Mike Barber (tight end)

Last updated

Mike Barber
No. 86, 85
Position: Tight end
Personal information
Born: (1953-06-04) June 4, 1953 (age 71)
Marshall, Texas, U.S.
Height:6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight:235 lb (107 kg)
Career information
High school: White Oak (TX)
College: Louisiana Tech
NFL draft: 1976  / Round: 2 / Pick: 48
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Receptions:222
Receiving yards:2,788
Receiving TDs:17
Player stats at PFR

Michael Dwayne Barber (born June 4, 1953) is a former American football player; he played as a tight end.

Contents

Early life and education

Barber attended White Oak High School, where he played quarterback, passing for over 4,000 yards, and graduated in 1972. He then attended Louisiana Tech where he was converted to tight end. He was voted a 1974 Little All-American, as was Bulldog teammate and future Pro Football Hall of Fame defensive end Fred Dean.

He was selected in the second round of 1976 NFL draft by the Houston Oilers. He played for the Oilers for six years, and then finished his career playing four years for the Los Angeles Rams. He then retired to work in ministry.

Career

High school coaching

During the mid-1990s, Mike returned to football, when he took a voluntary coaching position at Trinity Christian School in Cedar Hill, Texas. He coached for two years with Trinity, and then left amid a minor dispute to join Arlington's Grace Prep Academy, where he coached or was involved with coaching between 1998 and 2005.

Grace Prep was successful while Barber was the coach (in various guises, including head coach); during his eight-year tenure there, the team had a winning record every season, and won the State Championship in their division five of those years. However, he was suspended for a year in 2001, and was fired from the Head coaching position in May 2006 after a dispute with school administrators. He has since focused his efforts on his ministry.

Controversy

While associated with the Grace Prep football program, Barber was given "one of the sternest sanctions ever administered" by the Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools. According to TAPPS, he had offered athletes "improper inducements". He was suspended from coaching for a year, and the school's program placed on three years' probation. Barber denied all accusations and maintains that he did nothing improper.

Because several prominent players transferred to Grace Prep along with Barber (for some of whom he was accused of improperly paying tuition, a claim he denies), TAPPS instituted what is informally known as "The Mike Barber Rule": players who follow a coach to another school are ineligible from playing for a year.

In July 2006, the Dallas Morning News published an article titled "Barber Prison Ministry Spreads The Word -- And The Wealth", discussing in detail Barber and his various relatives' notably high incomes from his non-profit organization. According to The News:

Two years ago, the high-profile charity paid its founder $236,500 in salary and benefits, one of the highest pay packages in the nation among similar religious charities. His wife, who worked part time, received $118,000. The ministry also pays three other members of Mr. Barber's family. [1]

Also, "[a]mong officers at about 4,000 groups that filed returns, Mr. Barber's 2003 pay package ranked 13th highest..." and they note that the average pay was "about $97,000". [1]

In his only quoted response in the article, Barber defends himself simply:

I give so much of that away," Mr. Barber said of his pay. "If somebody wants to judge me for that [salary], go for it. [1]

Barber Prison ministries continues to spread the word to prison inmates.

NFL career statistics

Legend
BoldCareer high

Regular season

YearTeamGamesReceiving
GPGSRecYdsAvgLngTD
1976 HOU 20000.000
1977 HOU 131099410.4231
1978 HOU 16163251316.0723
1979 HOU 15152737714.0373
1980 HOU 16165971212.1795
1981 HOU 1651319014.6351
1982 RAM 99181669.2211
1983 RAM 16165565711.9423
1984 RAM 1127426.0110
1985 RAM 101188.080
DEN 5512929.0290
129952222,78812.67917

Playoffs

YearTeamGamesReceiving
GPGSRecYdsAvgLngTD
1978 HOU 33919521.7552
1979 HOU 3335117.0310
1980 HOU 1148320.8330
1983 RAM 2256212.4180
1984 RAM 1033110.3160
1092442217.6552

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kellen Winslow II</span> American football player (born 1983)

Kellen Boswell Winslow II is an American former professional football player who was a tight end in the National Football League (NFL). Playing college football for the Miami Hurricanes, he earned unanimous All-American honors and recognition as the top college tight end in 2003. He won a BCS national championship with Miami in 2001.

Brian David Baldinger is a former professional American football offensive lineman in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys, Indianapolis Colts, and Philadelphia Eagles. He covered Philadelphia Eagles preseason games as an analyst with Scott Graham for several years. He currently works for NFL Network, where he serves as an analyst for the television show NFL Total Access. He played college football at Duke University.

Mark Pulemau Tuinei was an American professional football player who was an offensive tackle for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors. Known as a "gentle giant", his career lasted for 15 years (1983–1997) and his ability to protect quarterback Troy Aikman and to run-block for running back Emmitt Smith helped them win Super Bowls in 1992, 1993, and 1995 and the NFC East Division in 1985 and 1992-96. He was also selected for the Pro Bowl in 1994 and 1995.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marion Barber III</span> American football player (1983–2022)

Marion Sylvester Barber III was an American professional football player who was a running back for seven seasons in the National Football League (NFL). After playing college football for the Minnesota Golden Gophers, he was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the fourth round of the 2005 NFL draft. He was selected to the Pro Bowl in 2007 during his six-year tenure with the Cowboys. He played for the Chicago Bears in 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Butch Davis</span> American football player and coach (born 1951)

Paul Hilton "Butch" Davis Jr. is an American football coach. He was most recently the head football coach at Florida International University. After graduating from the University of Arkansas, he became an assistant college football coach at Oklahoma State University and the University of Miami before becoming the defensive coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He was head coach of the University of Miami's Hurricanes football team from 1995 to 2000 and the NFL's Cleveland Browns from 2001 to 2004. Davis served as the head coach of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) Tar Heels football team from 2007 until the summer of 2011, when a series of National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) investigations resulted in his dismissal. He was hired by the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an advisor in February 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cliff Battles</span> American football player and coach (1910–1981)

Clifford Franklin Battles was an American football tailback who played in the National Football League (NFL). Battles was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1968.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trinity Christian Academy (Addison, Texas)</span> Private Christian school in Addison, Texas, United States

Trinity Christian Academy (TCA) is a private, conservative non-denominational Christian school in Addison, Texas, a suburb of Dallas. TCA was established in 1970 and, as of 2020, enrolls about 1300 students.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jason Garrett</span> American football player and coach (born 1966)

Jason Calvin Garrett is an American former football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). He was most notably the head coach of the Dallas Cowboys for 9+1⁄2 seasons from 2010 to 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Craig James (running back)</span> American football player and broadcaster (born 1961)

Jesse Craig James is an American former professional football player and sports commentator. He was a running back for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL) and for the Washington Federals of the United States Football League (USFL). He then became a commentator for the ABC and ESPN television networks. James ran for a seat in the U.S. Senate in Texas in 2012, but lost in the first round of the Republican primary.

George Bernard Young was an American football player, coach, and executive. He served as the general manager of the New York Giants from 1979 to 1997. He was named NFL Executive of the Year five times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bishop Lynch High School</span> Private, diocesan, coeducational school in Dallas, Dallas County, Texas, United States

Bishop Lynch High School is a college preparatory school of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Dallas founded by the Dominican Order in Dallas, Texas, United States. The school serves grades 9–12. It opened in 1963 with 365 students and now has over 1,000 students. In keeping with its Dominican tradition, the school mascot is a friar.

Kurt Barber is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker for the New York Jets of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the USC Trojans. He became a coach after his playing career.

Kevin Patrick Gogan is an American former professional football player who was a guard in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys, Los Angeles/Oakland Raiders, San Francisco 49ers, Miami Dolphins, and San Diego Chargers. He played college football for the Washington Huskies and was selected in the eighth round by the Dallas Cowboys in the 1987 NFL draft. With the Cowboys, Gogan won Super Bowl XXVII and Super Bowl XXVIII, both over the Buffalo Bills.

Tony Lamont McGee is an American former professional football player who was a tight end in the National Football League (NFL) for the Cincinnati Bengals, Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants. He played college football for the Michigan Wolverines.

John Paul II High School is a private Roman Catholic college preparatory high school in Plano, Texas. The school is within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Dallas. The school's Vision is "We will make a difference in the world by walking in the footsteps of Pope John Paul II" and the school's Mission is "To develop leaders who are critical thinkers and effective communicators, committed to service and rooted in faith".

Trinity Christian School is a private Christian school founded in 1981. The campus is located at Trinity Church in Cedar Hill, Texas and is affiliated with Trinity Ministries.

Joseph G. Mickey is a former American professional football tight end in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys. He played college football at the University of Oklahoma.

Prestonwood Christian Academy (PCA) is a private Christian School that serves more than 1,600 students enrolled at three campuses: PCA Plano in Plano (Pre-Kindergarten 3 through 12th grade), PCA North in Prosper (Pre-Kindergarten 3 through 12th grade), and the PCA Online virtual academy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bob Beatty</span> American football player and coach (born 1955)

Robert Beatty is a football coach and the former head football coach for the Trinity Shamrocks, a high school American football team located at Trinity High School in Louisville, Kentucky. He is the most successful High School Football coach in Kentucky state history by championships won, with 15 state championship titles and one national championship during his nearly forty-year-long career.

Wes Phillips is an American football coach and former player who is the offensive coordinator for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He is the son of former Denver Broncos, Buffalo Bills, and Dallas Cowboys head coach Wade Phillips and the grandson of former Houston Oilers and New Orleans Saints head coach Bum Phillips.

References

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.