Chad Owens
Encyclopedia
Chad Owens is a professional American, Canadian
and Arena football
wide receiver
and kick returner
for the Toronto Argonauts
of the Canadian Football League
. He was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars
in the sixth round of the 2005 NFL Draft
. He played college football
at Hawaii
.
Owens has also been a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
and Colorado Crush
.
in Honolulu, Hawaii, and he was a three sport letterwinner
and star in football
, basketball
, and track
. In football, as a senior, he was an All-OIA
white division selection, and an All-State honorable mention. As a sophomore, he garnered first team All-OIA Red Division honors, and All-State honorable-mention accolades. He was also a basketball star and as a senior, he led his team to the OIA state basketball
championship. He is currently married to Rena Owens.
, punt returner and kick returner
. He became the featured receiver in June Jones
's Run & Shoot offense
, and became the number one receiver for quarterback
Timmy Chang
. Owens was instrumental on the Warriors teams that won both the Hawaii Bowl in 2003 and 2004 by beating the University of Houston
and the University of Alabama at Birmingham
.
after his NFL debut against the Indianapolis Colts
where he muffed
3 punts. He was re-signed to the Jaguars' practice squad a few days later.
Playing with the Jaguars in his first pre-season game of the 2006 season
, Owens caught a 62 yard pass and made his first NFL touchdown.
Owens was signed to the Jaguars' practice squad Nov 8, 2007 and moved to the active roster Dec 28, 2007. He played in the regular-season finale at Houston, but misplayed a punt in the 42-28 loss. Owens was again waived by the Jaguars as of January 11, 2008.
Owens played for the Colorado Crush
of the Arena Football League.
On July 14, 2009, Owens signed a practice roster agreement with the Montreal Alouettes
. He was released on October 1. He was re-signed to the practice roster on October 8.
On June 24, 2010, the Toronto Argonauts
acquired Owens from the Alouettes in exchange for a fourth round pick in the 2011 CFL Draft
.
On November 25, 2010, Owens was named the most outstanding special teams player in the Canadian Football League
for the 2010 season. Owens was a unanimous selection after leading the CFL in punt, kickoff, missed field goal returns and all-purpose yards and finishing tied for the league lead in return touchdowns (four). He became just the fifth player in league history to have over 1,000 punt and kick return yards in a season.
Gridiron football
Gridiron football , sometimes known as North American football, is an umbrella term for related codes of football primarily played in the United States and Canada. The predominant forms of gridiron football are American football and Canadian football...
and Arena football
Arena football
Arena football is a variety of gridiron football played by the Arena Football League . It is a proprietary game, the rights to which are owned by Gridiron Enterprises, and is played indoors on a smaller field than American or Canadian outdoor football, resulting in a faster and higher-scoring game....
wide receiver
Wide receiver
A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
and kick returner
Kick returner
In American and Canadian football, a kick returner is the player on special teams who is primarily responsible to catch kickoffs and attempts to return them in the opposite direction. If the ball is kicked into his own endzone, he must assess the situation on the field while the ball is in the...
for the Toronto Argonauts
Toronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League. The Toronto, Ontario based team was founded in 1873 and is one of the oldest existing professional sports teams in North America, after the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta...
of the Canadian Football League
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League or CFL is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of gridiron football closely related to American football....
. He was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars
Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
in the sixth round of the 2005 NFL Draft
2005 NFL Draft
The 2005 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 23–24, 2005. The league also held an supplemental draft that year, which was held after...
. 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 Hawaii
Hawaii Warriors football
The Hawaii Warriors football team represents the University of Hawaii at Mānoa in NCAA Division I FBS college football. The team, which is currently coached by Greg McMackin, is part of the Western Athletic Conference until 2012, when the team joins the Mountain West Conference.The Hawaii Warriors...
.
Owens has also been a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football franchise based in Tampa, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the Southern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League – they are the only team in the division not to come from the old NFC West...
and Colorado Crush
Colorado Crush
Colorado Crush were an Arena Football League team that began play as a 2003 expansion team. The Crush played in the Central Division of the American Conference until the Arena Football League suspended operations in 2009...
.
Early years
Chad Owens attended Roosevelt High SchoolPresident Theodore Roosevelt High School
President Theodore Roosevelt High School is a public, co-educational college preparatory high school of the Hawaii State Department of Education and serves grades nine through twelve...
in Honolulu, Hawaii, and he was a three sport letterwinner
Varsity letter
A varsity letter is an award earned in the United States for excellence in school activities. A varsity letter signifies that its winner was a qualified varsity team member, awarded after a certain standard was met.- Description :...
and star in football
High school football
High school football, in North America, refers to the game of football as it is played in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both of these nations....
, basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, and track
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
. In football, as a senior, he was an All-OIA
Oahu Interscholastic Association
The Oahu Interscholastic Association or OIA is an athletic conference composed of all public secondary schools on the island of Oahu. The OIA was first founded in 1940 as the Rural Oahu Interscholastic Association or ROIA...
white division selection, and an All-State honorable mention. As a sophomore, he garnered first team All-OIA Red Division honors, and All-State honorable-mention accolades. He was also a basketball star and as a senior, he led his team to the OIA state basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
championship. He is currently married to Rena Owens.
College career
Owens became a bigger star after joining the University of Hawaii football team as a wide receiverWide receiver
A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
, punt returner and kick returner
Kick returner
In American and Canadian football, a kick returner is the player on special teams who is primarily responsible to catch kickoffs and attempts to return them in the opposite direction. If the ball is kicked into his own endzone, he must assess the situation on the field while the ball is in the...
. He became the featured receiver in June Jones
June Jones
June Sheldon Jones, III is the American football head coach for Southern Methodist University.-Playing career:Jones played the quarterback position on three college teams: Oregon , Hawaii , and Portland State . It is during his time at Portland State that he was introduced to the Run and Shoot...
's Run & Shoot offense
Offense (sports)
In sports, offense or offence , also known as attack, is the action of attacking or engaging an opposing team with the objective of scoring points or goals...
, and became the number one receiver for quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
Timmy Chang
Timmy Chang
Timothy Kealii'okaaina Awa Chang is a retired American football player. He was signed by the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent in 2005...
. Owens was instrumental on the Warriors teams that won both the Hawaii Bowl in 2003 and 2004 by beating the University of Houston
University of Houston
The University of Houston is a state research university, and is the flagship institution of the University of Houston System. Founded in 1927, it is Texas's third-largest university with nearly 40,000 students. Its campus spans 667 acres in southeast Houston, and was known as University of...
and the University of Alabama at Birmingham
University of Alabama at Birmingham
The University of Alabama at Birmingham is a public university in Birmingham in the U.S. state of Alabama. Developing from an extension center established in 1936, the institution became an autonomous institution in 1969 and is today one of three institutions in the University of Alabama System...
.
- Hawaii's all-time career yardage leader with 5,461 all-purpose yards
- Gained 3,031 receiving yards (12.7 avg.) and 29 touchdowns in 44 games
- Awarded the Mosi Tatupu AwardMosi Tatupu AwardThe Mosi Tatupu Award was given annually to the College Football Special Teams Player of the Year by the Maui Quarterback Club and the Hula Bowl, from 1997 to 2006....
for best Special Teams Player in 2004
Professional career
Owens was cut by the Jacksonville JaguarsJacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
after his NFL debut against the Indianapolis Colts
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League ....
where he muffed
Muffed punt
In American football, a muffed punt is defined as "touching of the ball prior to possessing the ball."A muffed punt occurs when there is an "uncontrolled touch" of the football by a player on the returning team after it is punted...
3 punts. He was re-signed to the Jaguars' practice squad a few days later.
Playing with the Jaguars in his first pre-season game of the 2006 season
2006 NFL season
The 2006 NFL season was the 87th regular season of the National Football League.Regular season play was held from September 7 to December 31, 2006...
, Owens caught a 62 yard pass and made his first NFL touchdown.
Owens was signed to the Jaguars' practice squad Nov 8, 2007 and moved to the active roster Dec 28, 2007. He played in the regular-season finale at Houston, but misplayed a punt in the 42-28 loss. Owens was again waived by the Jaguars as of January 11, 2008.
Owens played for the Colorado Crush
Colorado Crush
Colorado Crush were an Arena Football League team that began play as a 2003 expansion team. The Crush played in the Central Division of the American Conference until the Arena Football League suspended operations in 2009...
of the Arena Football League.
On July 14, 2009, Owens signed a practice roster agreement with the Montreal Alouettes
Montreal Alouettes
The Montreal Alouettes are a Canadian Football League team based in Montreal, Quebec.The current franchise named the Alouettes moved to Montreal from Baltimore, Maryland, in 1996 where they had been known as the Baltimore Stallions...
. He was released on October 1. He was re-signed to the practice roster on October 8.
On June 24, 2010, the Toronto Argonauts
Toronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League. The Toronto, Ontario based team was founded in 1873 and is one of the oldest existing professional sports teams in North America, after the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta...
acquired Owens from the Alouettes in exchange for a fourth round pick in the 2011 CFL Draft
2011 CFL Draft
The 2011 CFL Draft took place on Sunday, May 8, 2011 live at 12:30 PM ET on TSN. 47 players were chosen from among eligible players from Canadian Universities across the country, as well as Canadian players playing in the NCAA. The Toronto Argonauts, Montreal Alouettes and Hamilton Tiger-Cats had...
.
On November 25, 2010, Owens was named the most outstanding special teams player in the Canadian Football League
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League or CFL is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of gridiron football closely related to American football....
for the 2010 season. Owens was a unanimous selection after leading the CFL in punt, kickoff, missed field goal returns and all-purpose yards and finishing tied for the league lead in return touchdowns (four). He became just the fifth player in league history to have over 1,000 punt and kick return yards in a season.