Archie Amerson

By the end of August, Amerson led the Tiger-Cats' offense with 298 rushing yards, 12th most in the CFL despite not playing in the first two games.

After being briefly sidelined with a foot injury, Amerson returned to a starting role and rushed for 139 yards against the Calgary Stampeders in late September.

He finished the season with 1,044 combined rushing and receiving yards along with five touchdowns over 15 games.

Archie J. Amerson (born August 24, 1974) is an American former professional Canadian football running back and slotback who played in the Canadian Football League (CFL) from 1997 to 2004, appearing in 122 regular season games for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and one regular season game for the Toronto Argonauts.

In 1991, Amerson primarily played as a cornerback.

Although officially designated the backup running back for Morse that year, he never carried the ball.

Amerson's role sharply shifted as a senior in 1992 when the coaching staff played him as the team's lead running back in addition to his role on defense.

In October, Amerson rushed for 197 yards and four touchdowns in a 48–0 win over Patrick Henry High School.

Amerson's strong game against Patrick Henry saw his role on the team increase as he ran for 675 yards and 13 touchdowns over a three-week period.

He finished his only season as a running back for Morse with 1,475 rushing yards to lead his section.

Amerson was designated the offensive player of the year in the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) after Morse won the CIF San Diego section championship.

While in high school, Amerson also played Little League Baseball for the Skyline Pirates.

He made California District 42's All-Star team in 1992.

He went on to play college football for the Dixie State Rebels from 1993 to 1994 and was named a junior college All-American each year.

In 1993 and 1994, Amerson attended Dixie State College, now the four-year Utah Tech University, and played for the Dixie State Rebels, now the Trailblazers.

He rushed for over 3,000 yards with the Rebels and led the nation among junior college running backs in 1994, recording 1,691 yards and 20 touchdowns.

He was named to the junior college All-America team in both years with the Rebels.

In December 1994, Amerson was suspended from playing in the Dixie Rotary Bowl after being arrested in connection with a "brawl".

After the 1994 season, Amerson transferred to Northern Arizona University with hopes of playing on defense.

His plans were halted by an injury to Northern Arizona's starting halfback.

He then played for the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks of Northern Arizona University from 1995 to 1996.

Amerson was forced to remain a running back and continued successfully at that position, rushing for 1,117 yards with 12 touchdowns in 1995.

In Amerson's senior year of 1996, he won the Walter Payton Award as the best offensive player in Division I-AA (now FCS) football.

Amerson played high school football at Samuel F. B. Morse High School in San Diego as both a running back and defensive back.

Amerson had an All-American season in 1996, rushing for 2,079 yards on 333 carries with 25 touchdowns.

He recorded a career-high 289 rushing yards in a September game against the Portland State Vikings.

On October 5, Amerson scored seven rushing touchdowns against the Weber State Wildcats.

This earned him multiple Division I-AA records, including most touchdowns, most rushing touchdowns, and most points scored with 42 points.

Amerson received the Walter Payton Award as the best offensive player in Division I-AA football.

He was later inducted into the Northern Arizona University Athletics Hall of Fame, and Northern Arizona retired his jersey (number 9) in honor of his college career.

Amerson was eligible for the 1997 NFL Draft but went unselected.

Instead, he played professionally in the CFL, initially being signed by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

The team placed Amerson on their practice squad to start the season, but he was forced into action after Ted Long suffered a groin injury.

Amerson started in his first career appearance against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, catching his first career touchdown pass in the 18–33 loss.

While the Tiger-Cats continued to struggle during the game and dropped to a 0–3 record, Amerson's performance was praised, with The Hamilton Spectator calling him "the quickest back ever".

He followed his first game with a breakout performance against the heavily–favored Toronto Argonauts, running for 100 yards on 18 carries.

In 1999, he was part of the Tiger-Cats team that won the 87th Grey Cup.

He missed the entire 2005 season due to injury and was released by the Tiger-Cats afterwards.

At the time of his release, Amerson was one of the most prolific receivers in Tiger-Cats history, ranking third in receptions, fourth in receiving yards, fifth in kickoff return yards, and sixth in touchdowns.

Amerson played high school football at Samuel F.B. Morse High School in San Diego, California.