Francis Bernard (American football)
No. 43 – DC Defenders | |||
---|---|---|---|
Position: | Linebacker | ||
Personal information | |||
Born: | South Jordan, Utah, U.S. | April 8, 1995||
Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||
Weight: | 230 lb (104 kg) | ||
Career information | |||
High school: | Herriman (Herriman, Utah) | ||
College: | Utah | ||
Undrafted: | 2020 | ||
Career history | |||
| |||
Roster status: | Active | ||
Career highlights and awards | |||
| |||
Career NFL statistics | |||
| |||
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR |
Francis Bernard (born April 8, 1995) is an American football linebacker for the DC Defenders of the United Football League (UFL). He played college football at Brigham Young University and the University of Utah.
Early years
After playing his freshman year of high school football at Bingham High School, he transferred to Herriman High School.[1] As a sophomore, he had 139 carries for 754 yards and 8 touchdowns.
As a junior, he was a two-way player at running back and linebacker, totaling 178 carries for 1,547 yards, 22 touchdowns and 29 tackles and one interception. He received Region Offensive MVP honors, Region 7 and Class 4A All-state honors at running back.
As a senior, he tallied 96 carries for 822 yards, 15 touchdowns, 24 tackles and 4 interceptions. He received Region 7 and Class 4A honorable-mention All-state honors at running back.[2] He committed to Brigham Young University on December 11, 2012.[3] He also practiced basketball and rugby.
Bernard served in a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Atlanta for 2 years.
College career
As a true freshman at BYU in 2015, he was a backup running back and appeared in 10 games. He registered 52 carries for 334 yards (second on the team), a 6.4-yard average, 7 rushing touchdowns (second on the team), 17 receptions for 56 yards and 2 receiving touchdowns.[4]
As a sophomore in 2016, he was converted into a
It was later revealed that he was also facing suspension for violating BYU's honor code.
As a senior in 2019, he started 14 games at
Professional career
Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
6 ft 0+3⁄8 in (1.84 m) |
234 lb (106 kg) |
31+7⁄8 in (0.81 m) |
9+7⁄8 in (0.25 m) |
4.81 s | 32.5 in (0.83 m) |
10 ft 0 in (3.05 m) |
19 reps | |||||
All values from NFL Combine[9] |
Dallas Cowboys
Bernard was signed as an
In 2021, he injured his hamstring on the first practice of training camp and reagravated it during the last week of the preseason. On September 2, Bernard was placed on injured reserve to start the season.
DC Defenders
On January 1, 2023, Bernard was selected by the
Personal life
In October 2017, Bernard was cited in alcohol-and traffic-related offenses.
References
- ^ a b Ramsay, Brayden. "Pick-Six: The Francis Bernard Story". Daily Utah Chronicle. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
- ^ a b "NFL Draft & Combine Profile - Francis Bernard". NFL.com. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
- ^ "Francis Bernard, Herriman, All Purpose Back". 247Sports. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
- ^ Allen, Trevor (August 31, 2019). "Utes LB Francis Bernard Finds Redemption In Second Chance To Play Football". KSL Sports. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
- ^ "BYU LB Francis Bernard to redshirt due to personal reasons". Associated Press. August 17, 2017. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
- ^ Coon, John (August 13, 2018). "Former BYU LB Francis Bernard cleared to play for Utah". Associated Press. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
- ^ Kragthorpe, Kurt (August 26, 2019). "Utah linebacker Francis Bernard shaped by the health scares of his fiancee and their baby boy". Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
- ^ Kragthorpe, Kurt (December 17, 2019). "Utah's Terrell Burgess and Francis Bernard have positioned themselves for NFL careers". Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
- ^ "Francis Bernard Combine Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
- ^ Newman, Josh (April 25, 2020). "Cowboys quickly sign Utah linebacker Francis Bernard as free agent after NFL Draft ends". Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved April 26, 2020.
- ^ Helman, David (September 5, 2020). "Two LBs Among Notable Cowboys Roster Cuts". DallasCowboys.com.
- ^ Phillips, Rob (September 6, 2020). "Brandon Carr Among 15 Practice Squad Additions". DallasCowboys.com.
- ^ "Cowboys elevate rookie LB Francis Bernard from practice squad to active roster". DallasNews.com. October 3, 2020. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
- ^ "Cowboys roster move: Anthony Brown returns, Francis Bernard promoted, Tyron Smith and Joe Looney to IR". Blogging the Boys. SB Nation. October 10, 2020.
- ^ Phillips, Rob (September 2, 2021). "CeeDee's Return Among Several Roster Moves". DallasCowboys.com.
- ^ "Cowboys roster moves: Blake Jarwin to injured reserve, Francis Bernard activated". Blogging the Boys. SB Nation. November 6, 2021.
- ^ "Supplemental Draft Picks". www.xfl.com. Retrieved 2023-01-02.
- ^ "XFL Transactions". XFL.com. Retrieved March 14, 2023.
- ^ "BYU: Players cited for alcohol offenses released weeks ago". Associated Press. October 23, 2017. Retrieved April 17, 2020.