Jamaal Charles attended Memorial High School in Port Arthur, Texas. During his junior year, he ran for 2,051 yards and 25 touchdowns and was named first-team all-state by the Texas Sports Writers Association and second-team all-state by the Associated Press. The following year, Charles rushed for 2,056 yards and 25 touchdowns and was recognized by the Houston Chronicle as the Area Offensive MVP. He was also named to the 2005 Parade All-America Football Team and played in the 2005 U.S. Army All-American Bowl.

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After graduation, Charles attended the University of Texas at Austin. In his freshman season, he rushed 119 times for 878 yards and 11 touchdowns, contributing significantly to the national championship earned by the Longhorns that year. During the 2007 season, Charles rushed for 1,619 yards, averaging more than six yards per carry. Against Nebraska, he rushed for 216 yards in the fourth quarter alone—a Big 12 record—and would have set the all-time mark for yards in a single quarter had he not asked to be taken out of the game to allow a teammate more carries. He currently ranks fifth in total rushing yards by a UT player, despite opting out of his senior year at UT to join the 2008 NFL Draft.

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Selected in the third round by the Kansas City Chiefs, Charles saw limited playing time as a rookie but still showed promise with a 5.3-yards-per-carry average. In 2009, Charles became the first player in NFL history to rush for more than 1,100 yards on 200 or fewer carries. In 2010, he averaged a phenomenal 6.4 yards per carry with 1,467 yards and came close to breaking the all-time single-season yards-per-carry record. On January 3, 2010, he rushed for 259 yards against the Denver Broncos before being subbed out late in the game to allow a teammate more playing time. He was invited to the 2011 Pro Bowl and named to Pro Football Weekly’s 2010 All-NFL Team.

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He remains the NFL’s all-time leader in career yards per carry (5.4) among running backs with at least 1,000 attempts. He was inducted into the Museum of the Gulf Coast Sports Hall of Fame in 2010.