4/30/06 Lawrence Vickers press conference

(On Browns fullback Terrelle Smith)- “I don’t know very much about him but, I know that he’s a veteran fullback and he is good at what he does. I just want to come in and give all I have to the team. He’s knows what he’s doing and I want to sit back and learn everything that he does. Most of all, I have to make sure that I sit down and listen.”

(On where he went in the draft)- “I was looking to go a little bit higher. Everything happens for a reason and I feel everything happens for a reason. I’m drafted now so, it really doesn’t matter.”

(On his skills as a fullback)- “As far as my hands, that comes from being athletic. I’ve played both basketball and football. One of the things that I do well is catch the ball. I learned to catch the ball using golf balls and tennis balls in practice. Now, it just comes naturally.”

(On Cleveland)- “My coach is from there and I came out there once with my friend. I like to travel a lot. One of my linebacker coaches always talks about Cleveland so I had to see what is was like.”

4/30/06 General Manager Phil Savage press conference

(On Lawrence Vickers)- “He’s a fullback out of Colorado. He was a productive player there in terms of running and catching the ball. He can play on special teams and we felt like the value for him as a fullback late in the draft might give us a chance to upgrade our roster and upgrade the competition level behind Terrelle Smith.”

LAWRENCE VICKERS

Fullback

University of Colorado Buffaloes

#17

6:00.0-233

Houston, Texas

Forest Brook High School

OVERVIEW

If the term “team-oriented” ever became part of Webster’s Dictionary, a picture of Vickers should be placed right next to that description. Lawrence is one of the most versatile players in all of college football as he has good speed, solid blocking ability and has natural hands; thus, he’s a threat at tailback, fullback and receiver (and so was born his position moniker: V-Back).

As a senior at Forest Brook High School, Vickers earned Prep Star All-American honors, adding Super Prep All-Southwest accolades. He was named first-team All-State and All-North Forest League while also being selected first-team All-Greater Houston Area. He was the Offensive MVP of his district during 2001, and was named to the All-District first-team all four years of his prep career.

Playing running back, he finished his career with 4,610 yards rushing and 70 touchdowns on 345 carries (a gaudy 13.4 yards per carry). He also caught 72 passes for 1,950 yards and 24 scores, averaging 27.1 yards per catch. As a senior, he ran for 1,600 yards on 151 attempts, scoring 21 touchdowns with a long of 85 yards. He also caught 17 passes for 500 yards and four scores. As a junior, he ran for 960 yards and scored 17 touchdowns on just 89 carries. During his sophomore season, he rushed 70 times for 1,110 yards and 22 touchdowns.  As a freshman at Forest Brook High, the only year Vickers played defense, he started in every game and racked up 75 tackles at free safety, causing 10 fumbles and intercepting seven passes.   He also lettered three times in basketball, averaging 20 points, 10 rebounds, three steals and three blocks a game as a senior. In track, Lawrence competed in the high jump (career best of 6-7).

At Colorado, Lawrence wore jersey number 34 as a freshman and sophomore, but switched to 17 as a junior after several personal tragedies. He decided to “skim things down a bit,” thus the number serves as a personal reminder. He appeared in eleven games as a true freshman, managing only 25 yards on seven carries while recording two tackles on special teams. He started six games at fullback in 2003, but also saw action at tailback and on the special team coverage units. He totaled 100 yards with a score on 28 runs (3.8 avg), caught fifteen balls for 123 yards (8.2 avg) and a touchdown and made three tackles.  As a junior, Vickers took over the V-Back position, a cross between fullback, tailback and slot receiver. He ranked second on the team with 252 yards on 63 attempts (4.0 avg) with two touchdowns. He finished fourth on the squad with 28 receptions for 290 yards and ranked third with nine tackles on special teams.

In 2005, Vickers became the tenth player in school history to rush for over 500 yards and gain over 500 yards receiving during a career. He started seven times, rushing 73 times for 258 yards (3.5 avg) and nine touchdowns. He hauled in 26 passes for 152 yards (5.8 avg) and another two scores, finishing with 66 points. He also continued to perform on the coverage units, producing four tackles.  Vickers started 20 of 47 games (including bowls) for Colorado. He carried 171 times for 635 yards (3.7 avg) and twelve touchdowns, adding 70 catches for 572 yards (8.2 avg) and three scores.  On special teams, he registered 18 tackles. On 241 touches, Lawrence fumbled only twice.

CAREER NOTES

Only the tenth player in school history to gain over 500 yards rushing and receiving during a career…His all-purpose yardage average of 5.01 ranks seventh among the ten players in that exclusive “500-500” Club.

2005 SEASON

All-American second-team and All-Big Twelve Conference first-team selection as a full-back by The NFL Draft Report…Played in every game, starting seven contests…Rushed for a career-high 258 yards (3.5 avg) and nine touchdowns on 73 carries…His nine scoring runs were the most by a Colorado rusher since Chris Brown had 18 touchdowns in 2002… Snatched 26 passes for 152 yards (5.8 avg) and a pair of scores…Totaled 66 points…Made four tackles on special teams…On 99 touches, he fumbled twice, recovering one of those miscues…Produced ten touchdown-resulting blocks, five ten downs rushing and five more receiving…Had seven runs for ten yards or longer and seven catches for at least 20 yards during the regular season.

2004 SEASON

One of ten players named by the coaches to CU’s prestigious Victory Club (which requires a winning productivity grade in at least eight games)…Recipient of the Tom McMahon Award for dedication and work ethic…Earned team Offensive Back of the Week for the North Texas and Texas A&M games…Played in every game, starting seven times at the “V-Back” position (hybrid that combines fullback duties on first and second down, tailback on third down and slot back in obvious passing situations)…Rushed 63 times for 252 yards (4.0 avg) and two touchdowns…Caught 28 passes for 290 yards (10.4 avg)...Touched the ball a total of 91 times, producing thirty first downs (15 rushing, 15 receiving)…Seven of his carries were for ten yards or longer and four of his receptions were for at least 20 yards…Did not fumble on any of his touches…Registered nine tackles on special teams and had nine touchdown-resulting blocks.

2003 SEASON

Played in eleven games, starting at fullback vs. Colorado State, Florida State, Baylor, Oklahoma, Texas Tech and Missouri…Also saw playing time at tailback…Finished with 28 carries for 100 yards (3.6 avg) and a touchdown…Snatched fifteen passes for 123 yards (8.2 avg) and a score…Registered three tackles on special teams…Nine of his runs resulted in first downs and four of his attempts were for ten yards or longer…Had one catch for over 20 yards and six receptions that were good for first downs.

2002 SEASON

Appeared in ten games as a reserve fullback…Limited to 25 yards on seven carries (3.6

avg)…Had a 7-yard reception and six rushes for 22 yards vs. Baylor…Added a 3-yard run in the Texas Tech clash.

CAMPUS AGILITY TESTS

4.77 in the 40-yard dash…390-pound bench press…615-pound squat…275-pound power

clean…33-inch vertical jump…8’11” broad jump…32 ½-inch arm length…9 ¾-inch hands… Right-handed.

HIGH SCHOOL

Attended Forest Brook (Houston, Tex.) High School, playing four seasons of football for head coach Ron Holmes…Earned Prep Star All-American honors, adding Super Prep All-Southwest accolades…Named first-team All-State and All-North Forest League while also being selected first-team All-Greater Houston Area…Offensive MVP of his district during 2001, and was named to the All-District first-team all four years of his prep career…Playing running back, he finished his career with 4,610 yards rushing and 70 touchdowns on 345 carries (a gaudy 13.4 yards per carry)…Also caught 72 passes for 1,950 yards and 24 scores, averaging 27.1 yards per catch…As a senior, he ran for 1,600 yards on 151 attempts, scoring 21 touchdowns with a long of 85 yards…Also caught 17 passes for 500 yards and four scores…As a junior, he ran for 960 yards and scored 17 touchdowns on just 89 carries…During his sophomore season, he rushed 70 times for 1,110 yards and 22 touchdowns…As a freshman, the only year Vickers played defense, he started in every game and racked up 75 tackles at free safety, causing 10 fumbles and intercepting seven passes…Lettered three times in basketball, averaging 20 points, 10 rebounds, three steals and three blocks a game as a senior…In track, Lawrence competed in the high jump (career best of 6-7).

PERSONAL

Ethnic Studies/Sociology major…Born 5/08/83 in Beaumont, Texas…Resides in Houston, Texas.