Jake Ballard
| New York Giants | |||||||||
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| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | December 2, 1987 Springboro, Ohio, U.S. | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| College: | Ohio State | ||||||||
| Undrafted: | 2010 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
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| Roster status: | Injured Reserve | ||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics as of Week 15, 2011 | |||||||||
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Jake Ballard (born December 2, 1987) is an American football tight end for the New York Giants of the National Football League. He was signed by the Giants as an undrafted free agent in 2010. He played college football at Ohio State.
Early years and college career
Ballard grew up in Springboro, Ohio. He started on both sides of the ball in football and started on the basketball team. He attended Ohio State University, where he caught 34 passes for 377 yards with an average of 11 yards per catch. He also caught three touchdown passes. During his senior year, he was one of Ohio State's six captains. [citation needed]
During the 2010 Rose Bowl, he made a critical catch that helped Ohio State beat Oregon. In the 4th quarter with nine minutes remaining Ohio State up 19-17 facing 3rd and 13 from their own 45, Ballard jumped and caught a high pass thrown by Terrelle Pryor for 24 yards and a critical first down. The drive concluded with the game-clinching touchdown that put Ohio State up 26-17, which would be the final score.
Professional career
New York Giants
Ballard was signed by the New York Giants as an undrafted free agent following the 2010 NFL Draft on April 25, 2010. He was waived/injured after suffering a hamstring injury during training camp on August 19. He was re-signed to the team's practice squad on September 5. He was promoted to the active roster on November 20.[1] He played in the game against the Philadelphia Eagles the following day, playing eights snaps. He was waived on November 23,[2] and re-signed to the practice squad the following day. He was promoted to the active roster again on December 16.
Ballard played in the November 6, 2011 game against the New England Patriots (5-2) at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, finishing the day with 67 receiving yards, including a 28-yard catch on 3rd and 10 with :51 left and the subsequent 1-yard touchdown catch with just 17 seconds to play. The Giants won the game 24-20 to maintain a 2-game lead in the NFC East and hand the Patriots their second straight loss for the first time since 2009 (and first in 21 consecutive games at home). [citation needed]
Ballard made a catch on the game winning drive in the game on November 6, 2011 that has been compared to the great catch that David Tyree made in Super Bowl XLII. Coincidentally, both players wore No. 85 at the time of their catches. During the 49ers game, Jake Ballard stated during a sideline interview that his favorite activity in life is "Steamrolling little 49ers out of his way."
References
- ^ Berman, Zach (November 20, 2010). "Giants promote TE Jake Ballard, waive DB D.J. Johnson". The Star-Ledger. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
- ^ Garafolo, Mike (November 23, 2010). "Giants waive tight end Jake Ballard, lose cornerback Brandon Hughes to Eagles". The Star-Ledger. Retrieved 2010-12-26.