Barry Quentin Word is a former American football

American football

American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

 running back

Running back

A running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running...

 for the National Football League

National Football League

The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...

.

College

Word played college football

College football

College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...

 at the University of Virginia

University of Virginia

The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...

. In 1985, he ran for 1224 yards, which is currently the fifth largest rushing yards total put up by a Virginia Cavaliers

Virginia Cavaliers

The Virginia Cavaliers, also known as Wahoos or Hoos, are the athletic teams officially representing the University of Virginia in college sports. The Cavaliers compete in 25 NCAA Division I varsity sports and are members of the Atlantic Coast Conference...

 running back. Also in 1985, Word was the Atlantic Coast Conference

Atlantic Coast Conference

The Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953 in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC sanctions competition in twenty-five sports in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association for its twelve member universities...

 player of the year. He was drafted in the 3rd round, 62nd overall, by the New Orleans Saints

New Orleans Saints

The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans, Louisiana. They are members of the South Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League ....

. In 1987, he and two other Virginia athletes were indicted on cocaine distribution charges. Word pleaded guilty, and his willingness to cooperate and his limited involvement in the case meant he only received 5 months in prison.

He now lives in haymarket va and owns a landscaping company.

NFL career

After Word’s release from prison, he signed a three-year contract with the Saints. He ran for 133 yards in 1987, his rookie year. In 1988, however, he found that he was the third-string running back for the Saints behind Rueben Mayes

Rueben Mayes

Rueben Mayes is a Canadian who played in the National Football League from 1986 to 1993.He first gained notoriety as a running back at North Battleford Comprehensive High School in North Battleford, Saskatchewan. In 1980 Mayes led the NBCHS Vikings to an undefeated season and the SHSAA 3A...

 and Dalton Hilliard

Dalton Hilliard

Dalton Hilliard is a former professional American football running back for the New Orleans Saints from 1986-1993. He played his entire NFL career for the Saints and was a Pro Bowl selection in 1989...

, two running backs drafted by the Saints before Word in the 1986 NFL Draft

1986 NFL Draft

The 1986 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 29–30, 1986...

. He sat out the entire 1989 season before being picked up by the Kansas City Chiefs before the start of the 1990 season. Word had a career year in 1990, rushing for 1015 yards on 204 carries. He was given the NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award

NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award

The NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award has been given out after every season since 1972 by Pro Football Weekly. The player named Comeback Player of the Year shows perseverance in overcoming adversity, in the form of not being in the NFL the previous year, a severe injury, or simply poor...

 for his performance that season. He split carries with Christian Okoye

Christian Okoye

Christian Emeka Okoye , is a Nigerian-American former American football running back for the Kansas City Chiefs from 1987 to 1992. Nicknamed "The Nigerian Nightmare," Okoye was known for his powerful running style and ability to break tackles. Okoye's six seasons in the NFL saw a league rushing...

 during that season and for the following two seasons. At the end of the 1992 season, Word was traded to the Minnesota Vikings. He ran for 458 yards on 142 carries, which was second on the Vikings, a team that went without a 500-yard rusher that season. He was signed by the Cardinals at the start of the 1994 season. He only played one game without a rush, and retired. He has said that being able to retire early is not a bad thing, and told Tiki Barber

Tiki Barber

Atiim Kiambu Hakeem-Ah "Tiki" Barber is an American football running back who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the New York Giants in the second round of the 1997 NFL Draft. He played college football at Virginia....

that as he was about to retire.