Tony McRae (American football)

American football player (born 1993)

American football player

Tony McRaeNorth Carolina Central Eagles

Position:| Cornerbacks coach
Personal information
Born:|  (1993-05-03) May 3, 1993 (age 32)
McColl, South Carolina, U.S.
Height:| 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Weight:| 185 lb (84 kg)
Career information
High school:| Scotland
(Laurinburg, North Carolina)
College:| North Carolina A&T
NFL draft:| 2016: undrafted
Career history

As a player:

* Oakland Raiders (2016)*
* Cincinnati Bengals (2016)*
* Baltimore Ravens (2017)
* Buffalo Bills (2017)
* Cincinnati Bengals (2017–2019)
* Detroit Lions (2020)

* Offseason and/or practice squad member only

As a coach:

* North Carolina Central (2022–present)
Cornerbacks cocah

Career highlights and awards

* Black college football national championship (2015)
* 1st Team Boxtorow All-American (2015)
* 1st Team All-MEAC Defensive Back (2015)
* 2nd Team All MEAC Return Specialist (2015)
* 2nd Team BSN All-American (2015)

Career NFL statistics
| Total tackles:| 40

|

Forced fumbles:| 2
Pass deflections:| 2
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Tony McRae (born May 3, 1993) is an American college football coach and former cornerback. He is the cornerbacks coach for North Carolina Central University, a position he has held since 2022. He played college football at North Carolina A&T, and signed with the Oakland Raiders as an undrafted free agent in 2016.

## Early life

[edit]

McRae attended Scotland High School, in Laurinburg, North Carolina where he played varsity football and basketball. During his senior year, McRae helped lead the Fighting Scotts to a 14–0 undefeated season and the 2011 NCHSAA 4A State football championship.[1] McRae's performance earned a place on the 2011 All-Cape Fear Regional Team as he was the leading rusher among NC state champion teams with 1,835 yards and 32 touchdowns.[2]

## College career

[edit]

McRae accepted an athletic scholarship to attend North Carolina A&T State University, where he played for coach Rod Broadway's as a member of his first NC A&T Aggies football recruiting class.[3]

### 2012 season

[edit]

See also: 2012 North Carolina A&T Aggies football team

As a true freshman, McRae played in all 11 of the Aggie's games, and started in 3 of them. He would get his first start at cornerback to replace starting left cornerback Deji Olatoye who moved to free safety to replace of an injured Isaiah Martin.[4] McRae would finish the 2012 season with a total of 23 tackles, 14 of them solo and 9 assisted; 4 broken up passes and 9 Kick returns.

### 2013 season

[edit]

See also: 2013 North Carolina A&T Aggies football team

McRae began his sophomore with a 4 solo, 1 pass breakup and a 91-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in the season opener against Appalachian State. The Aggies would go on to upset Appalachian State 24–21, resulting in North Carolina A&T's first win over the mountaineers since 1993.[5] Of the 11 games he played in that season, McRae would total 11 solo tackles, 1 assist, 2 pass breakups, 3 defended passes and 1 interception.

### 2014 season

[edit]

See also: 2014 North Carolina A&T Aggies football team

For his Junior season McRae would start in all 12 games and opened the season with a 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown against Alabama A&M in the 2014 MEAC/SWAC Challenge. Against Elon, McRae put up a career high 9 tackles and 5 defended passes.[4] He ended the season with 62 total tackles, 46 of them being unassisted, 5 interceptions, 16 passes defended and 14 kickoffs returned for 360 total yards and 1 touchdown. McRae was ranked 13th in the nation in passes defended, 15th in interceptions and 4th in kickoff return touchdowns.[4]

### 2015 season

[edit]

See also: 2015 North Carolina A&T Aggies football team

Starting in all 12 games played, McRae has a season best performance[6] against Delaware state in which he returned a kickoff for 75 yards for a touchdown, earned 6 tackles and 1 interception. He would finish the season leading the Aggies with 55 Tackles, 14 assists, 8 Pass defended, 22 kick returns for 622 yards and 2 touchdowns, and 3 interceptions. McRae's performance earned him first-team All MEAC and Boxtorow first-team All-American recognition.[7]

### College statistics

[edit]

Season  | GP  | Tackles  | Interceptions  | Fumbles

|
|
|
|

Solo | Ast | Cmb | TfL | Yds | Sck | Yds | Int | Yds | BU | PD | QBH | FR | Yds | TD | FF | Blk
2012[8] | 11 | 14 | 9 | 23 | 0.5 | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0
2013[9] | 11 | 11 | 2 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0
2014[10] | 12 | 46 | 16 | 62 | 2 | 8 | 0.0 | 0 | 5 | 84 | 11 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0
2015[11] | 12 | 41 | 14 | 55 | 4 | 8 | 1.5 | 4 | 3 | 21 | 5 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0
Career | 46 | 112 | 41 | 153 | 6.5 | 18 | 1.5 | 4 | 9 | 109 | 22 | 27 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0

## Professional career

[edit]

According to ESPN, McRae was ranked the 85th best cornerback entering the 2016 NFL draft.[12]

Pre-draft measurables  Height | Weight | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press

|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|

5 ft 9 in
(1.75 m)  | 178 lb
(81 kg)  | 4.56 s | 1.59 s | 2.60 s | 4.33 s | 7.55 s | 36.5 in
(0.93 m) | 10 ft 5 in
(3.18 m) | 13 reps
All values were taken at NC A&T Pro Day.[13]

### Oakland Raiders

[edit]

McRae was signed by the Oakland Raiders as an undrafted free agent on May 10, 2016.[14] He was waived on May 16, 2016.[15]

### Cincinnati Bengals

[edit]

On August 9, 2016, McRae signed with the Cincinnati Bengals.[16] He was waived on September 3, 2016, and was signed to the practice squad the next day.[17][18] He was released on September 16, 2016, but was later re-signed on November 29, 2016.[19][20] He signed a reserve/future contract with the Bengals on January 2, 2017.[21]

On September 2, 2017, McRae was waived by the Bengals.[22]

### Baltimore Ravens

[edit]

On September 5, 2017, McRae was signed to the Baltimore Ravens' practice squad.[23] He was promoted to the active roster on September 16, 2017.[24] He was waived by the Ravens on October 21, 2017.[25]

### Buffalo Bills

[edit]

On October 23, 2017, McRae was claimed off waivers by the Buffalo Bills, but was released two days later.[26][27]

### Cincinnati Bengals (second stint)

[edit]

On October 27, 2017, McRae was signed to the Bengals' practice squad.[28] He was promoted to the active roster on December 9, 2017.[29]

On September 13, 2018, in a game against the Baltimore Ravens, McRae recorded 2 forced fumbles.[30]

In 2019, he was re-signed for one year.[31]

On December 22, 2019, in a game against the Miami Dolphins, McRae suffered a concussion.[32]

### Detroit Lions

[edit]

On March 24, 2020, McRae signed with the Detroit Lions.[33] On November 8, 2020, he suffered a right knee injury in a game against the Minnesota Vikings. On November 9, 2020, McRae was placed on injured reserve.[34]

In the 2021 off-season, McRae became a free agent.[35]

## Coaching career

[edit]

In 2022, McRae was hired as the cornerbacks coach for North Carolina Central.[36]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Scotland High School 11-12 Football Schedule". MaxPreps.com. Retrieved August 24, 2017.
2. ^ "2011 All Cape Fear Region Football Team Player Info". NCPrepSports.net. Retrieved August 24, 2017.
3. ^ White, Herbert L. "N.C. A&T recruits size, speed among in-state signees". TheCharlottePost.com. Retrieved August 25, 2017.
4. ^ a b c "Tony McRae Bio". NCATAggies.com. NC A&T Athletics. Retrieved August 25, 2017.
5. ^ "App State Football Comeback Falls Short in Home-Opening Loss to N.C. A&T, Mountaineers Drop To 0-2 - High Country Press". HCPress.com. September 9, 2013. Retrieved September 6, 2017.
6. ^ "NC A&T vs Delaware State Statistics". NCATAggies.com. Retrieved September 13, 2017.
7. ^ "Three Aggies Named HBCU Football All-American". NCATAggies.com. Retrieved September 13, 2017.
8. ^ "2012 Team Statistics". NCATAggies.com. Retrieved August 25, 2017.
9. ^ "2013 Team statistics". NCATAggies.com. Retrieved September 8, 2017.
10. ^ "2014 Team Statistics". NCATAggies.com. Retrieved September 8, 2017.
11. ^ "2015 Team Statistics". NCATAggies.com. Retrieved September 8, 2017.
12. ^ "Bengals sign rookie cornerback Tony McRae". CincyJungle.com. August 9, 2016. Retrieved September 6, 2017.
13. ^ "Tony McRae | North Carolina AT, CB : 2016 NFL Draft Scout Player Profile". NFLDraftScout.com. Retrieved September 6, 2017.
14. ^ "Oakland Raiders Announce Undrafted Free Agent Signings". Raiders.com. May 10, 2016. Archived from the original on August 19, 2017. Retrieved September 14, 2017.
15. ^ "Oakland Raiders Announce Roster Moves". Raiders.com. May 16, 2016. Retrieved September 14, 2017.
16. ^ Marcum, Jason (August 9, 2016). "Bengals sign former North Carolina A&T cornerback Tony McRae". CincyJungle.com. Retrieved September 14, 2017.
17. ^ Marcum, Jason (September 3, 2016). "Bengals announce roster cuts: No surprises among Bengals' 53-man roster cutdown". CincyJungle.com. Retrieved September 14, 2017.
18. ^ Marcum, Jason (September 4, 2016). "Bengals 2016 practice squad: 9 players make initial practice squad". CincyJungle.com. Retrieved September 14, 2017.
19. ^ Toback, Rebecca (September 16, 2016). "Bengals Practice Squad: Bengals add Trey Hopkins to practice squad; release Tony McRae". CincyJungle.com. Retrieved September 14, 2017.
20. ^ Toback, Rebecca (November 29, 2016). "Bengals add cornerback Tony McRae back to practice squad". CincyJungle.com. Retrieved September 14, 2017.
21. ^ Marcum, Jason (January 2, 2017). "Bengals sign 5 players to futures contracts for 2017". CincyJungle.com. Retrieved September 14, 2017.
22. ^ Toback, Rebecca (September 2, 2017). "NFL roster cuts 2017: Cincinnati Bengals 53-man roster". CincyJungle.com. Retrieved September 14, 2017.
23. ^ Mink, Ryan (September 5, 2017). "Ravens Complete Practice Squad With Four Signings". BaltimoreRavens.com. Archived from the original on January 15, 2018. Retrieved September 14, 2017.
24. ^ Mink, Ryan (September 16, 2017). "Ravens Swap Running Backs and Cornerbacks Ahead of Sunday's Game". BaltimoreRavens.com. Archived from the original on January 22, 2018.
25. ^ Mink, Ryan (October 21, 2017). "Ravens Bring Back Tony Bergstrom For Offensive Line Depth". BaltimoreRavens.com.
26. ^ Brown, Chris (October 23, 2017). "Bills awarded waiver claim for CB McRae; release WR Clay". BuffaloBills.com.
27. ^ Brown, Chris (October 25, 2017). "Bills awarded claim for CB Lafayette Pitts". BuffaloBills.com. Archived from the original on April 7, 2018.
28. ^ Marcum, Jason (October 27, 2017). "Bengals sign Tony McRae to practice squad; Sojourn Shelton cut to make room". CincyJungle.com.
29. ^ Marcum, Jason (December 9, 2017). "Adam Jones to IR; Tony McRae signed from practice squad". CincyJungle.com.
30. ^ "Tony McRae 2018 Stats per Game - NFL". ESPN. Retrieved September 21, 2023.
31. ^ Marcum, Jason (April 9, 2019). "Bengals re-sign Tony McRae". Cincy Jungle. Retrieved September 21, 2023.
32. ^ Sheeran, John (December 22, 2019). "Tony McRae suffers concussion vs. Dolphins". Cincy Jungle. Retrieved September 21, 2023.
33. ^ "Lions agree to terms with eight free agents". DetroitLions.com. March 20, 2020.
34. ^ Birkett, Dave (November 9, 2020). "Detroit Lions' Jarrad Davis returns from COVID list; CB Tony McRae to injured reserve". Freep.com. Retrieved December 15, 2020.
35. ^ Schlitt, Erik (March 14, 2021). "Lions FA profile: Is Tony McRae's value at gunner enough to get him another shot?". Pride Of Detroit. Retrieved September 21, 2023.
36. ^ "Tony McRae - Football Coach". North Carolina Central University Athletics. Retrieved February 26, 2024.

## External links

[edit]

* North Carolina Central profile
* North Carolina A&T Aggies bio

* v
* t
* e

2015 North Carolina A&T Aggies football—Black college football national champions

* 19 Kevin Francis
* 21 Tony McRae
* 28 Tarik Cohen
* 70 Brandon Parker
* 79 Darryl Johnson Jr.

* Head coach: Rod Broadway

* Assistant coaches:
* Shawn Gibbs
* Chip Hester
* Trei Oliver
* Sam Washington

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*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template