Alvin Kamara was heading into a rough patch when he decided to give something back to Tennessee. At 31, the New Orleans Saints running back was working his way back from a knee injury. His 2025 season had been his worst as a pro — 471 rushing yards, 186 receiving yards, one touchdown. New Orleans had also just committed real money to a younger back, Travis Etienne, which raised the obvious question of how much longer Kamara would be part of the plan.
In July 2026, he agreed to rework his contract, reportedly down to $6 million for the year. A month after that, he sprained his MCL again and was expected to miss four to six weeks.
Then, on September 3, the University of Tennessee opened the Alvin Kamara Family Lobby at Gate 19 of Neyland Stadium.
The school called it a generous gift and didn’t put a number on it. Kamara put the money into Tennessee, the place where his college career turned around after a rough start at Alabama.
“With this gift, I hope it kind of sets a standard on what a student-athlete at the University of Tennessee can accomplish,” Kamara said at the dedication. He talked about older players owing something to the ones coming up behind them.
You have a responsibility to inspire and to, like I said, set a standard for those coming up under you. — Alvin Kamara
Why Tennessee, specifically
Kamara only played two seasons at Tennessee. But those two seasons were the ones that got his career moving again.
He’d arrived at Alabama in 2013 as a heavily recruited prospect, but he couldn’t crack a backfield that already had Derrick Henry, T.J. Yeldon and Kenyan Drake in it. A knee injury slowed him down further. He was suspended from the Sugar Bowl and eventually left the program without ever appearing in a game.
From there he went to Hutchinson Community College in Kansas, which was a step down from where he’d started. “When I got to Hutchinson, I was fighting for scraps,” Kamara said later, describing it as a period where he “needed to grow up.” He put up 1,211 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns in nine games, and Tennessee signed him that December.
He never became Tennessee’s primary back — he shared carries the whole time he was there — but over two seasons he put up 1,294 rushing yards, 683 receiving yards and 23 total touchdowns on 210 carries, a 6.2 yards-per-carry average. Against Texas A&M in 2016 he set a school record with 312 all-purpose yards.
It was enough for the Saints to trade back into the third round of the 2017 draft and take him 67th overall — a pick Sean Payton later said the team effectively valued like a second-rounder.
Kamara went on to win Offensive Rookie of the Year and made the Pro Bowl in each of his first five seasons. By the end of 2025 he’d racked up 7,250 rushing yards, 4,948 receiving yards and 86 total touchdowns across 126 regular-season games.
Alvin Kamara’s Strategies
Adjust instead of waiting for things to fix themselves
Kamara has talked before about how he handled the Alabama setback. “But sometimes, man, things don’t work out like you think,” he told Andscape before the 2017 draft. “That’s when you’ve got to adjust.”
“Sometimes, man, things don’t work out like you think. That’s when you’ve got to adjust.” — Alvin Kamara
Junior college wasn’t a step he wanted to take. It got him real playing time, and it eventually got Tennessee’s attention. Tennessee gave him just enough of a role for NFL scouts to see it too.
Don’t spend like the contract number
Kamara has also kept a pretty firm line between what he earns and what he spends.
He’s said he lived off endorsement money and saved his NFL salary. The first thing he bought with his rookie signing bonus was a box of chicken wings. Everything else went into savings and investments.
“I’m not about to go over the top, I’m not gonna live beyond my means,” he said, crediting his mother — who worked several jobs — for how he thinks about money.
Guarantees, injury risk and a short window at the top all cut into what a player actually banks. Kamara has managed to avoid that. He signed a two-year, $24.5 million extension with New Orleans in 2024, then reworked his deal again in 2026 after the Etienne signing. His agent, Brad Cicala, has said both sides want him to finish his career with the Saints.
Las Vegas, 2022
In February 2022, Kamara was arrested after an altercation in Las Vegas following the Pro Bowl. He pleaded no contest to a reduced misdemeanor charge and received 30 hours of community service, a $500 fine, and paid more than $100,000 in restitution for the other man’s medical bills. The NFL suspended him three games in 2023.
Kamara took responsibility publicly before serving the suspension:
“I was completely wrong, embarrassed the Saints, embarrassed my family and mother, embarrassed myself, embarrassed the city,” he said, calling it poor judgment.
The Help He Had
Kamara’s path runs through a handful of places that each opened the next door: Hutchinson got him back on the field after Alabama. Tennessee got him back into the SEC. The Saints saw enough in a part-time college role to trade up and build an offense around him. New Orleans became home base for his football career and for his business ventures.
He co-owned The Big Squeezy, a Louisiana juice chain that sponsored NASCAR driver Ryan Vargas in 2021, and NASCAR later brought him on as its first growth and engagement adviser. He also took a minority stake in Five O Fore Golf, a $47 million entertainment development in New Orleans expected to create 200 to 250 jobs.
Kamara said at the dedication that he wants to stay connected to Tennessee going forward, through mentoring or other involvement with current athletes.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Alvin Kamara Family Lobby? It’s a dedicated space at Gate 19 of Neyland Stadium honoring Kamara’s time at Tennessee and his NFL career, funded by a financial gift to the university.
How much did Alvin Kamara donate to Tennessee? Tennessee described it as a generous gift but has not publicly disclosed the amount.
How long did Kamara play for Tennessee? Two seasons, 2015 and 2016. He appeared in 24 games and recorded 1,294 rushing yards, 683 receiving yards and 23 offensive touchdowns.
Why did Kamara leave Alabama? He struggled for playing time behind a deep backfield, dealt with a knee injury, and was suspended from the Sugar Bowl before leaving the program without appearing in a game. He rebuilt his profile at Hutchinson Community College before transferring to Tennessee.
What’s Kamara’s biggest NFL achievement? He won Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2017, made five Pro Bowls, and became the Saints’ all-time leader in rushing yards and rushing touchdowns. He also tied the NFL record with six rushing touchdowns in a single game on Christmas Day 2020.
