#84 Rahim Alem Season 2009
2009 SEC Defensive Player of the Week vs. Vanderbilt – Sept. 14
2008 First-Team All-SEC (AP)
2008 SEC Academic Honor Roll
CAREER
Played in 44 games, starting 13 times … Started 12 times as a senior in 2009 … Finished career with 73 tackles, 25.5 tackles for losses and 14.5 sacks … Added five PBUs, 13 QB hurries, and four forced fumbles … Graduated in December of 2008 with a degree in Liberal Arts … Brother Chad Jones was also a member of the LSU football team … Played in 2010 East-West Shrine Game following senior season.
SENIOR SEASON (2009)
Played in all 13 games with 12 starts at right defensive end … Finished with 34 total tackles, 8.5 tackles for losses and 4.5 sacks … Added five quarterback hurries and forced two fumbles … Named SEC Defensive Player of the Week for his performance in win over Vanderbilt in week 2 … Had seven tackles, one sack for an 11-yard loss and a pass breakup in win over Vanderbilt … Had five tackles, two tackles for 10 yards in losses and a sack for an 8-yard loss vs. Louisiana Tech … Other sacks came in season-opener vs. Washington, vs. Tulane and a half sack vs. Arkansas … Forced fumbles vs. Louisiana Tech and Mississippi State … Played for East squad in East-West Shrine Game and had two QB hurries in that contest.
JUNIOR SEASON (2008)
A pass rush specialist who enjoyed a breakout season with the Tigers in 2008, earning second team All-SEC honors at defensive end … Played in 13 games with one start … Thrived in passing downs as he led the Tigers with 8.0 sacks and 11.5 tackles for losses … Finished season with 29 total tackles, seven QB hurries and two PBUs … Ranked third in the SEC in sacks and was eighth in the league in tackles for losses … Picked up one sack in games against Appalachian State, Auburn, Florida, South Carolina, Georgia, Tulane, Ole Miss and Arkansas … His sack vs. Auburn came late in the fourth quarter and helped seal the victory … The sack against Florida resulted in a fumble, while his sack against Tulane caused a fumble that was picked up by CB Chris Hawkins who returned it for a TD … Finished with one sack for a loss of nine yards against Arkansas … Tallied four tackles, a sack and 1.5 tackles for loss against Ole Miss … Registered three quarterback hurries against Troy, one of which led to an interception by safety Chad Jones … Started his first career game against Alabama … Had a career-high six tackles and an assisted tackle for loss against Alabama … Finished with one sack and a forced fumble against Tulane … Against Georgia, picked up four tackles and tied a career-high in tackles for loss with two, including one sack for a loss of 9 yards … Recorded two tackles against South Carolina including a sack and had two quarterback hurries … Finished with two tackles including one sack and a forced fumble against Florida … Finished with two tackles against Auburn, including one sack for 15 yards … Recorded three tackles — two solo — with one sack for a loss of seven yards against Appalachian State.
SOPHOMORE SEASON (2007)
Served as the backup at right defensive end for the Tigers … Played in 12 of LSU’s 14 games …
7 … Finished season with eight tackles, four of which went for losses … Added two sacks for 17-yards in losses … Also credited with one QB hurry and forced a fumble … Turned in the best game of his career against Tulane, recording a career-high three tackles, including two for losses and a sack … Had two tackles and forced a fumble in the Tigers’ win over Middle Tennessee.
REDSHIRT FRESHMAN SEASON (2006)
Played in six games with no starts … Finished year with two tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss … Had tackles for loss against Louisiana-Lafayette and Arizona … Broke up a pass in 45-3 win over Arizona in the second week of the season … Also saw action in games against Tulane, Mississippi State, Kentucky and in the Sugar Bowl Notre Dame.
FRESHMAN SEASON (2005)
Redshirted as a true freshman in 2005.
HIGH SCHOOL
A blue-chip defensive end rated among the nation’s best … Rated as the second-best prospect in Louisiana in 2004 … Named the MVP of the Bayou Bowl, which is an all-star game between Louisiana and Texas … Rated the nation’s seventh-best defensive end by Collegefootballnews.com … Member of the Baton Rouge Advocate Super Dozen, the New Orleans Times-Picayune Top 20 Blue-Chip list and was a 5A first-team all-state selection … Named to Tom Lemming’s Prep All-America team in 2004 .. Registered 79 tackles and eight sacks as a senior … Displayed his athletic ability by blocking three kicks … Delivered a terrific junior season, tallying 70 tackles, including 30 for losses, and 11 sacks … Three-year starter … Coached by Tyrone Payne.
PERSONAL
Full name is Rahim Akil Alem … Born Feb. 25, 1987, in New Orleans … Legally changed his name during the spring of 2006 … His new name is part Swahili, part Arabic and has nothing to do with a religious conversion, but his African heritage … Rahim means kind, compassionate and merciful; Akil means intelligent; and Alem means leader … Given name was Alfred Marvin Jones, Jr. … Parents are Al and Patti Jones … Dad is a high school principal … Al and Patti Jones wear the same LSU jerseys to each game – one has Rahim’s No. 84 on the front and Chad’s No. 3 on the back and the other wears the opposite with Chad’s number on the front and Rahim’s number on the back … Lists reading and writing poetry as his two favorite past times … His dad was a defensive end at Tulane who lettered for the Green Wave from 1976-78.
CAREER HIGHS
Total tackles: 7 vs. Vanderbilt, 2009
Tackles for loss: 2, four times (Last vs. La. Tech, 2009)
Sacks: 1, 14 times
Interceptions: 0