the Auditorium Theatre and Grant Park in Chicago. The draft beg ...
. He was the highest selected offensive lineman for the Dolphins since
Jake Long Jake Edward Long (born May 9, 1985) is a former American football offensive tackle. He played college football at Michigan, where he was a two-time consensus All-American, and was drafted by the Miami Dolphins first overall in the 2008 NFL Dr ...
went first overall in 2008, and the highest drafted Ole Miss player since linebacker
Patrick Willis Patrick L. Willis (born January 25, 1985) is an American former football middle linebacker who played his entire eight-year career with the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the 49ers in the first roun ...
went 11th overall to the
San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...
in 2007. On May 6, 2016, it was announced that Tunsil had signed a $12.45 million, four-year contract with the Dolphins. As a rookie in the 2016 season, Tunsil played in 14 games, 13 of those at the left guard position. He helped the Dolphins to finish with the ninth best rushing offense in the league. After the 2016 season, veteran left tackle
Branden Albert Branden Albert (born November 4, 1984) is a former American football offensive tackle who played nine seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Virginia and was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs 15th overall in ...
was traded to the
Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team play ...
, making room for Tunsil to move to the left tackle position for the 2017 season. In the 2017 season, Tunsil appeared in and started 15 games. In the 2018 season, Tunsil appeared in and started 15 games once again. On April 18, 2019, the Dolphins picked up the fifth-year option on Tunsil's contract.


Houston Texans

On August 31, 2019, Tunsil,
Kenny Stills Kenneth Lee Stills Jr. (born April 22, 1992) is an American football wide receiver who is a free agent. He played college football at Oklahoma and was drafted by the New Orleans Saints in the fifth round of the 2013 NFL Draft. Early years St ...
, and a fourth-round pick were traded to the
Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division, and play their home ga ...
in exchange for two first-round picks, a second-round pick,
Johnson Bademosi Johnson Bademosi (born July 23, 1990) is an American football cornerback and special teamer who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the Cleveland Browns as an undrafted free agent in 2012. He was a member of the football, rugby, and track ...
, and
Julien Davenport Julien may refer to: People * Julien (given name) * Julien (surname) Music * ''Julien'' (opera), a 1913 poème lyrique by Gustave Charpentier * ''Julien'' (album), by Dalida, 1973 * "Julien" (song), by Carly Rae Jepsen, 2019 Places ...
. He started 14 games at left tackle in 2019, earning his first trip to the Pro Bowl. He was ranked 66th by his fellow players on he
NFL Top 100 Players of 2020 The NFL Top 100 Players of 2020 is the tenth season in the NFL Top 100 series. It premiered on July 26, 2020 and the final episode aired on July 29, 2020. It started later than in previous years, and the show was shown in 4 consecutive days instea ...
. On April 24, 2020, Tunsil signed a three-year, $66 million contract extension with $57.85 million guaranteed with the Texans, making him the highest-paid offensive lineman in terms of annual value. He played in and started 14 games in the 2020 season. He earned his second Pro Bowl nomination in 2020. He was ranked 75th by his fellow players on he
NFL Top 100 Players of 2021 NFL Top 100 Players of 2021 is the eleventh season in the NFL Top 100 series. It premiered on August 15, 2021, and concluded on August 28, 2021. Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes was named the number one player. Episode list The ...
. On October 16, 2021, Tunsil was placed on injured reserve after undergoing thumb surgery. In the 2021 season, Tunsil appeared in and started five games. On March 19, 2023, Tunsil re-signed to the Texans on a three year, $75 million contract extension.


NFL career statistics


Personal life

Tunsil was arrested on
domestic violence Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. ''Domestic violence'' is often used as a synonym for ''intimate partner ...
charges in
Oxford, Mississippi Oxford is a city and college town in the U.S. state of Mississippi. Oxford lies 75 miles (121 km) south-southeast of Memphis, Tennessee, and is the county seat of Lafayette County. Founded in 1837, it was named after the British city of Oxf ...
, after an altercation with his step-father Lindsey Miller on June 25, 2015. Miller claimed the incident stemmed from an argument about Tunsil "riding around with agents," while others claimed Tunsil acted in defense of his mother. Later, Miller met with Chris Howard, the NCAA's director of enforcement, accusing Tunsil of NCAA rules violations, which triggered an NCAA investigation that resulted in Tunsil's suspension for the first seven games of his junior season at Ole Miss ( see above).


References


External links


Houston Texans bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tunsil, Laremy 1994 births Living people People from Lake City, Florida People from Harvey, Louisiana Players of American football from Florida African-American players of American football American football offensive tackles American football offensive guards Ole Miss Rebels football players Miami Dolphins players Houston Texans players American Conference Pro Bowl players 21st-century African-American sportspeople