Richard James Gardner (born February 1, 1981) is a retired American professional football player. He last played defensive back for

Kiel Baltic Hurricanes The Kiel Baltic Hurricanes are an American football team based in Kiel, Germany. The club has been, of recent, a strong force in the sport in Germany, playing in five consecutive German Bowls from 2008 to 2012, losing the first two, winning the t ...

of the

German Football League The German Football League (GFL) is an American football league in Germany and was formed in 1979. Playing rules are based on those of the American NCAA. In 1999, the league switched its name from ''American-Football-Bundesliga'' to ''German Foot ...

. A Penn State University Football graduate and 3rd round draft pick, he played three seasons 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 ...

for 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 hom ...

from 2004– 2005, and the Seattle Seahawks in 2006. Currently he resides in Gary, Indiana with his wife and children. In 2017 he founded a nonprofit with his wif
Maroon Village
where they work with Student Athletes building resilience on and off the playing field through performance training and practices such as yoga, meditation and breathwork. Coming to Penn State as a walk-on in 1999, Gardner started every game in his final two seasons. He totaled 141 tackles, two fumble recoveries, 15 pass deflections and three

interception In ball-playing competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for a player of the same team ...

s for 109 yards and two

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 Amer ...

s. He was named a third-team

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

n his senior year and honorable mention All-

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

his senior and junior years. He graduated from Penn State with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics analyzes ...

in December 2003.

NFL

A third-round

draft pick A draft is a process used in some countries (especially in North America) and sports (especially in closed leagues) to allocate certain players to teams. In a draft, teams take turns selecting from a pool of eligible players. When a team selec ...

(#92 overall) for the

Titans In Greek mythology, the Titans ( grc, οἱ Τῑτᾶνες, ''hoi Tītânes'', , ''ho Tītân'') were the pre-Olympian gods. According to the ''Theogony'' of Hesiod, they were the twelve children of the primordial parents Uranus (Sky) and Gai ...

in 2004, the 5'10", 195 lb. Gardner made 24 tackles and an

in his two seasons there, playing

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...

and

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their "position". Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

. He was waived by the Titans on September 4, 2006. He signed with the Seahawks in week 17 of the 2006 season and was waived by the team on July 11, 2007.

External links

Gardner walking on a cloud
''The Nashville City Paper'', June 30, 2004
Rich Gardner Conference Call
Tennessee Titans website
Rookie CB enjoying NFL experience
Tennessee Titans website, July 8, 2004 {{DEFAULTSORT:Gardner, Rich 1981 births Living people American football cornerbacks Players of American football from Chicago Penn State Nittany Lions football players People from Carbondale, Illinois Seattle Seahawks players Tennessee Titans players