University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Gerald McRath Declares For NFL Draft
1/5/2009 12:00:00 AM | Football
Jan. 5, 2009
HATTIESBURG, Miss. - Southern Miss linebacker Gerald McRath has declared himself eligible for the 2009 National Football League Draft and will forgo his final season of eligibility.
McRath, who recently finished his junior season, was with the program for five seasons. He also earned a pair of redshirt seasons during his time with the program. The additional redshirt came due to a knee injury suffered early during the 2005 season.
Over his career, McRath tallied 386 career tackles (214 solos, 172 assists), to go along with 32.5 tackles for loss, eight sacks, seven passes broken up, six forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries and one interception.
The Powder Springs, Ga., native garnered numerous awards during his tenure with the Golden Eagles including the 2007 Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year award. McRath was a two-time first-team Conference USA selection.
Heading into the bowl season, McRath ranked among the current career leaders in the FBS in total tackles (fourth), tackles per game (fifth), assisted tackles (sixth), solo tackles per game (eighth), solo tackles (eighth) and fumbles (18th).
McRath received his undergraduate degree from the University in December of 2007. If McRath does not sign with an agent or decides to return for his final season, he must submit by letter to the NFL his intention to return to school by midnight on Jan. 18. He may try out for NFL teams during this period, but those tryouts cannot be more than 48 hours in length and he cannot accept anything more than travel expenses for reimbursement.
The draft is slated for April 25-26 in New York City.
McRath's Southern Miss Accomplishments
2008
First Team All-Conference USA
Phil Steele's All-Conference USA
Rivals.com All-Conference USA
ESPN.com All-Independent and Others Blog Team
Conference USA Defensive Player of the Week, Nov. 29
Preseason C-USA Defensive Player of the Year by league's coaches
Preseason C-USA Defensive Player of the Year by Blue Ribbon Yearbook
Preseason First Team Selection by Athlon, Phil Steele's Magazine and Lindy's
2007
Second Team Sophomore All-American by CollegeFootballNews.com
Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year by both league coaches and media
Preseason First-Team All-Conference USA by Athlon, CollegeFootballNews.com Phil Steele's and Sporting News
2006
Freshman All-American by Sporting News, FWAA/Scripps and CollegeFootballNews.com
Freshman Conference USA Team
Third-Team All-Conference USA
McRath's Defensive Statistics
| Year | UT | AT | Total | TFL | Sacks | Int. | PD | FF | FR |
| 2005 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 1/32 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2006 | 59 | 45 | 104 | 11/32 | 2/14 | 0/0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 2007 | 72 | 67 | 139 | 12/65 | 4.5/47 | 0/0 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| 2008 | 78 | 59 | 137 | 9.5/33 | 1.5/7 | 0/0 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Totals | 214 | 172 | 386 | 32.5/130 | 8.0/68 | 1/32 | 7 | 6 | 3 |
