Adam Carriker

Adam Eugene Carriker (born May 6, 1984) is a former American football defensive end.

Carriker redshirted in 2002.

In his 2003 freshman season he played extensively in passing situations before injuring his ankle against Utah State.

Against the University of Colorado he had three quarterback hurries and ended a CU drive in the third quarter with a nine-yard sack of quarterback Joel Klatt.

He finished the year with three tackles and three quarterback hurries.

He played in his first bowl game, the 2003 Alamo Bowl after the regular season.

In his 2004 sophomore year Carriker was hampered for the second straight season by an ankle injury.

He played in 10 games with eight starts in the 2004 campaign, and finished with 36 tackles, including seven tackles for loss and three sacks for 18 yards.

Carriker added seven quarterback hurries during his sophomore season.

As a junior in 2005 Carriker started all 12 games at the base end spot, and finished with 9.5 sacks for 84 yards and 17 tackles for loss for 96 yards.

Carriker capped 2005 with one tackle in the Alamo Bowl victory over the University of Michigan.

Adam was voted 2005 Nebraska Defensive MVP.

As a senior in 2006 Adam Carriker completed a dominant career in the 2006 season Cotton Bowl Classic against Auburn University.

In 2006, Carriker earned Nebraska's Defensive MVP honor for the second straight season, and was honored as the Big 12 Defensive Lineman of the Year by the league's coaches.

Carriker finished the season with a team-leading seven sacks and ranked second on the team with 16 tackles behind the line of scrimmage.

His 52 total tackles led all Nebraska defensive linemen, and he also paced the Blackshirt defense with 12 quarterback hurries, while registering his first career interception.

In addition to his selection as Big 12 Defensive Lineman of the Year, Carriker was a First-team All-Big 12 pick by the Big 12 Coaches and the Associated Press.

He was also a Third-team All-America selection by Rivals.com.

The strong senior season put Carriker's name in a prominent position in the NU record books.

He finished with 41 career tackles for loss to rank fifth in the program's history.

Carriker has 20½ career sacks to rank sixth on the Cornhusker charts.

Carriker graduated with a degree in business administration.

He was selected by the St. Louis Rams in the first round of the 2007 NFL Draft.

He played college football at the University of Nebraska.

He also played for the Washington Redskins.

Carriker was born in Hastings, Nebraska.

He moved to Kennewick, Washington, at the age of three, and attended Kennewick High School, where he played quarterback and defensive end.

He was a three-year starter at quarterback and team captain for three years.

In his only season at defensive end (his senior season), he recorded 25 tackles, 15 sacks, and four forced fumbles in a winless season.

Regardless, he was named to Second-team All-Big 9 Honors.

Carriker visited Oregon, Oregon State and Washington State before finally deciding to commit to Nebraska.

Additionally, Carriker was a three-time All-Conference selection in baseball and ran track.

He received all-state honors for his shot put prowess and long jump efforts as a senior.

On July 26, 2007, Carriker signed a five-year $14.5 million contract, with guarantees of $9.5 million.

Carriker started all 16 games of his rookie season at defensive tackle instead of his college position, defensive end.

His 9½ sacks tied for the Big 12 Conference lead and ranked 19th nationally.

He also led Nebraska with 21 quarterback hurries, 10 more than any other Husker defender.

Carriker's 43 total tackles ranked seventh on the team and tied for the most among defensive linemen.

He began his junior season by notching two of the Huskers' school-record tying 11 sacks in the team's 25–7 win over Maine.

Carriker was selected in the first round, with the 13th overall pick, by the St. Louis Rams.