Chris Claiborne

Christopher Ashon Claiborne (born July 26, 1978) is a coach at Oaks_Christian_High_School. Claiborne is a former American college and professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for eight seasons. Claiborne played college football for the University of Southern California, and was recognized as an All-American. He was a first-round pick in the 1999 NFL Draft, and played professionally for the Detroit Lions, Minnesota Vikings, St. Louis Rams and New York Giants of the NFL.

Early years
Claiborne was born in San Diego, California. He attended John W. North High School in Riverside, California, and was a letterman in both football and basketball. In football, he won All-State honors at both running back and linebacker as a senior under head coach Mark Paredes. Claiborne graduated from high school in 1996.

College career
Claiborne accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Southern California, where he played for the USC Trojans football team from 1996 to 1998. As a senior in 1998, he was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American. He is also USC's first and only Butkus award winner.

Professional career
The Detroit Lions selected Claiborne in the first round (ninth pick overall) of the 1999 NFL Draft, and he played for the Lions from 1999 to 2002. He later played for the Minnesota Vikings from 2003 to 2004, the St. Louis Rams in 2005, and the New York Giants in 2006. He signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars in August 2007 but was released before the start of the 2007 regular season.

Coaching
In February 2013, Coach Claiborne began coaching at Oak Christian School.