Ki-Jana Carter

Kenneth Leonard "Ki-Jana" Carter (born September 12, 1973) is a former American college and professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for seven seasons. He played college football for Penn State University, and earned All-American honors. He was the No. 1 draft pick in the 1995 NFL Draft, and he played professionally for the Cincinnati Bengals, Washington Redskins and New Orleans Saints, but his career was cut short by an injury to his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL).

Early years
Carter was born in Westerville, Ohio. His nickname, "Ki-Jana", is from a character in the movie Shaft in Africa and he has gone by that name since his birth. At Westerville South High School, he starred in football, basketball, and track. In football, he was a 1991 Parade magazine high school All-American.

College career
Carter attended Pennsylvania State University, where he was a standout player for coach Joe Paterno's Penn State Nittany Lions football team from 1992 to 1994, along with a strong group of offensive players including future NFL starters Jeff Hartings, Joe Jurevicius, Kerry Collins, OJ McDuffie, Bobby Engram and Kyle Brady. Together, this explosive offense propelled the 1994 Penn State team to a 12-0 undefeated season. At Penn State Carter wore the number 32, which previously was worn by running back Blair Thomas. Despite playing only three seasons, he is still in the top ten among Penn State running backs, having compiled 2,829 yards rushing on 395 attempts and scoring 34 touchdowns. His best single game came against the Michigan State Spartans in 1994, when he rushed for 227 yards on 27 carries and scored five touchdowns. Carter helped lead the 1994 Penn State football team to an undefeated record and a berth in the Rose Bowl, was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American, and finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting. He earned co-MVP honors in the Rose Bowl, rushing for 156 yards and three touchdowns on 21 carries. He ran for an 83-yard touchdown on the first offensive play of the game, which is the third-longest run in Rose Bowl history and the longest run in Penn State bowl history. Carter also added touchdown runs of 17 and three yards in the third quarter. The Rose Bowl was Carter's final game as a Nittany Lion, as he was encouraged by Paterno to forgo his senior season and enter the NFL Draft. "This is the first time I have told anybody who has not graduated that I felt they ought to leave," Paterno said.

Professional career
The Cincinnati Bengals selected Carter with the first overall pick of the 1995 NFL Draft, and he played for the Bengals from 1996 to 1999. They acquired the first pick in a trade with the expansion Carolina Panthers. Carter signed a seven-year, $19.2 million dollar deal which included a $7.125 million dollar signing bonus, which at the time was an NFL record contract for a rookie.

Carter tore a ligament in his knee on his third carry of his first preseason game of his rookie year, and never fully recovered. He played on the Washington Redskins from 2001 to 2002, and the New Orleans Saints from 2003 to 2004, contributing as a part-timer. He only had 464 yards in a single season as his career best. In seven NFL seasons, he played in 59 games, started 14 of them, and compiled 1,144 rushing yards and 20 touchdowns on 319 attempts, and 66 receptions for 469 yards and a touchdown.

Life after football
Carter is now an entrepreneur and sports blogger at OPENSports.com. He founded Byoglobe, a sanitation technology company specializing in disinfection of MRSA-prone facilities, in 2008. He serves as the Sunrise, Florida-based company's chief executive officer.