Topic: Javon Ringer

Javon Ringer (born February 2, 1987, Dayton, Ohio) is an American football running back who plays for the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League. He was drafted in the 5th round of the 2009 NFL draft, the 173rd pick overall. Ringer played college football at Michigan State since he was a freshman, and broke many rushing records.

Ringer attended Chaminade Julienne High School where he set many school and state records. In 2005, he earned honorable mention Freshman All-America status from The Sporting News. He was also named to The Sporting News Big Ten All-Freshman Team. In 2006, he earned the Biggie Munn Award, which is an award given to the team's most inspirational player. In 2007, he had a breakout season, becoming Michigan State's first 1,000 yard carrier since T.J. Duckett in 2001. He was also named Second Team All-Big Ten in the coaches and media polls. In 2008, as a Senior, he was named as one of four team captains. He was a semi-finalist for the Maxwell Award, the Walter Camp Award, and was a finalist for the Doak Walker Award, which he finished in third, behind Shonn Greene and Knowshon Moreno. He was also a Heisman Trophy candidate at one point, the only running back to be officially nominated all year.

He had a minor knee injury during the end of the 2008 season, which he had corrective surgery on. This slowed his combine numbers, however, he improved upon those numbers during MSU's Pro Days. He was one of 3 Spartans invited to the NFL combine. ESPN.com ranked him the 8th best running back in the draft. He was a projected 3rd rounder in the 2009 NFL Draft. Another site lists him as a mid-second round draft choice. Ringer has drawn comparisons to NFL players Mike Hart and Chester Taylor. His performance at the MSU Pro Day "absolutely blew NFL teams away", due to putting up impressive numbers while not fully recovered. Mel Kiper said of Ringer "He's only 5-9, 205, but he's remarkably strong, a good athlete and just a tough kid with great character. He blocks extremely well, and he'll be a very serviceable No. 2 back. He'll probably end up being a fourth- or fifth-round pick."