The Cal 100: No. 96 -- J.J. Arrington

Arrington's one spectacular football season for the Golden Bears earned him a spot on our list

We count down the top 100 individuals associated with Cal athletics, based on their impact in sports or in the world at large – a wide-open category. See if you agree.

No. 96: J.J. Arrington

Cal Sports Connection: Cal running back in 20023 and 2004

Claim to Fame: He led the nation in rushing in 2004 and holds the Cal record for rushing yards in a season

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Johnathan Jerone "J.J." Arrington made the Cal 100 list on the strength of one spectacular college season.

While helping Cal to a final No. 9 ranking in 2004, Arrington led the nation in rushing with 2,018 yards, which is still a Cal record, more than 400 yards more than the second-best Golden Bears rushing season.

He averaged 7.0 yards per carry that season and rushed for more than 100 yards in every game. That includes a personal-best 261 yards in the regular-season final against Southern Mississippi that helped Cal earn a No. 4 ranking in the final regular-season polls (No. 5 in the BCS standings) and 173 yards in the loss to Texas Tech in the Holiday Bowl.

Aaron Rodgers received most of the publicity from that Cal team, but it was Arrington, not Rodgers, who was named to the Associated Press first-team All-America squad. And Arrington finished eighth in the Heisman Trophy voting that year, one spot ahead of Rodgers.

J.J. Arrington. Photo courtesy of Cal Athletics

Arrington’s 2004 season came as a surprise. After attending high school in Nashville, North Carolina, Arrington spent his next two years at College of the Canyon on the advice of East Carolina coaches with the intention of playing for the Pirates after two junior college seasons.

But he enrolled at Cal instead. His propensity to fumble put him on the bench for most of the second half of the 2003 season. But he became a star the next season.

Arrington’s pro career was less productive. Taken in the second round in the 2005 NFL draft, he started the first game of his rookie season with the Arizona Cardinals. However, he gained just 8 yards on five carries in that game and started only five games that season. He had eight starts in his four-year NFL career and had 654 career rushing yards before microfracture knee surgery effectively ended his career.

Arrington later had a small part in a low-budget movie titled “A Devil’s Game.” See if you can spot him.

No. 97: Sheila Hudson, world-class triple-jumper

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Cover photo of J.J. Arrington courtesy of Cal Athletics

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