Anthony Dixon

Anthony Rishard "Boobie" Dixon (born September 24, 1987)[1][2] is a former American football running back. He was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the sixth round of the 2010 NFL Draft. He played college football for Mississippi State University, where he holds multiple school rushing records.

For those named Anthony or Tony Dixon, see Tony Dixon.

Anthony Dixon
Dixon with the 49ers in 2012
No. 24, 26
Position:Running back
Personal information
Born: (1987-09-24) September 24, 1987
Jackson, Mississippi
Height:6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight:233 lb (106 kg)
Career information
High school:Terry (MS)
College:Mississippi State
NFL Draft:2010 / Round: 6 / Pick: 173
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Rushing attempts:274
Rushing yards:934
Receptions:23
Receiving yards:140
Total touchdowns:11
Player stats at NFL.com

High school career

As a senior at Terry High School in 2005, he racked up 304 carries for 2,683 yards (8.8 average) and 31 touchdowns in leading Terry to an 11-2 mark. He was named the Jackson metro-area player of the year by The Clarion-Ledger. He was also a first-team All-State honoree by the paper, and was named to its (preseason) "Dandy Dozen" team (of the state's 12 best high school players) and its (postseason) "10 Most Wanted" list (of the state's top 10 college football prospects).

Considered a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, Dixon was listed as the No. 22 running back prospect in the nation in 2006.[3] Scout.com ranked Dixon a four star prospect and the 30th best running back in the country.[4]

He chose Mississippi State over University of Alabama, Louisiana State University, and Southern Miss.

College career

In his true freshman season, Dixon played in all 12 games, starting five times, and set MSU true freshman records for rushing attempts, yards gained rushing, and touchdowns rushing. His nine touchdowns on the ground were the most by a Bulldog since Dicenzo Miller's ten TDs in 2000. He earned his nickname “Boobie” from his college teammates, who compared him to Boobie Miles, the character in Friday Night Lights.[2]

As a sophomore, Dixon played all 13 games and started twelve. He became just the seventh halfback (ninth occurrence) in school history and the first Bulldog sophomore ever to surpass 1,000 yards rushing in a single season and his attempts set a Mississippi State single season record. He scored MSU's game-winning touchdown in the 2007 Liberty Bowl game.

During his junior season, Dixon started all 12 games he played in, and rushed for 869 yards, compiling a career-best 4.4 yards per carry.

With 1,391 rushing yards in his senior season, Dixon not only set the Mississippi State single-season rushing record (surpassing J. J. Johnson's 1998 record of 1,383 yards), he also became the seventh player in Southeastern Conference history to lead his team in rushing four times. He joined Eddie Price (Tulane, 1946–1949), Sonny Collins (Kentucky, 1972–1975), Dalton Hilliard (LSU, 1982–1985), Carl Woods (Vanderbilt, 1983–1986), Errict Rhett (Florida, 1990–1993), and Kevin Faulk (LSU, 1995–1998) on that list. Dixon accumulated 3,994 career rushing yards during his collegiate career.[5]

College statistics
GP GS Att Yards Avg TD Long Avg/G
2006 12 5 169 668 4.0 9 65 55.7
2007 13 12 287 1,066 3.7 14 30 82.0
2008 12 12 197 869 4.4 7 71 72.4
2009 11 11 257 1,391 5.4 12 70 126.5
Totals 48 40 910 3,994 4.4 42 71 84.1

In addition, Dixon also accumulated 56 receptions, 449 Receiving Yards, and 4 Receiving Touchdowns in 4 years at MSU.

Professional career

2010 NFL Draft

Dixon was considered one of the best "power backs" available in the 2010 NFL Draft, alongside Toby Gerhart and Charles Scott.[6] Projected as a third- to fourth-round pick, Dixon was thought to possibly be the Bulldogs' highest draftee since Jerious Norwood was selected by the Atlanta Falcons in the third round (79th overall) of the 2006 NFL Draft.[7] However, he was selected as the 173rd overall pick in the sixth round by the San Francisco 49ers.

Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand size 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press Wonderlic
6 ft 1 in
(1.85 m)		 233 lb
(106 kg)		 32 5⁄8 in
(0.83 m)		 9 3⁄4 in
(0.25 m)		 4.77 s 1.58 s 2.75 s 4.49 s 7.09 s 33 in
(0.84 m)		 10 ft 1 in
(3.07 m)		 15 reps 25
All values from NFL Combine[8][9][10]

San Francisco 49ers

With the announcement of the sudden retirement of Glen Coffee on August 13, former head coach Mike Singletary stated that Dixon and veteran Michael Robinson would compete for the number 2 running back spot behind Pro Bowler Frank Gore.[11] In the preseason, Dixon posted 74 rushes for 300 yards, averaging 75 yards per game and 4 touchdowns, leading the entire NFL in each of those categories. On September 20, 2010, Dixon rushed for his first career NFL touchdown against the New Orleans Saints on Monday Night Football. Despite playing well in the preseason, Dixon had only ten rushing attempts until week 12. After Gore suffered a fractured hip during a Monday Night Football game against the Arizona Cardinals on November 29, Dixon had 14 carries for 54 yards and a touchdown as a backup to Brian Westbrook, who took over for Gore. Dixon has played in all 72 games of his NFL career, primarily on special teams. At the end of the 2012 season, Dixon and the 49ers appeared in Super Bowl XLVII. He contributed on special teams, but the 49ers fell to the Baltimore Ravens by a score of 34–31.[12] His only start as a member of the 49ers came in the 2013 NFC Championship game as a fullback scoring a touchdown that gave San Francisco a 10–0 lead. Coincidentally, that was his last game as a member of the 49ers. He finished his 49er career with 458 regular-season rushing yards and eight touchdowns.[13][14]

Buffalo Bills

On March 15, 2014, Dixon signed a three-year, $3.5 million contract with the Buffalo Bills.[13] Dixon went on to have the most productive year of his career, with career highs in rushing attempts (105), rushing yards (432), average yards per rush (4.1), as well as passes caught and receiving yardage (eight catches for 49 yards). Dixon also scored two rushing touchdowns, the same number he had scored each year since entering the NFL.

In 2015, Dixon's production dropped off significantly. He had only one rushing touchdown, and recorded both 44 yards rushing and 44 yards receiving. On March 1, 2016, Dixon was released by the Bills.[15]

The Spring League

After spending the 2016 season out of football, Dixon played in front of NFL and Canadian Football League scouts as part of the inaugural season for a new instructional and developmental football program, The Spring League, taking part in both the April training camp and games held at The Greenbrier in West Virginia, as well as the 2017 Summer Showcase game held in Napa, California.[16] As one of The Spring League's "marquee players"[17] Dixon was one of the more vocal players in the league, and predicted he would amass 100 yards and 2 touchdowns during the California Showcase game. Playing as part of team California, Dixon's teammate included fellow running back Glen Coffee,[18] the player Dixon replaced as a member of the 49ers. Playing predominately as a fullback, Dixon's first carry was a 49 yard touchdown run. Late in the game, Dixon caught a 4 yard touchdown pass from David Ash.[19] Both plays occurred on 4th down, and were the first and last scores of the game, respectively. Dixon's totals were 7 carries for 55 yards, 5 catches for 23 yards, and the two touchdowns. With 78 total yards on 12 touches, Dixon was short of his statistical pregame prediction, but nonetheless he was listed as one of the Stand Out Players of the game during the Summer Showcase broadcast.[20]

Personal life

Dixon is a Christian. Dixon describes himself on his Twitter account as a "God Fearing Man" and frequently tweets about his faith.[21]

Anthony also has three younger brothers Antwon, Rashun, and Deshun (from oldest to youngest). Antwon and Rashun both committed to play football at Mississippi State, although neither played at MSU. Antwon instead went to Hinds Community College before transferring to Midwestern State University. Rashun was drafted in the 10th round (304th overall) in the 2008 Major League Baseball draft by the Oakland As and chose to play professional baseball. Deshun was also drafted by in the MLB Draft, taken in the 10th round by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 2010 Major League Baseball draft.[22]

References
  1. "Anthony Dixon Bio". SECsports.com. Retrieved August 8, 2009.
  2. http://www.buffalonews.com/sports/bills-nfl/bills-hope-dixon-boosts-special-teams-20140316
  3. "Running backs 2006", Rivals.com, January 30, 2006
  4. "Anthony Dixon Scout.com profile page", Scout.com, January 1, 2006
  5. Inabinett, Mark (November 28, 2009), "Mississippi State's Anthony Dixon joining short list of SEC ballcarriers", Mobile Press-Register
  6. "NFL Draft - 2010 RB Draft Prospects", CBSSports.com, retrieved November 25, 2009
  7. Miller, David (February 24, 2010), "Chaney, Dixon hope to impress at NFL Combine", The Dispatch.
  8. "Anthony Dixon Combine Profile", NFL.com, archived from the original on March 10, 2010, retrieved February 27, 2010.
  9. "Anthony Dixon", NFL Draft Scout, archived from the original on August 17, 2010, retrieved August 17, 2010.
  10. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on October 10, 2012. Retrieved November 3, 2010.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  11. Price, Taylor (August 13, 2010). "Coffee Tells 49ers He Intends to Retire". San Francisco 49ers. Archived from the original on August 16, 2010. Retrieved August 14, 2010.
  12. "Super Bowl XLVII - San Francisco 49ers vs. Baltimore Ravens - February 3rd, 2013". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 2, 2017.
  13. Bills add Anthony Dixon
  14. NFL free agency news: Anthony Dixon signing with Buffalo Bills
  15. Anthony Dixon Released by Bills: Latest Details, Comments and Reaction
  16. Filipowski, Nick (June 19, 2017). "Former Bills RB Fred Jackson to participate in Spring League". WKBW-TV. Retrieved June 20, 2017.
  17. https://www.thespringleague.com/about/
  18. https://www.ninersnation.com/2017/7/11/15951904/glen-coffee-comeback-spring-league-showcase-game-july-15-location-napa
  19. http://napavalleyregister.com/sports/college-and-pro/spring-league-game-at-napa-memorial-stadium-keeps-football-dreams/article_cbc5e5e0-1c16-5384-8d3d-802552e23f9f.html
  20. http://www.flofootball.com/video/1227387-spring-league-showcase-full-replay
  21. "Anthony Dixon".
  22. "MSU Mustangs Bio for Antwon Dixon". Retrieved October 31, 2014.
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