Curtis Ladonn Adams (born April 30, 1962) 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 wi ...

player. He played

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 handoffs from the quarterback to rush the ball, to line up as a receiver to catch the ball, and block. Th ...

Central Michigan University Central Michigan University (CMU) is a public research university in Mount Pleasant, Michigan. Established in 1892 as the Central Michigan Normal School and Business Institute, the private normal school became a state institution and renamed Ce ...

and with 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 ...

of the NFL.

Early life

Adams was born on April 30, 1962 in

Muskegon, Michigan Muskegon ( ') is a city in Michigan. It is the county seat of Muskegon County. Muskegon is known for fishing, sailing regattas, pleasure boating, and as a commercial and cruise ship port. It is a popular vacation destination because of the expans ...

. He attended Orchard View High School.

College career

In 1982, Adams was a second-team All-American selection by the

UPI United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th c ...

and was named

Mid-American Conference The Mid-American Conference (MAC) is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I collegiate athletic conference with a membership base in the Great Lakes region that stretches from Western New York to Illinois. Nine of the t ...

"Offensive Player of the Year". He was first in team all-MAC selection three straight years. Curtis gained 1,090, 1,431, and 1,204 yards in his final three seasons at Central Michigan. At Central Michigan, Adams set multiple school records: #most net yards gained rushing in a single game (238) #most rushing touchdowns in a single game #longest run from scrimmage (87) #career rushing yards (4,126) (third most in MAC history) #most career touchdowns (44) (also set a MAC record)

Professional career

Drafted in the eighth round of the

1985 NFL Draft The 1985 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. The draft was held April 30 and May 1, 1985, at the Omni Park Central Hotel in New York City, New York. The league also held a ...

by the

, Curtis played four seasons in the NFL totaling 907 yards and seven touchdowns rushing and 76 yards on nine receptions. His best game in the NFL came on a nationally televised Thursday night game on November 20, 1986 against the Los Angeles Raiders. Although the Chargers lost, Curtis rushed 26 times for 93 yards and three touchdowns.

References

1962 births Living people American football running backs Central Michigan Chippewas football players San Diego Chargers players Sportspeople from Muskegon, Michigan Players of American football from Michigan {{Runningback-1960s-stub