Aaron Ross

Ross not only excelled as a cover cornerback for the Longhorns, but was also a standout as a punt returner, scoring three times on 76 runbacks during his career. His natural hands were evident, as he also deflected 33 passes and intercepted 10 others. Despite only one full season as a starter, he also generated 205 career tackles. At John Tyler High School, Ross competed as a cornerback, wide receiver and running back during his three-year career. He was tabbed second-team Class 5A All-State after posting six interceptions, three fumble recoveries, three blocked kicks and allowing just one touchdown reception as a senior. He also returned a fumble and a blocked punt for a score in 2000, adding 350 rushing yards (on 46 carries) and five touchdowns and caught five passes for 200 yards and two scores that year. Ross posted a career-high 362 all-purpose yards against Katy as a senior and registered three interceptions while rushing for a touchdown against Lufkin. He added four interceptions, two fumble recoveries and seven blocked kicks as a junior, scoring a total of seven times on offense. His best game was against Marshall, when he amassed 272 all-purpose yards, rushed for a pair of touchdowns and had an interception. As a sophomore, Ross played at San Antonio Fox Tech. He rushed for 486 yards and nine touchdowns and caught 11 passes for 382 yards and three scores on offense. He also intercepted five passes and blocked 10 kicks. During his time at both schools, he lettered four times as a sprinter in track & field and twice in basketball. Ross enrolled at Texas in 2002, but was academically ineligible to play. He played in 13 games behind Nathan Vasher at left cornerback in 2003, coming up with 27 tackles (23 solos), a stop for a loss and two pass break-ups. He shared right cornerback duties with Tarell Brown in 2004, appearing in 12 contests. He recorded 36 tackles (28 solos) with an interception and three pass break-ups. He also averaged 7.6 yards on 18 punt returns. As a junior, Ross earned All-Big 12 Conference honorable mention. He started two games at cornerback and ranked 10th in the nation with a 14.7-yard average on 34 punt returns, returning two for touchdowns. He also had three interceptions with nine pass break-ups. He ranked seventh on the team with 62 tackles (35 solos), adding two stops behind the line of scrimmage. Finally a full-time starter in 2006, Ross made the most of this opportunity. He earned All-American and All-Big 12 Conference first-team honors, in addition to being named the Thorpe Award winner (nation's top defensive back). The Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year ranked third on the team with 80 tackles (59 solos). He added a sack, two stops for losses and 19 pass deflections. He caused three fumbles, recovered two and picked off six passes. He also scored once while averaging 10.4 yards on 23 punt returns. In 51 games at Texas. Ross started 15 times. He registered 205 tackles (145 solos) with a one-yard sack, five stops for losses of 21 yards and a quarterback pressure. He caused three fumbles and recovered two others, returning one for a touchdown. Ross batted away 33 passes and intercepted 10 others for 111 yards in returns (11.1 avg). He also returned 76 punts for 893 yards (11.8 avg) and three scores, adding 53 yards on a pair of kickoff returns (26.5 avg).

positives

Has as lean, yet athletic frame with room to add at least another 10 pounds of bulk without it affecting his quickness...Excellent playmaker with the ball in his hands on returns (punts, interceptions), as he has that explosive second gear and good forward body lean to hit the seams and gain long yardage...In the open field, he will generally win most foot races...Shows ease of movement agility working in space and has the balance and flexibility to redirect without having to gather...Shows the plant-and-drive agility to come out of his breaks cleanly...Competitive player who plays with an air of confidence...Not the most instinctive player on the field and is slow to diagnose plays, but shows good urgency to close once he locates the ball...Lacks good press coverage technique, but uses his speed well to mirror the receiver throughout the route...Is better in trail technique than in press, as he has the valid feet and loose hips to turn and run without breaking stride...Does a nice job of staying square in his backpedal, as long as he does not revert to a shuffle-and-bail technique (when he does this, he is slow turning on the ball)...Knows how to get vertical, flashing explosion and range with excellent catch-up quickness, showing improved feel for jumping on the cut in 2006 than he did in the past ...Has the leaping ability and timing to get to the ball at its high point...Does a good job of tracking the ball in flight, demonstrating and explosive vertical leap to win most jump ball battles...Has the natural hands to extend for the ball outside the frame, but needs to secure it better before heading up field...Lacks the sand in his pants to stack and control in run support, but is willing to throw his body around...More of a grab, drag down tackler, but when he keeps his pads down he can generate some pop on contact...Has the second gear to elude in the open field on returns, reminding some of Chicago's Devin Hester for his ability to put on the afterburners and simply explode with the ball in his hands...Shows very good judgment picking a seam to gain big yardage on his runbacks.

compares to

DEVIN HESTER-Chicago...A definite lack of man coverage technique, poor route recognition skills, hesitant in zone coverage, poor tackling form and marginal strength are some of the liabilities in these two players' games. Both are blessed with incredible quickness for the return games, but Ross is far from a finished product as a defender. Right now, he brings instant value as a returner and nickel back, but he will need a few years to see if he ever develops into a quality cover defender. There is a lot of Deltha O'Neal in this kid and if you need a shutdown cornerback, you are advised to look elsewhere. In his only year as a starter in 2006, he won the Thorpe Award as the nation's top defensive back, but nothing could be further from the truth. The media seems to get enamored by big returners and pass thieves and Ross is both of those. However, he allowed 51 receptions for 701 yards (13.7 avg) and five touchdowns in 2006, as 20 of those catches resulted in first downs and 16 were for 10 yards or longer. In addition, he fumbled twice and was penalized four times.

negatives

Lacks field intelligence and will bite on pump fakes and misdirection...Has a lean frame with marginal playing strength and needs to improve his training room habits (does what is asked, but needs structure)...Struggled with academics earlier and might have problems digesting a complicated playbook...Lacks the upper body strength and hand usage to disengage from blocks...Willing in run support, but will get walled off and washed out of the play in attempts to plug the inside lanes...Marginal tackler who prefers to take a side or grab rather than face up, wrap and secure...Generates a lot of pass interference penalties due to his penchant of constantly grabbing at the receiver's jersey heading down field...Lacks an ideal feel for seeing the plays develop and will need time to learn the proper techniques of diagnosing and reading keys...Has the speed to mirror receivers, but fails to generate the punch to press or the placement to reroute...When he uses a shuffle-and-bail technique, he is slow to come out of his breaks...Liability in zone coverage, as he is late to locate the ball and lacks a good feel for handling the switch-off... Needs to take better angles in attempts to close on the ball...Plays with good aggression, but will get out of control at times and then struggles to recover...Too much of a risk taker, doing a poor job of keeping plays in front of him.

No injuries reported.

Campus: 4.45 in the 40-yard dash

275-pound bench press

425-pound squat

272-pound power clean

35.5-inch vertical jump. Combine: 4.54 in the 40-yard dash

1.58 10-yard dash

2.63 20-yard dash

4.15 20-yard shuttle

6.67 three-cone drill

34-inch vertical jump

9'10" broad jump

Bench pressed 225 pounds 17 times.

Attended John Tyler (Tyler, Tex.) High School, playing football for head coach Allen Wilson

Competed as a cornerback, wide receiver and running back during his three-year career

Tabbed second-team Class 5A All-State after posting six interceptions, three fumble recoveries, three blocked kicks and allowing just one touchdown reception as a senior

Returned a fumble and a blocked punt for a score in 2000, adding 350 rushing yards (on 46 carries) and five touchdowns and caught five passes for 200 yards and two scores that year

Posted a career-high 362 all-purpose yards against Katy as a senior and registered three interceptions while rushing for a touchdown against Lufkin that season

Added four interceptions, two fumble recoveries and seven blocked kicks as a junior, scoring a total of seven times on offense

His best game was against Marshall, when he amassed 272 all-purpose yards, rushed for two touchdowns and had an interception

As a sophomore, Ross played at San Antonio Fox Tech

Rushed for 486 yards and nine touchdowns and caught 11 passes for 382 yards and three scores on offense

Intercepted five passes and blocked 10 kicks

During his time at both schools, he lettered four times as a sprinter in track-and-field and twice in basketball.

Education major

Active in UT's community service program, serving as a summer camp counselor (Camp Tyler Summer Camp)

Born Aaron Jermaine Ross on 9/15/82 in San Antonio, Texas

Resides in Tyler, Texas.