Po James

Ronald "Po" James (born March 19, 1949) is an American former professional football player who was a running back for four seasons in the National Football League (NFL) for the Philadelphia Eagles from 1972–1975. He was selected by the Eagles in the fourth round of the 1972 NFL draft. He played college football for the New Mexico State Aggies.

Early life James attended New Brighton High School in New Brighton, Pennsylvania, where he lettered in football for three years. He started playing football during his sophomore year, rushing for 625 yards. He did not play as a junior, but as a senior, he rushed for 1,422 yards, along with 2,211 yards of total offense. He set the Beaver County scoring record for football with 200 points during his senior season, which stood for 22 years. He was a unanimous all-state selection during his senior season.

James was inducted into the Beaver County Sports Hall of Fame in 1982. He was inducted into the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League (WPIAL) Hall of Fame in 2008. He ran for 185 yards against Lamar Tech. which was broken by Tony Dorsett in 1973. In his sophomore season, he ran for 1,182 yards. He led the Eagles in rushing as a rookie in 1972 with 565 rushing yards along with 20 receptions for 156 yards. He set a team rookie record for carries with 182. In 1975, he played in all 14 games and rushed for 196 yards on 43 carries and two touchdowns. He also had a team-best 4.6 yards per carry average. He caught 32 receptions for 267 yards and one touchdown. He returned 13 kickoffs for 311 yards and had a 23.9 average. He was waived on August 1, 1976 after the Eagles hired a new head coach, Dick Vermeil. He was released prior to the start of the 1976 season.

After football After he was released from the Eagles, James became the director of the Baptist Children's Services.