Jeromey Clary�s career took off in 2007. It was quite an ascent for the former 2006 sixth-round draft choice, who spent his entire rookie season on the club�s practice squad.
When the �07 season started, Clary made the squad as a reserve tackle and special teams performer. He was called upon several times early in the season to spell players at both tackle and guard. Then in early December with the Bolts� running game struggling to get on track, Head Coach Norv Turner inserted Clary into the starting lineup to replace a struggling Shane Olivea at right tackle.
Over the final five games of the regular season with Clary starting at RT, the Chargers rushed for 880 yards and eight touchdowns, an average of 176 yards and 1.6 rushing touchdowns per game. Not surprisingly, the Bolts went 5-0 during that stretch. With Olivea being released in February, the path has been cleared for Clary, who heads into 2008 as the team�s starting right tackle.
As a collegian at KansasState, Clary was one of the top tackles in the Big 12 Conference. He and Chargers running back Darren Sproles were teammates at K-State. In Jeromey�s first season as a starter (2003) as a sophomore, he helped pave the way for Sproles to lead the nation in rushing with 1,986 yards. |