Rashard Malick Higgins (born October 7, 1994), nicknamed "Hollywood",[1][2] is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Colorado State Rams, earning first-team All-American honors in 2014. He played in the National Football League (NFL) for the Cleveland Browns and Carolina Panthers.
![]() Higgins with the Cleveland Browns in 2021 | |||||||
No. 17, 81, 82 | |||||||
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Position: | Wide receiver | ||||||
Personal information | |||||||
Born: | Dallas, Texas, U.S. | October 7, 1994||||||
Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||
Weight: | 198 lb (90 kg) | ||||||
Career information | |||||||
High school: | Mesquite (Mesquite, Texas) | ||||||
College: | Colorado State (2013–2015) | ||||||
NFL draft: | 2016 / Round: 5 / Pick: 172 | ||||||
Career history | |||||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||||
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Career NFL statistics | |||||||
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Player stats at PFR |
Early life
editHiggins attended Mesquite High School in Mesquite, Texas, where he was a three-sport athlete in football, basketball and track. He played as a wide receiver for the Mesquite football team. As a senior, he had 69 receptions for 1,136 yards 10 touchdowns. Higgins was a two-star recruit by Rivals.com.[3] He was a starter on the Mesquite basketball team, where he averaged 17 points per game.
He also excelled in track & field at Mesquite. At the 2013 District Meet, he took fourth in the 200-meter dash with a time of 22.76 seconds, while also placing seventh in the long jump with a leap of 6.68 meters (21 ft, 8 in).[4] He posted a personal-best time of 53.48 seconds in the 400-meter dash at the 2012 Rockin R Relays, where he finished fifth.[5]
College career
editAs a true freshman at Colorado State University in 2013, Higgins started all 14 games.[6] He finished the season with a school freshman record 68 receptions, which went for 837 yards and six touchdowns.[7] As a sophomore in 2014, Higgins was a finalist for the Biletnikoff Award.[8][9]
College statistics
editG | Rec | Yards | Yds/Rec | Long | TD | Yds/G | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2013 | 14 | 68 | 837 | 12.3 | 56 | 6 | 59.8 |
2014 | 12 | 96 | 1,750 | 18.2 | 73 | 17 | 145.8 |
2015 | 12 | 75 | 1,062 | 14.2 | 46 | 6 | 88.5 |
Total | 38 | 239 | 3,649 | 15.27 | 73 | 29 | 96 |
Awards and records
edit- 2015 MW Preseason Offensive Player of the Year
- Finalist, 2014 Biletnikoff Award
- 2014 consensus All-American
- Led nation in receiving yards (1,750) and receiving touchdowns (17) in 2014
- Ranked first in nation in yards-per-catch (18.2) among players with 65+ receptions
- Has 12 career games with 100 or more yards
- In just two seasons, has caught 164 passes for 2,587 yards and 23 touchdowns
- Named 2014 Male College Athlete of the Year by Colorado State Hall of Fame
Professional career
editHeight | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
6 ft 1+3⁄8 in (1.86 m) |
196 lb (89 kg) |
32+1⁄4 in (0.82 m) |
9+3⁄4 in (0.25 m) |
4.64 s | 32 in (0.81 m) |
9 ft 8 in (2.95 m) |
13 reps | |||||
All values from NFL Combine[10] |
Cleveland Browns
editThe Cleveland Browns drafted Higgins in the fifth round with the 172nd overall pick in the 2016 NFL draft.[11] On May 13, he signed a four-year contract worth about $2.52 million, which included a signing bonus worth about $184,000.[12] He had six receptions for 77 yards in his rookie season.[13]
On September 3, 2017, Higgins was waived by the Browns and was signed to the practice squad the next day.[14][15] He was promoted to the active roster on September 16, 2017.[16] On September 17, in the Week 2 game against the Baltimore Ravens, he had a career-best seven receptions for 95 yards in the 24–10 loss.[17] In the final game of the 2017 season, Higgins caught his first two career touchdown passes – both from DeShone Kizer.[18] Overall, in the 2017 season, he finished with 27 receptions for 312 receiving yards and two touchdowns.[19] In 2018, Higgins further improved himself snatching 39 receptions for 572 yards and four touchdowns.[20]
On March 4, 2019, the Browns tendered Higgins, who was set to become a restricted free agent.[21] He caught his first touchdown of the season against the Buffalo Bills in Week 10, a seven-yard pass from Baker Mayfield that would prove to be the game-winner.[22]
The Browns re-signed Higgins on May 8, 2020.[23] In Week 7 of the 2020 season, he had his first 100-yard game with six receptions for 110 receiving yards in a 37–34 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals.[24] He was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the Browns on December 26, 2020,[25] and activated on December 31.[26]
Higgins became an unrestricted free agent following the 2020 season. On March 19, 2021, Higgins re-signed with the Browns on a one-year deal.[27]
Carolina Panthers
editOn March 16, 2022, Higgins signed a one-year contract with the Carolina Panthers.[28] He played in three games for Carolina, but did not draw a target or record any offensive stats.
On April 15, 2024, Higgins announced his retirement from the NFL. Higgins announced that he would sign a one–day contract to retire a Cleveland Brown.[29]
NFL career statistics
editSeason | Team | Games | Receiving | Rushing | Fumbles | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
G | GS | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Fum | Lost | ||
2016 | CLE | 16 | 0 | 6 | 77 | 12.8 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2017 | CLE | 15 | 4 | 27 | 312 | 11.6 | 56 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 4.0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
2018 | CLE | 13 | 1 | 39 | 572 | 14.7 | 40 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2019 | CLE | 10 | 1 | 4 | 55 | 13.8 | 35 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2020 | CLE | 13 | 6 | 37 | 599 | 16.2 | 43 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
2021 | CLE | 15 | 4 | 24 | 275 | 11.5 | 21 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2022 | CAR | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 85 | 16 | 137 | 1,890 | 13.8 | 56 | 12 | 1 | 4 | 4.0 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
Season | Team | Games | Receiving | Rushing | Fumbles | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
G | GS | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Fum | Lost | ||
2020 | CLE | 2 | 2 | 7 | 116 | 16.6 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 2 | 2 | 7 | 116 | 16.6 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Cabot, Mary Kay (April 28, 2020). "Rashard Higgins, Browns agree to one-year deal worth $910,000". The Plain Dealer. Cleveland, Ohio. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
- ^ Smith, Pete (April 30, 2020). "Cleveland Browns Wide Receiver Hollywood Higgins Changing Numbers". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
- ^ "Rashard Higgins". Rivals.com.
- ^ "District 12-5A Meet". Texas MileSplit.
- ^ "Rockin R Relays – Track & Field Meet". Athletic.net.
- ^ Kensler, Tom (December 17, 2013). "Colorado State wideout Rashard Higgins shining as a freshman". The Denver Post.
- ^ Frei, Terry (August 19, 2014). "CSU wide receiver Rashard Higgins is ready for huge sophomore season". The Denver Post.
- ^ Frei, Terry (November 25, 2014). "Rashard Higgins is a Biletnikoff Award finalist; Rams don't crack CFP 25". The Denver Post.
- ^ Lyell, Kelly (November 25, 2014). "CSU's Rashard Higgins a finalist for Biletnikoff Award". Coloradoan.
- ^ "Rashard Higgins Combine Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved August 27, 2019.
- ^ Cabot, Mary Kay (April 30, 2016). "WR Rashard Higgins of Colorado State drafted by Browns at 172". The Plain Dealer. Retrieved August 28, 2016.
- ^ Lyell, Kelly (May 14, 2016). "Ex-Colorado State receiver Higgins signs with NFL's Browns". The Coloradoan. Retrieved August 28, 2016.
- ^ "Rashard Higgins 2016 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
- ^ "Browns claim 5 players off waivers". ClevelandBrowns.com. September 3, 2017. Archived from the original on February 1, 2018.
- ^ "Browns add 3 to practice squad". ClevelandBrowns.com. September 5, 2017. Archived from the original on February 12, 2018.
- ^ "Browns elevate WR Rashard Higgins to active roster". ClevelandBrowns.com. September 16, 2017.
- ^ "Cleveland Browns at Baltimore Ravens – September 17th, 2017". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 28, 2017.
- ^ "WATCH: Cleveland Browns WR Rashard Higgins catches second TD pass against Pittsburgh Steelers". WKYC. December 31, 2017.
- ^ "Rashard Higgins 2017 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
- ^ "Rashard Higgins 2018 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
- ^ "Report: Browns tender Rashard Higgins not Briean Boddy-Calhoun". 247Sports.com. March 4, 2019.
- ^ "Browns' Rashard Higgins: Hauls in game-winner". CBSSports.com. November 11, 2019. Retrieved November 12, 2019.
- ^ Gribble, Andrew (May 8, 2020). "Browns re-sign WR Rashard Higgins". ClevelandBrowns.com. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
- ^ "Cleveland Browns at Cincinnati Bengals - October 25th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
- ^ "Browns place 5 on COVID-19 list". ClevelandBrowns.com. December 26, 2020. Retrieved February 8, 2021.
- ^ "Browns make roster moves". ClevelandBrowns.com. December 31, 2020. Retrieved February 8, 2021.
- ^ Gribble, Andrew (March 19, 2021). "Browns bring back WR Rashard Higgins for a 6th season". ClevelandBrowns.com.
- ^ Gantt, Darin (March 16, 2022). "Panthers agree to terms with wide receiver Rashard Higgins". Retrieved March 16, 2022.
- ^ "WR Rashard Higgins and LB Christian Kirksey to retire as Cleveland Browns". ClevelandBrowns.com. April 16, 2024.
External links
edit- Colorado State Rams bio
- Media related to Rashard Higgins at Wikimedia Commons