Alvin Kamara

Kamara attended Norcross High School in Georgia, where he led his team to a state championship as a senior and was named Georgia's Mr. Football by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He initially committed to the University of Alabama under head coach Nick Saban, but redshirted his freshman year following preseason knee surgery and did not see game action in a crowded backfield.

In 2014, Kamara transferred to Hutchinson Community College in Kansas. In nine games with the Blue Dragons, he rushed for 1,253 yards and 18 touchdowns, earning NJCAA All-American recognition and ranking among the premier junior college recruits in the country.

Kamara transferred to the University of Tennessee in 2015 to play under head coach Butch Jones. In his Volunteers debut against Bowling Green, he rushed for 144 yards, setting a school record for rushing yards in a debut game. Over two seasons in Knoxville, he shared the backfield with Jalen Hurd and totaled nearly 2,000 scrimmage yards with 23 touchdowns. In an October 2016 double-overtime matchup against Texas A&M, Kamara set a school record with 312 all-purpose yards, recording 127 rushing yards, 161 receiving yards, and three total touchdowns.

The New Orleans Saints selected Kamara in the third round with the 67th overall pick in the 2017 NFL draft. In his rookie campaign, he split backfield duties with Mark Ingram II, producing 728 rushing yards and 826 receiving yards with 14 total touchdowns. He and Ingram became the first running back tandem in NFL history to each surpass 1,500 yards from scrimmage in the same season. Kamara was named the AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and earned second-team All-Pro honors.

Kamara continued his high level of production over the following seasons, earning Pro Bowl selections in each of his first five years in the league (2017-2021). Ahead of the 2020 season opener, he signed a five-year contract extension with New Orleans. In 2020, he led the NFL with 21 total touchdowns, including 16 rushing scores, and finished with a career-high 932 rushing yards and 83 receptions. In October 2024, Kamara signed a two-year contract extension to remain in New Orleans.

During Week 10 of the 2024 season against the Atlanta Falcons, Kamara surpassed Mark Ingram II to become the all-time leading rusher in Saints franchise history. Despite battling groin and knee injuries in later seasons, he continued to serve as the offensive centerpiece and a team captain for New Orleans.

Kamara has compiled multiple notable records at both the league and franchise levels. On Christmas Day in 2020, he rushed for 155 yards and scored six rushing touchdowns against the Minnesota Vikings, tying the NFL single-game record originally set by Ernie Nevers in 1929.

Kamara became the fastest player in NFL history to reach 3,000 career rushing yards and 3,000 career receiving yards, achieving the milestone in 66 games to surpass Roger Craig's previous mark of 70. He also shares the NFL record for the most career two-point conversions with seven. Additionally, he became the first player in league history to record at least 500 rushing yards and 500 receiving yards in each of his first four seasons.

Within the New Orleans Saints record book, Kamara holds franchise career records for rushing yards (7,250), rushing touchdowns (61), total touchdowns (87), scrimmage yards (12,198), and all-purpose yards (12,856). His 606 receptions also represent the highest career reception total by a running back in Saints history.