Carson Steele
| No. 42 – Kansas City Chiefs | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Running back |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | October 21, 2002 Greenwood, Indiana, U.S. |
| Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Weight: | 225 lb (102 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Center Grove (Greenwood, Indiana) |
| College: | Ball State (2021–2022) UCLA (2023) |
| Undrafted: | 2024 |
| Career history | |
| |
| Roster status: | Active |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| Career NFL statistics | |
| Player stats at NFL.com | |
Carson Steele (born October 21, 2002) is an American football running back for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Ball State Cardinals and the UCLA Bruins. He was signed by the Chiefs as an undrafted free agent after the 2024 NFL draft.
Early years[edit]
Steele was raised in Greenwood, Indiana.[1] He has had a pet alligator named "Crocky-J" since he was in first or second grade; the alligator grew to four or five feet in length.[2] He attended Center Grove High School in Greenwood,[3] rushing for 1,659 yards and 31 touchdowns as a senior in 2020.[4] He tallied a total of 5,907 rushing yards during his high school career.[5] He was selected as Mr. Football in Indiana after the 2020 season.[6]
College football[edit]
Steele signed a letter of intent to play college football at Ball State University in February 2021.[6] Due to his long blonde hair, fitness (less than 10% body fat), and talents as a running back, he received nicknames at Ball State, including "Thor", "Fabio", and "Man of Steele".[7] As a freshman in 2021, he rushed for 891 yards and six touchdowns.[8] During his freshman year, he squatted 615 pounds and was able to bench press 405 lbs.[2] Barstool Sports' podcast "Unnecessary Roughness" called him "the most interesting man in CFB (college football)."[2]
Prior to the 2022 season, Steele was selected by Bruce Feldman of The Athletic to his list of the top 100 "freaks" in college football.[2] On November 8, 2022, he rushed for a career-high 198 yards and three touchdowns against Toledo.[9] He also rushed for 192 yards against Kent State.[10] He was awarded MAC West Offensive Player of the Week twice during the 2022 season.[11][12] Through games played on November 19, 2022, Steele ranked ninth nationally with 1,376 rushing yards on 263 attempts (5.2 yards per carry).[13]
On January 4, 2023, Steele committed to play at the University of California, Los Angeles, for the Bruins.[14]
Statistics[edit]
| Season | Games | Rushing | Receiving | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Att | Yards | Avg | TD | Rec | Yards | Avg | TD | |||||
| Ball State Cardinals | ||||||||||||||
| 2021 | 13 | 7 | 192 | 891 | 4.6 | 6 | 12 | 157 | 13.1 | 1 | ||||
| 2022 | 12 | 12 | 289 | 1,556 | 5.4 | 14 | 29 | 166 | 5.7 | 1 | ||||
| UCLA Bruins | ||||||||||||||
| 2023 | 12 | 167 | 847 | 5.1 | 6 | 17 | 163 | 9.6 | 2 | |||||
| Career[15] | 37 | 648 | 3.294 | 5.1 | 26 | 58 | 486 | 8.4 | 4 | |||||
Professional career[edit]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 0+5⁄8 in (1.84 m) |
228 lb (103 kg) |
30+1⁄2 in (0.77 m) |
9+5⁄8 in (0.24 m) |
4.77 s | 1.60 s | 2.70 s | 4.36 s | 7.07 s | 37.5 in (0.95 m) |
9 ft 8 in (2.95 m) |
28 reps | |
| All values from Pro Day[16] | ||||||||||||
Steele was signed by the Kansas City Chiefs as an undrafted free agent after the 2024 NFL draft.[17]
References[edit]
- ^ Ian Hansen (September 29, 2021). "Iron makes Steele: Carson Steele broke records in high school and is already contributing in a big way to Ball State". Ball State Daily News.
- ^ a b c d Bobby General (September 9, 2022). "From alligators to nicknames, who is BSU RBCarson Steele? (part 2)". Muncie Star Press – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Mike Beas (September 18, 2020). "Horse Race: Steele poised to rewrite Center Grove record book". The Daily Journal. p. B1 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Carson Steele". Ball State University. Retrieved November 9, 2022.
- ^ Robby General (September 10, 2021). "'Strangely Successful': BSU freshman Carson Steele shined in 1st game". The Star Press. pp. B1, B2 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Opportunity, loyalty lead Mr. Football Carson Steele on path to sign with Ball State". Indianapolis Star. February 3, 2021.
- ^ Bobby General (September 9, 2022). "From alligators to nicknames, who is BSU RBCarson Steele? (part 1)". Muncie Star Press – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Carson Steele". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 9, 2022.
- ^ Robby General (November 9, 2022). "3 takeaways from Ball State football at Toledo: Rockets dash Cardinals MAC Championship hopes". Muncie Star Press.
- ^ "Carson Steele rushes for 192 yards, Ball State beats Kent State 27-20". Associated Press. November 1, 2022.
- ^ "MAC Announces Week 6 Football Players of the Week". getsomemaction.com. Mid-American Conference. October 10, 2022. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
- ^ "MAC Announces Week 10 Football Players of the Week". getsomemaction.com. Mid-American Conference. November 7, 2022. Retrieved November 8, 2022.
- ^ "College Football Player Rushing Stats 2022". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
- ^ Connon, Sam (January 4, 2023). "Ball State Transfer RB Carson Steele Commits to UCLA Football". Sports Illustrated.
- ^ "Carson Steele College Stats". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
- ^ "2024 NFL Draft Scout Carson Steele College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved April 13, 2024.
- ^ "Chiefs Announce Roster Moves". Chiefs.com. May 4, 2024.