Early Life

Gerald is the son of his father, Gerald McCoy Senior and his mother, Patricia Dianne McCoy.

He completed his primary schooling from Southeast High School. After completing high school, he enrolled into the University of Oklahoma. He received a degree in Human Relations from his hometown university. His complete childhood was spent in Oklahoma City and he was always fond of football since a very young age.

Career Start

Gerald played for his college team from 2006 until 2009. He was honored with the award of Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year and he was considered to be one of the best prospects for the NFL draft. He earned consensus All-American honors after he completed his career at Oklahoma.

In the 2010 National Football League Draft, Gerald was selected by Tampa Bay Buccaneers with the 3rd pick in the first round. Gerald was picked third ahead of hundreds of players. It was obvious that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers saw something special in him and felt that he could be a very elite player for them. They believed his defensive abilities and wanted him to help out on their defensive line.

He performed extremely well in his defensive position in his year in the NFL. Gerald achieved his dream of playing football at a professional level and made his debut against the Cleveland Browns.

Hampered by Injuries

While Gerald was happy to finally be in the league, he was unware that he was going to hit a huge speed bump early in his career. During his rookie year, he sustained an injury on his left bicep. The injury was basically a tissue tear. The injury kept him off the field for a long duration of time towards the end of his rookie year.

In 2011 during his second year, Gerald played limited games as he was still recovering from the injury he experienced in his rookie year. To add on to things, he also suffered from an ankle injury. It was a string of bad luck for the young and talented prospect. Since football is a very tough and physical sport, injuries are always expected. It is one reason why basketball and baseball players make more money in their contracts. Their sports are safer than football so their team owners are more secure in guaranteeing their contracts. In football, a player’s career can end in instant because of how intense the sport is. Owners are less willing to guarantee contracts in football because it is too risky.