Ayanami Solomon II

**Ayanami Solomon II** (born May 31) was an American professional football running back for 16 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played for the New York Giants for 7 seasons, the Green bay Packers for 8 seasons, and the Kansas City Chiefs for one season. He was drafted by the Giants 85th overall in the 3rd round of the NFL Draft.

## Early life

Ayanami Solomon II was born on May 31 in Mission Viejo, California, as the first of two children. He attended Silverado High School and joined the varsity football team in his freshman year as a wide receiver. He went on to captain the team's offense in his sophomore year, leading the school to their first county championship win. He was regarded as one of the top wide receiver prospects in high school already, and had received a D1 scholarship to attend Iowa State. In his junior year, however, he switched his position to a running back as he felt he was too short to continue to compete as a wide receiver in higher competition levels.

Leading the state in single-season rushing yards and touchdowns at over 1,600 rushing yards and 21 touchdowns. The varsity team dominated the rest of the state, winning the regional championship. By his senior season, Solomon had only played as a running back for two years, but already was ranked in the top 100 high school running backs. He was ranked as the best running back coming out of high school by both Sports Illustrated and The Athletic, and a five-star recruit by both Scout and Rivals. Gaining numerous D1 offers, Solomon chose to pursue a dual athletic and academic career by accepting a journalism scholarship from Northwestern State University.

## College career

Since Solomon did not receive an athletic scholarship, he tried out for the team separately in his sophomore year, and was granted a starting spot as a running back. His freshman year became a redshirt year, and he played in all 12 games. He led the Big Ten Conference in rushing yards, with 1,728 yards and 22 touchdowns. He was nominated for the Heisman Trophy and was a unanimous decision as the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year and a first-team All-Big Ten. In his second season, he rushed for 1,903 yards and ran for 24 touchdowns, being named to the first-team All-Big Ten and first-team All-American. He was also an Honorable Mention All-American.

In his third season, he rushed for 2,298 yards and 28 touchdowns, breaking the school record for the most rushing touchdowns in a single season. He won the Heisman Trophy and was a Consensus All-American. He was named to the first-team All-Big Ten and the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year for the second time. He also received the Doak Walker Award, becoming the first player from Northwestern to receive one. In his senior year, he broke his own record and rushed for 2,564 yards and 30 touchdowns. He received the Doak Walker Award for the second consecutive time, becoming the first to do so, and was nominated for the Heisman Trophy. He received another Consensus All-American and was named to the first-team Big-Ten and first-team All-American. Solomon was ranked as the best running back in the draft.

## Professional career

Solomon participated in the NFL Combine and produced impressive scores, such as a 4.36 40-yard dash time, 20 reps on the bench press, 4.21 20-yard shuttle time, and a Wonderlic score of 49. He was approached by numerous teams, including the San Francisco 49ers, New England Patriots, and Kansas City Chiefs. Almost every team had someone in line to talk to Solomon during his workout. With so many teams showing interest, Solomon was under the impression that he would be an early first round pick. However, he was drafted late into the third round by the New York Giants. It was later revealed that many teams passed on Solomon due to believing that although his college statistics were phenomenal, he was not a playmaker according to tape and wouldn't be able to compete against a higher level of competition.

## Personal life

Solomon's entire immediate family has played in the NFL, including his parents, Zach Kilo and Hall-of-Fame wide receiver Ayanami Solomon Sr., his uncles, and brother, Antonio Kilo. He married fellow NFL player Rocky Cereb, with whom they had two children together, Ayanami Solomon III and Daniel Cereb.