| Brandon Russell |
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2002: Slowed some while still recovering from a broken wrist in 2001 Still played in all 12 games on special teams and as one of the teams top five receivers Finished the season with seven catches for 67 yards, an average of 9.6 yards per catch Opened the season with three receptions for 21 yards against Miami Had one catch for three yards the following week at Syracuse Made one catch for eight yards vs. Maryland Grabbed two balls for 35 yards, including a season-long 19-yard reception Also made three tackles on special teams.
2001 Sophomore Season
In his first year as a wide receiver had 19 catches for 235 yards (12.4 average) and scored a touchdown in the Oklahoma game Caught at least one pass in 10 of the 11 regular-season games in which he played Missed the Texas game with a mild knee sprain Had at least two receptions in seven games Had a season-high three catches at Maryland and vs. Wake Forest Had a season-high 36-yard catch-and-run against Georgia Tech on a screen pass Had one carry for two yards against Clemson Played with an injured wrist in the Peach Bowl, but did not have a catch Also made six tackles on special teams, including two against ECU and two vs. Wake Forest.
2000 Freshman Season
Became the first Tar Heel freshman to start the first game of the season at tailback since Charlie Justice in 1946 Started the first eight games of the season and played in every contest at tailback Led the team with 508 rushing yards on 145 carries and had three rushing touchdowns Caught 11 passes for 71 yards Had 10 carries for 25 yards vs. Tulsa in his first collegiate contest Rushed for a season-high 96 yards on 28 carries vs. NC State Scored his first collegiate touchdown on a 2-yard run in the first half against the Wolfpack His 28 carries against NCSU were the most by a UNC tailback since 1997 Had 17 carries for 79 yards and two catches for 26 yards in the win over Marshall Had at least 10 carries in eight games Averaged 46.2 yards per game and 3.5 per carry Had 74 yards on nine attempts, including a season-long 26-yard run at Duke Also returned six punts for 29 yards Five of those returns came at Pittsburgh Had a season-long 16-yard punt return against the Panthers.
Carolina Baseball - 2001 Season
Played in 44 games and started 14 as an outfielder for the Tar Heels Hit .206 with 13 hits in 63 at bats Scored 13 runs, had three doubles and 10 runs batted in Was successful on 2 of 3 stolen base attempts Had 36 put outs, two assists and did not make an error In a doubleheader at NC State, he was a combined 5 for 10 with four runs scored and three RBI.
Marist High School
Named one of the schools 10 Most Outstanding Seniors by the faculty Played for Coach Alan Chadwick Led Marist to a 13-1 record Marist advanced to the semifinals of the state 3-A playoffs Team was four-time Region 6AAA champions and posted a four-year record of 51-4 Made the state semifinals three times Played running back, defensive back and linebacker Team captain Averaged 9.98 yards per carry as a senior when he rushed for 1,697 yards and 29 touchdowns Three-season rushing totals 353 carries for 3,207 yards and 52 touchdowns Gained a school-record 303 yards in a game as a senior Caught five touchdown passes in his career Averaged 23.4 yards per reception Blocked eight kicks on special teams Atlanta Journal-Constitution Class AAA all-state selection in 1999 and an honorable mention all-state pick in 1998 Atlanta J-C Class AAA Offensive Player of the Year in 1999 Atlanta J-C DeKalb County Offensive Player of the Year in 1999 and All-DeKalb County in 1998 and 1999 Atlanta Touchdown Club Metro Atlanta Running Back of the Year in 1999 Recipient of the Coca-Cola Academic and Athletic Golden Helmet Award Member of the National Honor Society PrepStar and Tom Lemming All-America Honorable Mention All-America by USA Today As a senior outfielder, he hit .483 with 11 home runs and 23 stolen bases and had a .585 on-base percentage Was selected for the Georgia All-Star Team Selected by the Florida Marlins for the Major League Showcase in the summer of 1999.
Personal
Born Brandon Harris Russell on Nov. 4, 1981 in Atlanta, Ga. Majoring in management Favorite movie is Scarface Favorite NFL team as a kid was the Oakland Raiders Favorite former Tar Heel is Leon Johnson Best friend on another team is Kelley Rhino from Georgia Tech His Dad, Kevin, played football with the Philadelphia Eagles Earliest football memory was scoring four touchdowns in his first football game in eighth grade.
