| 11.05.03 - The Chargers signed former Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Micah Ross on Wednesday, the same day they placed wide out Eric Parker on injured reserve. Parker will miss the remainder of the season after re-injuring his shoulder in last week’s game at Chicago.
Ross, 6-2, 219, is in his third NFL season. He has played in 22 NFL games, all with Jacksonville, but has yet to catch a pass in the league.
Prior to joining the Chargers, he played in one game with the Jaguars and was inactive for three others this year. He was released by Jacksonville on Oct. 3 to make room for wide receiver Jimmy Smith, who was coming off a four-game NFL suspension. Ironically, Ross was released just two days before the Chargers faced the Jaguars in Jacksonville on Oct. 5.
Ross saw action in all 16 games for the Jaguars in 2002, finishing fourth on the team with 12 tackles on special teams. He was also Jacksonville’s fourth wide receiver, but did not have any catches. On special teams, he was a kickoff returner and gunner.
As a rookie in 2001, Ross played in five games with Jacksonville.
Ross’ path to the NFL has been an interesting one. He is a native of Jacksonville who played basketball and football at Jacksonville University, spent time with the Jacksonville Barracudas of the United States Basketball League, and also saw action with the Jacksonville Tomcats of the arenafootball2 league.
In college, he lettered four times in basketball (1995-98) and played just one year of football (1999). His football career included nines games as a wide receiver, catching 16 passes for 230 yards and two touchdowns. He finished his basketball career with more than 1,000 points and was the team’s MVP as a junior and senior, when he averaged 12.6 points and 7.5 rebounds per game, adding 34 assists and 25 blocked shots.
Ross attended Andrew Jackson High School in Jacksonville, where he was a three-year letterman in basketball. He was named first-team All-State, All-Conference and All-City as a senior. As a junior, he led the school to the state basketball championship.
Micah David Ross was born on January 13, 1976. He has a son, Brandon, and holds a degree in recreation.
Also on Wednesday, the Chargers signed second-year defensive tackle Clenton Ballard to the practice squad. Ballard, 6-3, 308, is in his second NFL season. He spent his rookie campaign with Jacksonville, where he was on the Jaguars 53-man roster for the entire season but was inactive for all 16 games.
Ballard originally joined the Jaguars as a sixth-round pick (180th overall) out of Southwest Texas State. He is a native of San Antonio, Texas, where he was an all district lineman for Taft High School.
Rookie defensive end Omari Hand was released from the practice squad to make room for Ballard. | |
