 Ismail in 2023 | |||||||||
| No. 25, 86, 81 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Wide receiver | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | (1969-11-18)November 18, 1969 (age 56) Elizabeth, New Jersey, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||||||||
| Weight | 185 lb (84 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school | Meyers(Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania) | ||||||||
| College | Notre Dame (1988–1990) | ||||||||
| NFL draft | 1991: 4th round, 100th overall pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
| |||||||||
Raghib Ramadian "Rocket"Ismail (born November 18, 1969) is an American former professionalfootball player who was awide receiver in theNational Football League (NFL) andCanadian Football League (CFL). He playedcollege football for theNotre Dame Fighting Irish before moving on to both the CFL from 1991 to 1992 and the NFL from 1993 to 2001.
Ismail was a consensusAll-American with Notre Dame. He recorded two 1,000-yard receiving seasons in the NFL and was a CFL All-Star in 1991, as well as theMost Valuable Player of the79th Grey Cup. In 2004,College Football News named Ismail the No. 75 player on its list of the Top 100 Greatest College Football Players of All-Time.[1] He was also selected bySports Illustrated to the 85-man roster of its all-20th Century college football team.[2]
Ismail was born inElizabeth,New Jersey[3] and was raised inWilkes-Barre,Pennsylvania. He attendedElmer L. Meyers Junior/Senior High School.[4][5][6] He is the older brother ofQadry Ismail, who had a standout career as a wide receiver for theSyracuse Orange, and played ten seasons in the NFL for various teams.
Ismail first came to prominence as a receiver for theUniversity of Notre Dame. TheFighting Irish won theCollege Football National Championship in 1988, placed second in 1989 by winning the1990 Orange Bowl againstColorado, and again went to the1991 Orange Bowl, losing to Colorado 10–9. In that game, he returned a punt 91 yards for a touchdown that would have won the game for Notre Dame and stopped Colorado from winning a share of the National Championship; however, the play was called back on aclipping penalty sealing the Irish defeat. After the 1990 season, Ismail finished second in the voting for theHeisman Trophy as the top college football player, losing toBrigham Young University quarterbackTy Detmer.
During the 1989 regular season game againstMichigan, Ismail returned two kickoffs fortouchdowns. He was featured on the cover ofSports Illustrated twice, and received numerous awards, includingAll-American status.
The projected first overall selection in the1991 NFL draft, Ismail decided at the last minute to sign a record contract with theToronto Argonauts of theCanadian Football League starting during their1991 season. As a result, he was chosen by theLos Angeles Raiders with the 100th overall pick in the draft.
Ismail was also a track star at the University of Notre Dame, where he ran the100 meters in 10.2 seconds. He also competed in the55 meters, with a personal best of 6.07 seconds. At the1991 NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships, he finished 2nd in the 55-meter sprint.
| Event | Time (seconds) | Venue | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 55 meters | 6.07 | West Lafayette, Indiana | February 8, 1991 |
| 100 meters | 10.20 | Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania | May 20, 1988 |
AfterBruce McNall purchased theToronto Argonauts with hockey playerWayne Gretzky and actorJohn Candy, the Argonauts made Ismail a groundbreaking offer for a CFL player: $18.2 million over four years. The average value of his full contract, $4.55 million per season, was more than the anticipated1991 CFL salary cap of $3.0 million per team.[7] The CFL had a salary cap in place since1991, but the rules contained an exemption for a "marquee player" who would not count against the cap.Doug Flutie of theBC Lions was about to be paid $1 million under the exemption, but Ismail's contract was more than anything North American football had ever seen, as his yearly salary was then the largest inCanadian orAmerican football history. By comparison, the highest paid NFL player at the time wasJoe Montana earning $3.25 million per year.[8]
Ismail joined the Argonauts in time for the 1991 season, and in his first game, returned a kick seventy-three yards on a reverse withMichael Clemons. Ismail ended his rookie season at the79th Grey Cup. He recorded an 87-yard touchdown on a kickoff return and was named theGrey Cup Most Valuable Player as his Argonauts defeated theCalgary Stampeders 36–21. He came within fifty yards of breaking his teammate Clemons' franchise record for single-season kickoff return yardage, and made the1991 All-Star team as a wide receiver, finishing runner-up toJon Volpe for rookie of the year.
In1992 Ismail broke Clemons' franchise record for single-season kick return yards. Ismail was unhappy in Canada as the Argonauts slumped to a 6–12 record, missing the playoffs. He was also remembered for his participation in a sideline brawl against the Stampeders where he stomped an opposing player's helmeted face. He later apologized onSpeaker's Corner.[9] With the huge contract around Toronto's neck and McNall facing increasing financial trouble, Ismail left the CFL, and, after the season, signed with theLos Angeles Raiders.
Ismail was going to be selected as the first overall pick in the1991 NFL draft by theDallas Cowboys, until he decided to sign with theToronto Argonauts.[10] TheLos Angeles Raiders selected him in the fourth round (100th overall), to own his rights in case he decided to return to the NFL.[11]
In1993, as arookie in theNational Football League, Ismail recorded 353 receiving yards. Thenext year, he recorded 513 receiving yards and five touchdowns. In1995, the Raiders' first season back in Oakland, he recorded 491 yards receiving.
On August 25, 1996, after having three disappointing seasons, Ismail was traded to theCarolina Panthers for a fifth-round pick (#157-Nick Lopez).[12]
In1996 the Panthers, underhead coachDom Capers, finished 12–4, but Ismail recorded a career-low 214 yards receiving, without a single touchdown. In1997 he recorded 419 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
In1998, he had a breakout year, registering 69 receptions for 1,024 yards and eight touchdowns, two yards short of doubling his previous career high.
On March 23,1999, theDallas Cowboys signed him as afree agent after outbidding other teams.[13] AfterMichael Irvin suffered a career-ending injury in the fourth game of the season, Ismail became the team's leading wide receiver, recording a career-high 1,097 yards and six touchdowns.
In2000, he missed the last six games after tearing theACL in his right knee against thePhiladelphia Eagles, during the tenth game of the season, finishing with only 350 receiving yards.[14] In2001, he missed two games after spraining theMCL in the same injured knee against theSan Diego Chargers.
On August 31,2002, he was placed on theinjured reserve list after suffering a herniated disk in his neck, due to a collision with teammateDat Nguyen duringtraining camp.[15] He was released on February 26,2003, in a salary cap move. He later announced his retirement in March.
| Year | Team | League | GP | Receiving | Rushing | Punt returns | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Ret | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | ||||
| 1991 | Argos | CFL | 17 | 64 | 1300 | 20.3 | 87 | 9 | 36 | 271 | 7.5 | 42 | 3 | 48 | 602 | 12.5 | 73 | 1 |
| 1992 | Argos | CFL | 16 | 36 | 651 | 16.1 | 56 | 4 | 34 | 154 | 4.5 | 59 | 3 | 59 | 614 | 10.4 | 74 | 1 |
| CFL Totals | 33 | 100 | 1951 | 19.5 | 87 | 13 | 70 | 425 | 6.1 | 59 | 6 | 107 | 1216 | 11.4 | 74 | 2 | ||
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | Games | Receiving | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | ||
| 1993 | RAI | 13 | 0 | 26 | 353 | 13.6 | 43 | 1 |
| 1994 | RAI | 16 | 0 | 34 | 513 | 15.1 | 42 | 5 |
| 1995 | OAK | 16 | 15 | 28 | 491 | 17.5 | 73 | 3 |
| 1996 | CAR | 13 | 5 | 12 | 214 | 17.8 | 51 | 0 |
| 1997 | CAR | 13 | 2 | 36 | 419 | 11.6 | 59 | 2 |
| 1998 | CAR | 16 | 15 | 69 | 1,024 | 14.8 | 62 | 8 |
| 1999 | DAL | 16 | 14 | 80 | 1,097 | 13.7 | 76 | 6 |
| 2000 | DAL | 9 | 9 | 25 | 350 | 14.0 | 44 | 1 |
| 2001 | DAL | 14 | 13 | 53 | 834 | 15.7 | 80 | 2 |
| 126 | 73 | 363 | 5,295 | 14.6 | 80 | 28 | ||
| Year | Team | Games | Receiving | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | ||
| 1993 | RAI | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1996 | CAR | 2 | 0 | 1 | 24 | 24.0 | 24 | 0 |
| 1999 | DAL | 1 | 1 | 8 | 163 | 20.4 | 45 | 0 |
| 4 | 1 | 9 | 187 | 20.8 | 45 | 0 | ||
.jpg)
Ismail was a color analyst on ESPN'sCollege GameDay in 2003 and 2004.
Ismail cohostedCowboys Game Night onFSN Southwest with co-hostNate Newton and Ric Renner.
In February 2008, Ismail appeared as a Pro in the third season of Spike TV'sPros vs. Joes.
He was a contestant onTy Murray’s Celebrity Bull Riding Challenge onCMT. In March 2010, it was announced that Ismail would be a correspondent on the show, interviewing contestants about their lives outside the competition.[16]
In 2008, he coached theBouncers in the extreme sports leagueSlamball.
Ismail is married to Melani Ismail and they have four children.
He is the older brother of formerSyracuse University and NFL wide receiverQadry Ismail, nicknamed "The Missile", and formerUniversity of Texas-El Paso andNew York Dragons receiverSulaiman Ismail, nicknamed "The Bomb". His father Ibrahim died when he was 10; his mother Fatma was sometimes referred to as "The Launch Pad" because of her sons' nicknames Rocket, Missile, and Bomb.[17]
He converted fromIslam in his early teens after his Muslim father died and he was sent to live with his grandmother, a member of anAssemblies of God church.[18][19] Ismail has been described as a "devout Christian".[20]
Ismail is now an inspirational speaker, and speaks for corporations, schools and churches.
His son, Raghib Jr., played atWyoming. His nephewQadir Ismail is currently a wide receiver for theJacksonville Jaguars.
