Claudin Cherelus (born February 9, 1999) is an American professional football linebacker. He played college football for the UMass Minutemen and Alcorn State Braves and has also been a member of the New York Jets.
Early life Cherelus was born on February 9, 1999, and is of Haitian descent. He started playing football in eighth grade and then played three varsity seasons at Golden Gate High School, near Naples, Florida. Cherelus played linebacker and safety and twice earned all-conference honors at Golden Gate while also being a team captain. He initially committed to play college football for the Minnesota Golden Gophers, but instead ended up joining the UMass Minutemen after Minnesota retracted their scholarship offer.
College career Cherelus redshirted his true freshman year at UMass, 2017. The following year, he played in all 12 games and posted 14 tackles. In 2019, Cherelus appeared in 11 games as a reserve and totaled 39 tackles along with a sack. He opted to transfer to play for the Alcorn State Braves in 2020, although they did not play that year due to COVID-19. Cherelus became a starter for Alcorn State in 2021 and recorded 76 tackles, 11 tackles-for-loss and two sacks. In his final season, he played nine games and tallied 73 tackles, 14.5 tackles-for-loss, six sacks and an interception on his way to being named second-team all-conference. He was invited after the season to the HBCU Legacy Bowl, an all-star game for players from historically black schools.
Professional career
New York Jets Cherelus declined chances to play in the Canadian Football League (CFL) to try to make it in the NFL. He was signed by the New York Jets as an undrafted free agent, but was released as part of the final roster cuts on August 29.
Carolina Panthers After being released by the Jets, Cherelus was claimed off waivers by the Carolina Panthers. He was placed on injured reserve on November 3, 2023.
Cherelus was again placed on injured reserve on December 17, 2024, suffering from a season-ending toe injury that required surgery.
On March 13, 2026, Cherelus re-signed with the Panthers on a one-year contract. On September 30, 2026, he was waived with an injury settlement.
NFL career statistics Legend Bold Career high
Regular season Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles GP GS Cmb Solo Ast Sck TFL Int Yds Avg Lng TD PD FF Fum FR Yds TD 2023 CAR 6 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2024 CAR 13 2 28 13 15 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2025 CAR 14 4 32 14 18 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0Career 33 6 60 27 33 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
Postseason Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles GP GS Cmb Solo Ast Sck TFL Int Yds Avg Lng TD PD FF Fum FR Yds TD 2025 CAR 1 1 9 4 5 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Career 1 1 9 4 5 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
References
External links Alcorn State Braves bio