Shannon Baker (gridiron football)

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Shannon Maurice Baker (born July 20, 1970) is a former American football wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) who played for the Indianapolis Colts. [1] He played college football for the Florida State Seminoles. [2] He also played in the Canadian Football League (CFL) for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Saskatchewan Roughriders.

Contents

High school career

Baker is from Lakeland, Florida. [3] He initially attended Kathleen High School in Lakeland, where he threw for 1,243 yards and 12 touchdowns as a sophomore quarterback. [4] Baker transferred to Lakeland High School as a junior and was converted to a wide receiver before switching back to quarterback ahead of his senior season in 1988. [5] [6] Aside from football, he was a starter on the basketball team and starred on the track and field team. [6] As a junior in 1988, he won the state title in the 100 meter dash. [6] Baker repeated the feat as a senior, also winning the 220 yard dash state title, and was named the Polk County Boys Track Athlete of the Year by The Tampa Tribune . [7]

College career

Baker accepted a scholarship to play football at Florida State University. [8] As a sophomore, he caught a memorable touchdown on a Hail Mary pass as time expired in the first half of a win over LSU. [9] [10] Baker finished the season with 18 catches for 242 yards and four touchdowns. [11]

Baker was featured in a more prominent role by his junior year, when he was named the starting flanker. [12] He caught 25 passes in the first seven games of the season, [13] finishing with 30 catches for 451 yards and four touchdowns. [14] As a senior, Baker recorded 22 catches for 297 yards and three touchdowns. He also sprinted on the Seminoles track team. [15]

Professional career

Baker was selected by the Atlanta Falcons in the eighth round (205th overall) of the 1993 NFL draft. [16] He was waived on August 30, 1993. [17] Baker signed with the Indianapolis Colts on September 22. [18] He recorded two catches for 15 yards in 1994 and was waived on September 27, 1994, [19] subsequently spending three weeks on the practice squad. [20] On December 15, he signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars as one of the first three players in franchise history. [20] However, he was released on August 13, 1995. [21] Baker signed with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League (CFL) later that month. [22] He suffered a separated shoulder in a game against the Calgary Stampeders, forcing him to miss the remainder of the 1995 season. [23] At the time of his injury, Baker was leading the league with 24.4 yards per kick return. [23] He also returned a punt for a touchdown. [24] In 1996, Baker was knocked unconscious in a game against the Edmonton Eskimos. [25] He played 17 games for the Blue Bombers over two seasons. [26]

Baker signed a free agent deal with the New Orleans Saints in April 1997. [27] He was waived that August before signing with the Saskatchewan Roughriders the following month. [28] [26] In the 85th Grey Cup, Baker returned the opening kickoff for 74 yards. [29] He re-signed with Saskatchewan in May 1998. [30] He made his first touchdown catch in a loss to the Montreal Alouettes on July 9 before he was released in September. [29] [31]

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References

  1. ↑ "Shannon Baker Stats". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
  2. ↑ "Shannon Baker". nolefan.org.
  3. ↑ Henry, Jim (January 1, 1992). "'Noles' Baker seeking redemption at Cotton". The Tampa Tribune . p. 43. Retrieved January 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ McClure, Bob (September 29, 1987). "Baker is fine in transition". The Tampa Tribune . p. 48. Retrieved January 25, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ McClure, Bob (November 10, 1987). "Versatile Baker bounces back from early knocks to excel". The Tampa Tribune . p. 46. Retrieved January 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  6. 1 2 3 Gray, W. Blake (August 28, 1988). "Hitched on Lakeland: Baker now moving to quarterback". The Tampa Tribune . p. 192. Retrieved January 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ Purks, Scott (May 25, 1989). "Tribune All-County Track Teams". The Tampa Tribune . p. 86. Retrieved January 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ Purks, Scott (May 16, 1989). "Blazing Baker to put track on back burner". The Tampa Tribune . p. 65.
  9. ↑ Lee, Victor; Snook, Jeff (October 28, 1990). "Now they hail Baker's end zone plan". The Palm Beach Post . p. 66.
  10. ↑ Harig, Bob (October 28, 1990). "Baker answers FSU's prayer". Tampa Bay Times . p. 47.
  11. ↑ Long, Gary (August 25, 1991). "Forget past? FSU receivers say that's a fabulous idea". The Miami Herald . p. 829.
  12. ↑ Purks, Scott (August 14, 1991). "Baker ready to stand out for Seminoles". The Tampa Tribune . p. 86.
  13. ↑ Henry, Jim (January 1, 1992). "'Noles' Baker seeking redemption at Cotton". The Tampa Tribune . p. 51.
  14. ↑ Vilona, Bill (September 3, 1992). "Noles' Frier finds new determination". The News-Press . p. 57.
  15. ↑ Rodriguez, Ken (November 12, 1991). "Miami-Florida St. looks more like a track meet than No. 1 showdown". The Evening Sun . p. 11.
  16. ↑ Schmadtke, Alan (April 27, 1993). "State's top quarterbacks nearly bypassed". The Orlando Sentinel . p. 26.
  17. ↑ Pasquarelli, Len (August 31, 1993). "Green's not a Falcon – until noon". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution . p. 61.
  18. ↑ "Colts waive one, add one". The Indianapolis News . September 22, 1993. p. 9 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ↑ "Colts add experience with Jackson". Daily Reporter . September 28, 1994. p. 6.
  20. 1 2 Yasinskas, Pat (August 10, 1995). "Can Baker catch on with Jags?". The Tampa Tribune . p. 62.
  21. ↑ Daniels, Bryan (August 14, 1995). "Baker doesn't make Jacksonville's roster". Tallahassee Democrat . p. 9.
  22. ↑ Tait, Ed (August 22, 1995). "Williams hits highway". Winnipeg Sun . p. 43.
  23. 1 2 Lambrecht, Gary (October 13, 1995). "Battered Winnipeg (5-11) likely to be playoff team". The Baltimore Sun . p. 225.
  24. ↑ Owen, Judy (June 3, 1996). "Receivers have Kelly salivating". Winnipeg Sun . p. 28.
  25. ↑ Hamilton, Ian (September 25, 1996). "Brown is a big hit in Esks' secondary". The Leader-Post . p. 10.
  26. 1 2 Davis, Darrell (September 25, 1997). "Riders add speed, beef for game against Esks". The StarPhoenix . p. 18.
  27. ↑ Glennon, John (April 26, 1997). "Mitchell impresses Ditka at mini-camp". Sun Herald . p. 41.
  28. ↑ "Saints reduce roster to 60 a day early". The Daily Advertiser . August 19, 1997. p. 20.
  29. 1 2 Davis, Darrell (July 30, 1998). "Receiver passes on life's lessons". The Leader-Post . p. 13.
  30. ↑ Vanstone, Rob (May 22, 1998). "Saunders content in Regina". The StarPhoenix . p. 22.
  31. ↑ Zary, Darren (September 10, 1998). "Saunders key to Riders success". The StarPhoenix . p. 16.
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