Cameron Echols-Luper

Did You Know?

• Echols-Luper won six state titles in track and field at Auburn High School, sweeping the long jump, 200-meter dash, and 4 × 100 relay in both his junior and senior years.
• He threw a 38-yard touchdown pass on a trick play for TCU in 2013 and later threw a 35-yard touchdown on a trick play for Arkansas State in 2016.

Early life

Cameron Damonte Echols-Luper was born on April 9, 1995, in Ennis, Texas, to football coach Curtis Luper. He attended Auburn High School in Alabama, where he started at quarterback for three years. As a junior, he put up 2,339 total yards and 25 touchdowns. During his senior season, he passed for 1,036 yards and 11 touchdowns, rushed for 898 yards and seven scores, and led his team to the Class 6A quarterfinals, where they lost.

Recruiting services rated him a three-star prospect; Scout.com ranked him the No. 19 prospect in Alabama, the No. 7 wide receiver in the state, and the No. 131 wide receiver nationally. 247Sports.com had him as the No. 15 prospect in Alabama and the No. 55 wide receiver in the country. ESPN listed him as the No. 34 prospect in Alabama and the No. 126 athlete overall. He initially committed to Texas A&M in August 2012 but flipped to TCU in January 2013.

Echols-Luper also excelled in track and field, winning state titles in the long jump (23 feet 6 inches), 200-meter dash (21.28 seconds), and 4x100 relay as a junior. He repeated as champion in all three events his senior year, with marks of 24 feet 3.75 inches in the long jump, 21.81 seconds in the 200, and a 24.34-second 4x100 relay.

College career

Echols-Luper first played college football for the TCU Horned Frogs from 2013 to 2014. He caught four passes for 21 yards and returned 14 punts for 187 yards as a freshman in 2013, earning Phil Steele second-team freshman All-American honors as a punt returner. He also threw a 38-yard touchdown on a trick play. In 2014, Echols-Luper recorded nine catches for 72 yards, 33 punt returns for 349 yards and one touchdown, and nine kick returns for 103 yards.

He was named on NFL.com's "14 for '14: Fastest players in college football". Echols-Luper participated in track at TCU as well. During the 2013–14 indoor track season, he finished in second place in the long jump at the Big 12 Indoor Championships. During the 2014 outdoor track season, the 4 × 100 relay team finished in 11th place at the 2014 NCAA Outdoor Championships.

Echols-Luper was named an Outdoor USTFCCA second-team All-American for his performance in the 4 × 100 relay during the 2014 outdoor track season. During the 2014–15 indoor track season, he finished first in the long jump at the Big 12 Indoor Championships with a jump of 24'-11.75". He later finished in fifth place at the 2015 NCAA Indoor Championships with a long jump of 25'-11.5". In January 2015, it was reported that Echols-Luper would be playing defense for the TCU football team in 2015.

In August 2015, Echols-Luper transferred to Arkansas State to play quarterback. However, he did not end up playing quarterback there. He had to sit out, and redshirt, the 2015 season due to NCAA transfer rules. In 2016, Echols-Luper caught 26 passes for 407 yards and one touchdown, threw a 35-yard touchdown on a trick play, returned six punts and two kickoffs, and punted four times for 139 yards.

He was named the "Fastest Receiver" in the Sun Belt by the Sporting News in 2016. He was also listed on NFL.com's "16 for '16: College football's most freakish athletes". Echols-Luper transferred to play for Western Kentucky in 2017. In March 2017, he was suspended indefinitely from the team after being arrested for misdemeanor drug possession.

He was later cleared to play in August 2017. Echols-Luper totaled 42 receptions for 473 yards and four touchdowns while also returning 18 kicks for 390 yards for the Hilltoppers.

Professional career

Echols-Luper participated at Western Kentucky's Pro Day in 2018, posting 4.59 seconds in the 40-yard dash, 29.5" in the vertical jump, and 9'-3" in the broad jump. After going undrafted in the 2018 NFL draft, Echols-Luper attended rookie minicamp on a tryout basis with the Indianapolis Colts but was not signed. Echols-Luper was signed to the practice roster of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League (CFL) on July 30, 2018. He was released on September 2, 2018, and later re-signed by the team on January 3, 2019.

He was released again on May 6, 2019. Echols-Luper was signed to the practice roster of the BC Lions of the CFL on September 10, 2019. He was released on October 9, but later signed to a futures contract on October 29, 2019. The 2020 CFL season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and Echols-Luper became a free agent in February 2021.

He played for the Sea Lions of The Spring League in 2021, catching 13 passes for 193 yards. On April 1, 2022, Echols-Luper signed with the New Jersey Generals of the United States Football League (USFL). He played in eight games in 2022, recording three receptions for 38 yards, one rushing attempt for a 24-yard touchdown, and 26 kickoff returns for 748 yards. He appeared in all 10 games in 2023, catching 23 passes for 295 yards and two touchdowns while also returning eight kickoffs for 255 yards and one touchdown.

Echols-Luper was named the Special Teams Player of the Week for Week 9 of the 2023 season after returning the opening kickoff 85 yards for a touchdown. He became a free agent on October 1, 2023. Echols-Luper was signed by the New Orleans Breakers of the USFL on October 4, 2023. The Breakers were not included in the merger of the XFL and USFL that formed the new United Football League (UFL).

Echols-Luper signed with the Calgary Stampeders of the CFL on January 31, 2024. After a season-ending injury to starting wide receiver Malik Henry, and with Echols-Luper having led the team with 229 receiving yards during the preseason, Echols-Luper ended up making the team's regular season roster. He was moved between the active roster, 1-game injured list, and practice roster several times during the 2024 season. Overall, he dressed in 12 games, all starts, for the Stampeders that season, totaling 31 receptions for 363 yards and four touchdowns, 12 punt returns for 109 yards, and eight kickoff returns.