About Artrell Hawkins
High School Career
Artrell was born in Johnstown, Pennyslvania to Aletha Haselrig-Jones, and was the second of six children. Artrell attended Bishop McCort High School where he excelled football, as well as basketball, baseball, and track. As a senior he was named conference player of the year after rushing for a school record of 1,487 yards. For these efforts he was awarded a scholarship to the University of Cincinnati.
College Career
At UC, Artrell was a business major and started 27 of his 41 career games at cornerback for the Bearcats. He finished his career with 139 tackles, 4 interceptions, 32 passes defended, 3 forced fumbles, and 2 fumble recoveries.
Professional Career
Artrell was selected as the 43rd overall player in the 1998 NFL draft by the Cincinnati Bengals. He played six seasons with the Bengals, where he started 76 games and recorded 9 interceptions at cornerback. He is currently tied for the franchise’s “Longest Play” in Bengals history, in which he had a 102 yard interception for touchdown. In 2004, Artrell served as nickelback for the Carolina Panthers. Artrell was then signed by the New England Patriots in 2005 and successfully transitioned from cornerback to safety to help a secondary that had suffered from numerous injuries. He retired with the Jets prior to the 2008 season. Learn more about Artrell’s professional career >
Since retiring from the NFL, Artrell is working in Cincinnati, OH within the sports broadcasting industry providing voice overs, color commentating, game day broadcasting play by play broadcasting, and motivational speaking. In Fall 2009, Artrell launched his own sports talk radio show called “2 Deep Zone” on ESPN 1530 Cincinnati.
In addition to his broadcasting career, Artrell is very focused on giving back to the community. In the summer of 2009, he began serving on the board at St. Aloysius Orphanage in Cincinnati. He also launched his first annual “Summer Youth Football Camp” in Johnstown, PA and established the “Summer Youth Football Camp Fund” with the Community Foundation of the Alleghenies. To find out more about these organizations, as well as Artrell’s community work, please visit the “In the Community” page.
In July 2010, Artrell was selected to the “Cambria County Hall of Fame”, in which he was recognized for his years of excellence in sports and community involvement in his hometown. In August 2010, Artrell was selected at one of Cincinnati’s “Forty Under 40″ award recipients. This prestigious and dynamic group are considered the rising stars in the community and the next generation of leaders and innovators.
Artrell and his family reside in Cincinnati, OH.
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