Time to get to know another Cowboys player a little bit better. Linebacker Micah Parsons is up for a detailed look at his entire football career.
As Parsons is on track to wrangle the “Defensive Player of the Year” award, it’s only appropriate to look deeper into his path and how he got where he is now.
Micah Parsons’ Early Years
Micah Parsons was born on May 26th, 1999 in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
When he grew older, he attended Central Dauphin High school, however, at the start of his junior year he transferred to Harrisburg High School. At Harrisburg and Dauphin, he would play football at the running back and defensive end positions.
Even in high school, Parsons had stats like he does today.
During his freshman year, he totaled 121 tackles with 27 tackles for a loss. In his junior year, he had 69 tackles with 20 for a loss.
In each high school season, Parsons also managed to record at least 10 sacks a year.
Though he also played running back during high school, colleges weren’t focused on him for his talents in that position. Most were more interested in his ability to rush opposing quarterbacks and make good clean tackles.
Micah Parsons’ College Career at Penn State
Parsons was the talk of the NCAA, having offers from Alabama, Penn State, Ohio State, Georgia, etc.
After some debate, Parsons chose Penn State, which would benefit him greatly because of the Penn State football program’s rising status at the time.
While surprisingly only starting a single game in his freshman year of 2018, Parsons led the team in total tackles with 82 overall.
He holds the record for being the only Penn State freshman to lead the team in tackles.
In his Sophomore year, Parsons had even more success. He recorded 109 tackles, 5 sacks, and 4 forced fumbles.
In the 2019 Cotton Bowl against Memphis, Parsons won defensive MVP after racking up 14 tackles, 2 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles.
For a guy who just finished only his sophomore year, things were looking great for Micah Parsons.
That is until 2020 came.
Micah Parsons Joins the Dallas Cowboys
Parsons skipped his junior year with Penn State in 2020 and instead got ready to go into the 2021 NFL Draft.
This was a huge risk. Usually, you don’t see players entering the NFL Draft until their junior or senior year is over.
Parsons, however, was confident that he had shown enough to get drafted.
His confidence would pay off, too, as Micah Parsons was selected 12th overall in the 2021 NFL Draft.
This was crazy! Everyone knew Micah Parsons was good but was he good enough for an early first-round pick?
Perhaps the Cowboys could sense the blazing firepower inside the Penn State prospect.
After signing a 4-year contract for $17 million dollars, Parsons got to work.
The Cowboys decided to switch him between defensive end and linebacker throughout the season as he was an “all-over” player.
During his first season in the NFL, Parsons had one of the best rookie seasons of any defender. He recorded a total of 84 tackles, 13 sacks, and 3 forced fumbles.
Not to mention the uncountable number of quarterback hurries he created.
Parsons just missed his chance to snag Defensive Player of the Year in 2021, however, this season, he’s back and hungry for more.
At the moment, Parsons is in the lead for Defensive Player of the Year.
He has made it his goal for this season to accomplish this task and continue his chase for the honor of being one of the best defenders of all time.
Fun Fact: Micah Parsons also loves chess and has competed in tournaments both online and in person. When asked why he likes chess so much, Parsons says it helps him be more strategic when he’s on the football field.
