Henry Ruggs

Henry James Ruggs III (born January 24, 1999 in Montgomery, Montgomery County) is a former Alabama Crimson Tide and NFL football player.

Ruggs grew up in Montgomery and attended Robert E. Lee High School. Although he had excelled at football in middle school, he did not play during his first two years of high school. He eventually signed up at the urging of his friend, Roderic Scott. Scott died soon later in a vehicle crash and Ruggs took to saluting him with 3 fingers after every touchdown.

In addition to football, Ruggs also ran track and played on the basketball team. He holds the AHSAA Class 7A record in the 100-meter dash at 10.58 seconds. As a senior wideout for the Generals football team he completed 38 catches for 639 yards and 9 touchdowns. He also scored 7 times as a rusher, threw three touchdowns, and returned one kick for a score. He was a highly-ranked recruit and chose Alabama from more than 20 scholarship offers.

As a freshman during the 2017 season, Ruggs had 12 receptions for 229 and 6 touchdowns. He followed that up with 46 receptions for 741 yards and 11 scores in 2018 and 40 receptions for 746 yards and 7 touchdowns in 2019. As a junior he was also assigned to return kicks, averaging 23.8 yards per return. In January 2020 Ruggs announced that he would enter the 2020 NFL draft.

Ruggs impressed scouts at the NFL Combine with a 4.27-second 40-yard-dash and a 42-inch vertical leap. He was selected by the Las Vegas Raiders with the 12th overall pick in the 1st round of the 2020 NFL draft. He celebrated the birth of a daughter with his long-time girlfriend in May, and signed a $16.67 million fully-guaranteed 4-year contract with the Raiders in July.

Ruggs made his NFL debut in the Raiders' September 13, 2020 game against the Carolina Panthers. He scored his first touchdown four weeks later against the Kansas City Chiefs. During December he was placed on the COVID reserve list. In 2021 Ruggs recorded 24 receptions for 469 yards and 2 touchdowns over the course of seven games.

On November 2, 2022 Ruggs was driving his modified Corvette Stingray at 156 miles per hour while under the influence of alcohol. He lost control of the car and struck the rear of a Toyota RAV4 at approximately 120 miles per hour, killing a 23-year-old woman and her dog. Ruggs and his companion were hospitalized but recovered. His blood-alcohol level was recorded there as 0.161%. He was released by the Raiders the day of the crash.

Ruggs waived his right to a preliminary hearing on May 2, 2023 and pleaded guilty to one felony count of DUI resulting in death and one misdemeanor count of vehicular manslaughter in exchange for a sentence of 3-10 years in prison.

References

• "Henry Ruggs" (May 4, 2023) Wikipedia - accessed May 4, 2023

External links

• Henry Ruggs III at Rolltide.com