Vadal Alexander
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.
_(cropped).jpg) Alexander with the St. Louis Battlehawks in 2023 | |||||||
| No. 74, 78 | |||||||
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| Position | Guard | ||||||
| Personal information | |||||||
| Born | March 23, 1994 New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. | ||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | ||||||
| Listed weight | 325 lb (147 kg) | ||||||
| Career information | |||||||
| High school | Buford (Buford, Georgia) | ||||||
| College | LSU (2012–2015) | ||||||
| NFL draft | 2016: 7th round, 234th overall pick | ||||||
| Career history | |||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||
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Vadal Alexander (born March 23, 1994) is an American former professional football player who was a guard in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Oakland Raiders in the seventh round of the 2016 NFL draft. Alexander played college football for four years with the LSU Tigers, but all their wins were vacated after he was determined to be ineligible because his father received embezzled funds from a booster.
A native of Buford, Georgia, Alexander attended Buford High School, where he was a two-time Georgia AA First Team All-State offensive lineman as a junior and senior. In his senior season, the Buford Wolves went 14–1 and finished as GHSA Class AA runner-up, being upset in the state final by Calhoun.[1] After his senior season, Alexander participated in the Under Armour All-America Game.
Regarded as a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, Alexander was ranked as the No. 11 offensive guard prospect in the class of 2012.[2] Alexander chose Louisiana State over offers from Alabama, Auburn, Georgia Tech, and South Carolina.
College career
In his true freshman year at Louisiana State University, Alexander played in 13 games. After an early season injury to starting left tackle Chris Faulk,[3] Alexander moved into the starting line-up, playing every offensive snap of the final nine games at right tackle. He earned Freshman All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) honors by the league's coaches, and was named second team Freshman All-American by Scout.com.[4] For his sophomore season, he replaced La'el Collins at left guard, who was moved over to left tackle. Alexander started all 13 games, and led the Tigers with 71 knockdowns on the season. In the Outback Bowl, he was on the field for 71 offensive plays and was credited with a career-high 13 knockdowns.
As a junior, Alexander remained a mainstay at left guard next to Collins as left tackle, giving LSU one of the most dominating guard-tackle combinations in college football. Running behind Collins and Alexander, freshman running back Leonard Fournette registered 1,034 rushing yards on the season. After LSU's 30–27 win over Florida, Alexander earned SEC Offensive Lineman of the Week honors.[5] Alexander's streak of 32 straight starts snapped, however, when he missed the Arkansas game in week 11 because of a hand injury.[6] Forgoing the option to enter the 2015 NFL draft, Alexander returned to LSU and was named Preseason First Team All-SEC.[7] He was moved to right tackle, as previous right tackle Jerald Hawkins had to replace Collins on the left side.[8]
It was reported in June 2019 that Alexander's father, James, received approximately $180,000 from John Paul Funes, an LSU booster convicted in federal court of wire fraud and money laundering after embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars from his employer, Our Lady of the Lake hospitals.[9] As a result, LSU vacated all 37 wins from when Alexander was on the team, the most by any school.[10]