Athletes - Samkon Gado

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	Athletes - Samkon Gado

Samkon Kaltho Gado (born November 13, 1982 in Kufai, Nigeria) is a professional American football player for the Green Bay Packers of the NFL.

High school career

Gado moved to Columbia, South Carolina from Nigeria when he was nine years old. He attended Ben Lippen High School in Columbia, where he was a four-sport letterwinner (football, track, soccer and basketball).

Gado posted 10 games of over 200 yards as a high school football running back. He was named Athlete of the Year as a junior, rushing for 2,100 yards and 31 touchdowns. He served as team captain in his senior campaign. His high school teammates referred to him the "Nigerian Nightmare," the nickname of former Kansas City Chief running back Christian Okoye. Gado currently wears his the jersey number 35 out of respect for Okoye.

College career

Gado played college football at Liberty University, a Division I-AA school best known for its affiliation with controversial preacher Jerry Falwell.

Although Gado only started two games in his college career (playing behind fellow backs Dre Barnes and Eugene Goodman), his contributions to the team were significant. He played in 39 games during his college career, amassing a total of 273 carries for 1,631 yards and 16 rushing touchdowns. He also caught a total of 38 passes for 486 yards and six receiving touchdowns. His most significant numbers came in his senior year, where he proved his value to the offense by carrying the ball 138 times for 938 yards and a team-high eleven rushing touchdowns.

Because of his relatively quiet role as a backup running back at a 1-AA school, Gado went undrafted in the 2005 NFL Draft and was eventually signed to the practice squad of the Kansas City Chiefs in May 2005.

Professional career

2005

Gado was unable to make the Chiefs active roster in part due to an injury suffered during training camp, and was eventually waived from the practice squad after the first month of the season. Kansas City running backs coach James Saxon was impressed by Gado's ability, but there was no room on the Chiefs roster to retain him. Nonetheless, Saxon spoke highly of him to other teams; such as the Green Bay Packers. Kansas City head coach Dick Vermeil also encouraged Gado to continue playing football.

On October 17, the Green Bay Packers signed Samkon Gado to their practice squad. Gado's future in the NFL might have ended there were it not for the unfortunate circumstances of the Packers 2005 season. Despite being one of the premier running teams of the past few years, the Packers saw a dramatic drop in production due to the loss of both of their starting guards from the previous season and due to nagging injuries to star running back Ahman Green. Both Green and backup Najeh Davenport were eventually lost to season-ending injuries, forcing the Packers to promote Gado to the active roster alongside third-string back Tony Fisher and such players as Reshard Lee and Noah Herron.

Gado made his NFL debut, only two weeks after being signed to the Packers roster, with an eight-yard carry on November 30, 2005 in a 21-14 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. It was his only carry of the game. One week later, he was given much more playing time against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Though Fisher was officially the starter of the game, Gado carried the ball 23 times for 62 yards and scored his first NFL rushing touchdown in the 20-10 loss. Coaches and teammates were impressed by Gado's performance against a strong Pittsburgh defense.

Gado began to be considered a "feel good story" for the 2005 NFL season as a nobody backup suddenly showing real potential when given the chance. The sudden media attention was also due to Gado's polite and humble personality both in interviews and on the field. After Gado's touchdown in the Steelers game, he reportedly walked up to and thanked every one of his offensive lineman for helping him to score.

On November 11, 2005, Gado started his first NFL game against the Atlanta Falcons. He responded to the challenge with an outstanding performance that instantly turned him into a household name for Packer faithful. Gado rushed 23 times for 103 yards and two touchdowns, and also caught a one-yard touchdown pass from Brett Favre, as the Packers won 33-25. Gado received the NFL Rookie of Week 10 award for the game.

For the Monday night matchup the following week against division rival Minnesota, Packer fans displayed signs with slogans such as In Gado We Trust and Oh My Gado in support of the surprising rookie. The signs were quickly hidden; despite an early 30-yard reception, Gado's output was minimal, rushing for only 7 yards on 10 attempts in a 20-17 loss.

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Athletes - Samkon Gado

High school career

College career

Professional career

2005

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