College Career
James received an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where he played for coach Urban Meyer's Florida Gators football team from 2006 to 2009. As a freshman in 2006, James saw immediate playing time as a kick return specialist, returning 33 punts for 363 yards and one touchdown in 2006, and earning Freshman All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) and Freshman All-American honors. His 33-yard kickoff return against the Ohio State Buckeyes in the 2007 BCS National Championship Game gave the Gators the ball in Buckeye territory after Ohio State's Ted Ginn, Jr. opened the game with a kickoff return for a touchdown. James' dramatic return and the Gators' resulting touchdown changed the early momentum of the game, with the Gators ultimately defeating the top-ranked Buckeyes 41–14 to win the BCS National Championship.
James led the Gators in kickoff and punt return yardage for four consecutive seasons, and finished his college career with 4,770 total yards gained, including 112 kickoff returns for 2,718 yards and a touchdown, 117 punt returns for 1,371 yards and four touchdowns, 379 receiving yards and 302 rushing yards. His career kickoff return yardage and combined kick return yardage remain SEC records. He was a first-team All-American in 2007, a consensus first-team All-American in 2008, a first-team All-SEC selection in 2008, the SEC Special Teams Player of the Year in 2008, and a senior team captain in 2009. During his time as a Gator, the team won two SEC Championship Games (2006, 2008) and two BCS National Championship Games (2007, 2009).
James graduated from the University of Florida with a bachelor's degree in sociology in 2010.
| Return Stats | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Punt Returns | Yards | Touchdowns | Fair Catches | Long | Kick Returns | Yards | Touchdowns | Fair Catches | Long | ||
| 2006 | 40 | 363 | 1 | 7 | 77 | 21 | 383 | 0 | 0 | 33 | ||
| 2007 | 16 | 254 | 1 | 2 | 83 | 30 | 841 | 0 | 0 | 61 | ||
| 2008 | 46 | 510 | 2 | 8 | 78 | 32 | 738 | 0 | 0 | 52 | ||
| 2009 | 44 | 244 | 0 | 11 | 49 | 29 | 756 | 1 | 0 | 85 | ||
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