Ras-I Luis Dowling (/ˈrɑːs/ RAH-sye; born May 9, 1988) is a former American football safety who is currently the co-defensive coordinator and secondary coach for William & Mary Tribe football. He was selected by the New England Patriots in the second round of the 2011 NFL Draft.[1] He played college football at Virginia. He has also spent time with the New York Jets and Oakland Raiders.

Ras-I Dowling
William & Mary Tribe
Position:Co-defensive coordinator & secondary coach
Personal information
Born: (1988-05-09) May 9, 1988 (age 35)
Chesapeake, Virginia, U.S.
Height:6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight:210 lb (95 kg)
Career information
High school:Chesapeake (VA) Deep Creek
College:Virginia (2007–2010)
NFL draft:2011 / Round: 2 / Pick: 33
Career history
As a player:
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
As a coach:
  • Howard (2017)
    Defensive quality control
  • Howard (2018)
    Cornerbacks coach
  • William & Mary (2019)
    Cornerbacks coach
  • William & Mary (2020–2022)
    Secondary coach
  • William & Mary (2023–present)
    Co-defensive coordinator & secondary coach
Career highlights and awards
  • Second-team All-American (2010)
  • First-team All-ACC (2010)
  • Second-team All-ACC (2008, 2009)
Career NFL statistics
Total tackles:11
Pass deflections:1
Player stats at NFL.com

Early years edit

Dowling was born in Chesapeake, Virginia. He attended Deep Creek High School in Chesapeake, where he played defensive back, wide receiver, and some quarterback. As a senior, he recorded 60 tackles and two interceptions as a defensive back. As a receiver he had 14 receptions for 255 yards and four touchdowns.

College career edit

Dowling attended the University of Virginia. As a freshman in 2007 Dowling played in 12 games, recording 44 tackles and two interceptions. As a sophomore in 2008 he started nine of 11 games. He finished the season with 43 tackles and a team-leading three interceptions. In 2009 Ras-I Dowling was voted All-ACC second team. He was also awarded ACC Defensive Player of the week vs. Indiana with nine tackles and the first sack of his career. He ended the season with three interceptions. Dowling was voted 2010 Pre-season All-ACC selection and second team All-American for the first time in his career.

Professional career edit

Pre-draft edit

Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split Bench press
6 ft 1+38 in
(1.86 m)
198 lb
(90 kg)
4.40 s 1.47 s 2.53 s 19 reps
All values from NFL Draft Scout[2]

New England Patriots edit

Dowling was selected with the first pick of the second round (33rd overall) by the New England Patriots in the 2011 NFL Draft.[3]

Dowling played two games for the Patriots in the 2011 season before injuring his hip in Week 2 against San Diego. On October 29, 2011, the Patriots placed him on Injured Reserve, ending his 2011 season.[4]

On October 26, 2012, Dowling was placed on injured reserve with a torn thigh muscle, ending his 2012 season.[5] On August 28, 2013, the Patriots released Dowling as part of their roster cutdown to 75 players.

New York Jets edit

The New York Jets signed Dowling to the practice squad on October 23, 2013.[6] He was released on August 24, 2014.[7]

Oakland Raiders edit

On September 1, 2014, Dowling was signed to the Raiders' practice squad. On December 13, 2014, the Oakland Raiders signed Dowling to the active roster.[8]

On September 1, 2015, he was released by the Raiders.[9]

Carolina Panthers edit

On November 23, 2015, Dowling was signed to the Carolina Panthers' practice squad.[10]

On February 7, 2016, Dowling's Panthers played in Super Bowl 50. In the game, the Panthers fell to the Denver Broncos by a score of 24–10.[11]

Coaching career edit

On January 14, 2019, William & Mary head football coach Mike London hired Dowling to serve as the cornerbacks coach for the William & Mary Football team.[12] After serving as Secondary coach over the next three seasons, Dowling was promoted to Co-Defensive coordinator.[13]

References edit

  1. ^ Yates, Field (August 28, 2013). "Patriots waive Ras-I Dowling". ESPN Boston. Retrieved August 29, 2013.
  2. ^ "Ras-I Dowling, DS #6 CB, Virginia". March 9, 2011. Retrieved May 13, 2011.
  3. ^ "2011 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved February 26, 2019.
  4. ^ "Pats' Dowling to IR; Faulk, Deaderick activated". October 29, 2011.
  5. ^ "BostonHerald.com - Blogs: The Blitz» Blog Archive » Ras-I Dowling placed on IR with torn thigh muscle". www.bostonherald.com. Archived from the original on October 27, 2012.
  6. ^ Wilson, Aaron (October 23, 2013). "Jets sign Ras-I Dowling". New York Jets. Archived from the original on October 25, 2013. Retrieved October 24, 2013.
  7. ^ Lange, Randy (August 24, 2014). "Jets Release 6 to Get to 75 Players". New York Jets. Archived from the original on August 26, 2014. Retrieved August 24, 2014.
  8. ^ Smith, Michael David (December 13, 2014). "Ras-I Dowling added to Raiders' 53-player roster". NBCSports.com. Retrieved November 30, 2015.
  9. ^ Durkin, Jimmy (September 1, 2015). "Raiders place Watson on injured reserve". Santa Cruz Sentinel. Retrieved September 3, 2015.
  10. ^ Strickland, Bryan (November 23, 2015). "Silatolu out for season; Norwell set to return". Panthers.com. Retrieved November 30, 2015.
  11. ^ "Super Bowl 50 - Denver Broncos vs. Carolina Panthers - February 7th, 2016". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
  12. ^ "W&M coach Mike London hires Vincent Brown as DC, Ras-I Dowling as cornerbacks coach". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Retrieved January 14, 2019.
  13. ^ "London Extended, Announces Football Staff Restructuring". tribeathletics.com. Retrieved March 7, 2023.

External links edit