Jon Ritchie
Encyclopedia
Jon David Ritchie is a former professional American football
fullback
in the National Football League
with the Philadelphia Eagles
and Oakland Raiders
.
from 1989 to 1993. He led his high school football
team to the state championship in 1992.
as a freshman and sophomore. At Michigan, he played as a true freshman. During his career at Michigan, he rushed for 120 yards and caught two passes for 13 yards. Then in 1995 he transferred to Stanford University
where he played as a junior and senior. At Stanford, he first started as an inside linebacker
, but switched to fullback. He rushed 17 times for 95 yards and received nine passes for 80 yards and two touchdowns.
in the third round (63rd overall) of the 1998 NFL Draft
by the Oakland Raiders
. Upon his arrival to the NFL, he started
for the Raiders for five seasons. His final season with the Raiders he started in Super Bowl XXXVII
where Oakland lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
.
In 2003 Ritchie left the Raiders and signed to play for the Philadelphia Eagles
. He suffered a knee injury early in the 2004 season and was released from the team after the injury never allowed him to play at the same level in 2005.
. He has moved back to his hometown of Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania
where he helps coach the varsity football team for which he played, the Cumberland Valley Eagles. In the high school's large auditorium, he spoke at the baccalaureate for the class of 2005 and the class of 2008. Ritchie appears regularly on "ESPN First Take" and worked on "Outside the Lines" as an analyst during the 2009-2010 NFL season.
In September 2010, he started hosting a college football Saturday edition of SportsNation
with Michelle Beadle
. He also is an analyst for College Football Overdrive for ESPNews.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
fullback
Fullback (American football)
A fullback is a position in the offensive backfield in American and Canadian football, and is one of the two running back positions along with the halfback...
in the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
with the Philadelphia Eagles
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
and Oakland Raiders
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
.
Early years
Ritchie attended Cumberland Valley High SchoolCumberland Valley High School
Cumberland Valley High School is a coeducational public high school located within Cumberland Valley School District in Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania. The school was founded in 1954. The mascot is an eagle....
from 1989 to 1993. He led his high school 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....
team to the state championship in 1992.
College career
Upon graduation, Ritchie attended the University of MichiganUniversity of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
as a freshman and sophomore. At Michigan, he played as a true freshman. During his career at Michigan, he rushed for 120 yards and caught two passes for 13 yards. Then in 1995 he transferred to Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
where he played as a junior and senior. At Stanford, he first started as an inside linebacker
Linebacker
A linebacker is a position in American football that was invented by football coach Fielding H. Yost of the University of Michigan. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up approximately three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage, behind the defensive linemen...
, but switched to fullback. He rushed 17 times for 95 yards and received nine passes for 80 yards and two touchdowns.
Professional career
Ritchie was draftedNFL Draft
The National Football League Draft is an annual event in which the National Football League teams select eligible college football players and it is their most common source of player recruitment. The basic design of the draft is each team is given a position in the drafting order in reverse order...
in the third round (63rd overall) of the 1998 NFL Draft
1998 NFL Draft
The 1998 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 18-19, 1998...
by the Oakland Raiders
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
. Upon his arrival to the NFL, he started
Starting lineup
A starting lineup in sports is an official list of the set of players who will actively participate in the event when the game begins. The players in the starting lineup are commonly referred to as starters, whereas the others are substitutes or bench players.The starters are commonly the best...
for the Raiders for five seasons. His final season with the Raiders he started in Super Bowl XXXVII
Super Bowl XXXVII
Super Bowl XXXVII was an American football game played on January 26, 2003 at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California to decide the National Football League champion following the 2002 regular season...
where Oakland lost to 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...
.
In 2003 Ritchie left the Raiders and signed to play for the Philadelphia Eagles
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
. He suffered a knee injury early in the 2004 season and was released from the team after the injury never allowed him to play at the same level in 2005.
Career statistics
| Year | | Rushing | | Receiving | | Combined | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Att | Yds | Avg | TD | Cat | Yds | Avg | TD | Fumbles | Total Points | Games Played | ||||
| 1998 | 9 | 23 | 2.6 | 0 | 29 | 225 | 7.8 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 15 | |||
| 1999 | 5 | 12 | 2.4 | 0 | 45 | 408 | 9.1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 16 | |||
| 2000 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 26 | 173 | 6.7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | |||
| 2001 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 19 | 154 | 8.1 | 2 | 0 | 12 | 15 | |||
| 2002 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 66 | 6.6 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 16 | |||
| 2003 | 1 | 0 | 1.0 | 0 | 17 | 86 | 5.1 | 3 | 0 | 18 | 16 | |||
| 2004 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 36 | 9.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | |||
| Total | 15 | 36 | 2.4 | 0 | 150 | 1,148 | 7.7 | 7 | 3 | 42 | 94 | |||
After football
Ritchie retired from the NFL in 2006, and became an announcer for NFL Europa games. He has also done analyst work with CN8 for college games. And, he does NFL commentary for the local ABC station, WHTM-TVWHTM-TV
WHTM-TV "ABC 27" is the ABC-affiliated television station for South Central Pennsylvania that's licensed to Harrisburg. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 10 from a transmitter on the ridge north of I-81 along the Cumberland and Perry County line...
. He has moved back to his hometown of Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania
Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania
Mechanicsburg is a borough in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, USA, eight miles west of Harrisburg. It is part of the Harrisburg–Carlisle Metropolitan Statistical Area. Mechanicsburg was settled in 1806 and incorporated as a borough on April 12, 1828...
where he helps coach the varsity football team for which he played, the Cumberland Valley Eagles. In the high school's large auditorium, he spoke at the baccalaureate for the class of 2005 and the class of 2008. Ritchie appears regularly on "ESPN First Take" and worked on "Outside the Lines" as an analyst during the 2009-2010 NFL season.
In September 2010, he started hosting a college football Saturday edition of SportsNation
SportsNation
SportsNation is a feature section on ESPN.com, labeled "Where America's Sports Fans Meet".- Programming :Daily features include "The Show", which consisted of "The Morning Quickie with Dan Shanoff" until September 2006. Depending on the sports in season, there will be two to three shows on that sport...
with Michelle Beadle
Michelle Beadle
Michelle Denise Beadle is a sports reporter and host for ESPN. She is the co-host of SportsNation on ESPN2 with Colin Cowherd, and Winners Bracket on ABC with Marcellus Wiley....
. He also is an analyst for College Football Overdrive for ESPNews.
Video game appearances
- In the game NFL Street 2NFL Street 2NFL Street 2 is American football video game developed by EA Tiburon and published by Electronic Arts. It was originally released for the PlayStation 2, Xbox, and GameCube on December 22, 2004...
, Ritchie often appears as the starting running back for the Eagles instead of Brian WestbrookBrian WestbrookBrian Collins Westbrook is an American football running back who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the third round of the 2002 NFL Draft after playing college football at Villanova...
due to a high blocking rating. - He was featured in Madden NFLMadden NFLMadden NFL is an American football video game series developed by Electronic Arts Tiburon for EA Sports. The game series is named after Pro Football Hall of Famer John Madden, a well-known former Super Bowl-winning coach of the Oakland Raiders and color commentator...
1998-2005, where he was consistently one of the top ranked fullbacks in the game.