CJ Anderson - Football Coach - Rice University Athletics

CJ Anderson

Title:
Running Backs Coach
Phone:
348-6900

CJ Anderson, who rushed for over 3,000 yards and played in three Super Bowls over seven seasons in the NFL, joined the Owls’ staff as running backs coach in March of 2022.

Anderson comes to Rice after coaching Monte Vista High School in Danville, California to a 7-3 record and a berth in the CIF North Coast Section playoffs in his first season as a head coach. He began his coaching career after retiring from the NFL, serving as a volunteer assistant at Cal in 2020 where he worked with current Owls offensive coordinator Marques Tuiasosopo.

Originally signed as an undrafted free agent by Denver in 2013, Anderson first made his mark on special teams. He played in five regular-season games and in all three playoff games including Super Bowl XVLIII where he carried the ball twice for nine yards. The following season he took over as the starting running back in the 11^th week of the season and rushed for 167 yards against Miami in his second career start, then surpassed that the following week with 168 against Kansas City. He went on to rush for 849 yards with eight touchdowns and caught 34 passes for 324 yards and two more TDs (including a 51-yarder vs. Oakland for his first career TD) and was named to the Pro Bowl.

In 2015, he made six starts during the season for the Broncos and added 234 yards on the ground in the postseason, including 90 in his return to the Super Bowl, scoring the Broncos’ only offensive touchdown in their 24-20 win over Carolina in Super Bowl 50. He rushed for 1,007 with Denver in 2017 before signing with Carolina as a free agent in 2018, but ended the season with the Los Angeles Rams, rushing for 299 yards in the final two games of the regular season and 189 more in the postseason which ended with his third Super Bowl appearance, a 13-3 loss to New England.

Anderson rushed for 3,497 yards in his career, averaging 4.5 yards per carry and scoring 22 touchdowns on the ground and added 108 receptions for 900 yards and five TDs. He rushed for 512 yards in eight postseason games, with four TDs while catching 19 passes for 99 yards. He rushed for over 100 yards in nine games, including four games with better than 150 yards.