J Leman
Encyclopedia
Jeremy Jacob "J" Leman (born March 1, 1985) is an American football
linebacker
for the Oakland Raiders
of the National Football League
. He was signed by the Minnesota Vikings
as an undrafted free agent in 2008. He played college football
at Illinois
.
Leman has also been a member of the Carolina Panthers
, Philadelphia Eagles
, San Diego Chargers
, and Florida Tuskers.
Leman was born and raised in Champaign, Illinois. He played high school football at Champaign Central High School
, where he played middle linebacker and tight end
. During his senior year, he tallied 191 tackles
and was named to the prestigious Illinois High School Football Coaches Association All-State Team.
's first team defense in 2006 and 2007. Leman started over 40 games at linebacker during his tenure at Illinois. During the 2007 campaign
, Leman led the Orange and Blue to nine wins and helped the team earn a trip to the Rose Bowl
.
Leman stands at sixth place on Illinois' all time tackle list. His 152 tackles in the 2006 season ranked #1 in the Big Ten and is the sixth best single-season effort ever posted by an Illini gridder. He also ranks fifth on the Illinois charts in career tackles for loss.
, Leman signed with the Minnesota Vikings
as an undrafted free agent. He was waived during final cuts on August 30.
on January 13, 2009. He was waived as a final cut on September 5.
practice squad on September 7, 2009. He was released on October 13.
practice squad on November 3, 2009. He was released on December 1.
practice squad on December 9, 2009, and was promoted to the active roster on December 15, after linebacker
Erin Henderson
was suspended for four games.
He was released with an injury settlement on October 19, 2010.
practice squad on November 30, 2010. He was waived on August 30, 2011.
claimed Leman off of waivers on August 31.
Oakland then cut Leman on Sept. 3, 2011 when they announced their 53-man roster for the 2011 season. However, the following day (Sept. 4) the Raiders named Leman to their 8-man practice squad for the 2011 season.
from the University of Illinois
with a speech communication degree
and a master's degree
in Human Resource
Education. He comes from a family of five children. He has two older brothers, including JD Leman, an All-American football player for Wheaton College
, and AJ Leman, a successful business teacher at Iowa City High School. Once a promising basketball player, knee injuries limited AJ's basketball career to high school. J also has one older sister, Julie, a former All-American volleyball player at Olivet Nazarene University, and one younger brother, Cory, who plays football for Eastern Illinois University
. J is married to Katy (Pratapas) Leman.
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...
linebacker
Linebacker
A linebacker is a position in American football that was invented by football coach Fielding H. Yost of the University of Michigan. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up approximately three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage, behind the defensive linemen...
for the Oakland Raiders
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
of 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...
. He was signed by the Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...
as an undrafted free agent in 2008. He 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 Illinois
Illinois Fighting Illini football
The Illinois Fighting Illini are a major college football program, representing the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign. They compete in NCAA Division I-A and the Big Ten Conference.-Current staff:-All-time win/loss/tie record:*563-513-51...
.
Leman has also been a member of the Carolina Panthers
Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. They are currently members of the South Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Panthers, along with the Jacksonville Jaguars, joined the NFL as expansion...
, Philadelphia Eagles
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
, San Diego Chargers
San Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers are a professional American football team based in San Diego, California. they were members of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
, and Florida Tuskers.
Early years
Champaign Central High School
Champaign Central High School is a high school located in Champaign, Illinois. It has 1,385 students in grades 9-12. The principal is Joe Williams. It is part of the Champaign Unit 4 School District school system. Its sports teams are the Central Maroons....
, where he played middle linebacker and tight end
Tight end
The tight end is a position in American football on the offense. The tight end is often seen as a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like offensive linemen, they are usually lined up on the offensive line and are large enough to be...
. During his senior year, he tallied 191 tackles
Tackle (football move)
Most forms of football have a move known as a tackle. The primary purposes of tackling is to disposses an opponent of the ball, to stop the player from gaining ground towards goal or to stop them from carrying out what they intend....
and was named to the prestigious Illinois High School Football Coaches Association All-State Team.
College career
An NCAA consensus All-American in 2007, Leman was also named to the Big TenBig Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
's first team defense in 2006 and 2007. Leman started over 40 games at linebacker during his tenure at Illinois. During the 2007 campaign
2007 Illinois Fighting Illini football team
The 2007 Illinois Fighting Illini football team represented the University of Illinois in the 2007–2008 college football season. The team's head coach was Ron Zook. The Illini played their home games at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois...
, Leman led the Orange and Blue to nine wins and helped the team earn a trip to the Rose Bowl
2008 Rose Bowl
The 2008 Rose Bowl Game presented by Citi, the 94th Rose Bowl Game, played on January 1, 2008 at the Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, California, was a college football bowl game. The contest was televised on ABC, the 20th straight year the network aired the Rose Bowl, starting at 4:30pm EST...
.
Leman stands at sixth place on Illinois' all time tackle list. His 152 tackles in the 2006 season ranked #1 in the Big Ten and is the sixth best single-season effort ever posted by an Illini gridder. He also ranks fifth on the Illinois charts in career tackles for loss.
Statistics
| Illinois | Defensive Stats | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Games | Tackles | T/Loss | Sacks | Forced Fumbles | Interceptions | |
| 2004 | 11 | 56 | 3 | 1.5 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2005 | 11 | 67 | 5.5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2006 | 12 | 152 | 19 | 4 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2007 | 13 | 132 | 10.5 | 2.5 | 1 | 1 | |
| Total | 47 | 407 | 39.5 | 8.5 | 6 | 1 | |
First stint with Vikings
After going undrafted in the 2008 NFL Draft2008 NFL Draft
The 2008 NFL Draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City on April 26 and April 27, 2008. For the 29th consecutive year, ESPN televised the draft; the NFL Network also broadcast the event, its third year doing so...
, Leman signed with the Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...
as an undrafted free agent. He was waived during final cuts on August 30.
Carolina Panthers
After spending the 2008 season out of football, Leman signed a future contract with the Carolina PanthersCarolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. They are currently members of the South Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Panthers, along with the Jacksonville Jaguars, joined the NFL as expansion...
on January 13, 2009. He was waived as a final cut on September 5.
Philadelphia Eagles
Leman was signed to the Philadelphia EaglesPhiladelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
practice squad on September 7, 2009. He was released on October 13.
San Diego Chargers
Leman was signed to the San Diego ChargersSan Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers are a professional American football team based in San Diego, California. they were members of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
practice squad on November 3, 2009. He was released on December 1.
Second stint with Vikings
Leman was re-signed to the Minnesota VikingsMinnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...
practice squad on December 9, 2009, and was promoted to the active roster on December 15, after linebacker
Linebacker
A linebacker is a position in American football that was invented by football coach Fielding H. Yost of the University of Michigan. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up approximately three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage, behind the defensive linemen...
Erin Henderson
Erin Henderson
Erin Henderson is an American football linebacker for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League. He was signed by the Vikings as an undrafted free agent in 2008. He played college football at Maryland.-Early years:...
was suspended for four games.
He was released with an injury settlement on October 19, 2010.
Florida Tuskers
Leman was signed by the Florida Tuskers of the United Football League on November 1, 2010.Second stint with San Diego Chargers
Leman was signed to the San Diego ChargersSan Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers are a professional American football team based in San Diego, California. they were members of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
practice squad on November 30, 2010. He was waived on August 30, 2011.
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland RaidersOakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
claimed Leman off of waivers on August 31.
Oakland then cut Leman on Sept. 3, 2011 when they announced their 53-man roster for the 2011 season. However, the following day (Sept. 4) the Raiders named Leman to their 8-man practice squad for the 2011 season.
Personal
Leman graduatedGraduation
Graduation is the action of receiving or conferring an academic degree or the ceremony that is sometimes associated, where students become Graduates. Before the graduation, candidates are referred to as Graduands. The date of graduation is often called degree day. The graduation itself is also...
from the University of Illinois
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
with a speech communication degree
Academic degree
An academic degree is a position and title within a college or university that is usually awarded in recognition of the recipient having either satisfactorily completed a prescribed course of study or having conducted a scholarly endeavour deemed worthy of his or her admission to the degree...
and a master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
in Human Resource
Human resource management
Human Resource Management is the management of an organization's employees. While human resource management is sometimes referred to as a "soft" management skill, effective practice within an organization requires a strategic focus to ensure that people resources can facilitate the achievement of...
Education. He comes from a family of five children. He has two older brothers, including JD Leman, an All-American football player for Wheaton College
Wheaton College (Illinois)
Wheaton College is a private, evangelical Protestant liberal arts college in Wheaton, Illinois, a suburb west of Chicago in the United States...
, and AJ Leman, a successful business teacher at Iowa City High School. Once a promising basketball player, knee injuries limited AJ's basketball career to high school. J also has one older sister, Julie, a former All-American volleyball player at Olivet Nazarene University, and one younger brother, Cory, who plays football for Eastern Illinois University
Eastern Illinois University
Eastern Illinois University is a state university located in Charleston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1895 as the Eastern Illinois State Normal School, a teacher's college offering a two-year degree, Eastern Illinois University gradually expanded into a comprehensive university with a...
. J is married to Katy (Pratapas) Leman.