Michael Bates (American football)
No. 81, 83, 82, 24, 20, 29 | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Position: | Return specialist Wide receiver | ||||
Personal information | |||||
Born: | Victoria, Texas, U.S. | December 19, 1969||||
Height: | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||||
Weight: | 189 lb (86 kg) | ||||
Career information | |||||
High school: | Tucson (AZ) Amphitheater | ||||
College: | Arizona | ||||
NFL draft: | 1992 / Round: 6 / Pick: 150 | ||||
Career history | |||||
| |||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||
Career NFL statistics | |||||
| |||||
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR |
Medal record | ||
---|---|---|
Men's athletics
| ||
Representing the United States | ||
Olympic Games | ||
1992 Barcelona | 200 metres
| |
Summer Universiade
| ||
1991 Sheffield | 100 metres |
Michael Dion Bates (born December 19, 1969) is an American former two-sport
Early years
Bates attended Amphitheater High School, where he lettered in football and track. He played as a running back, recording more than 1,000 rushing yards in each of his last three seasons. As a senior, although he played in only 8 games because of an injury, he still managed to run for 1,557 yards.[1]
He set state records in the 100 metres (10.34 seconds) and 200 metres (20.68 seconds).[2] He bypassed his senior season in track, while disputing some scheduling rules by the Arizona Interscholastic Association.
As a senior, he received
In 2014, he was inducted into the Pima County Sports Hall of Fame.[3]
College career
Bates accepted a football scholarship from the University of Arizona. He played as a running back and wide receiver with the Wildcats, but was mainly used as a kickoff returner, averaging 23.7 yards on 45 kickoff returns during his college career.
As a true freshman in 1989, he had 14 returns for a 24.1-yard average. As a sophomore in 1990, he ranked among the All-purpose leaders in the Pac-10 and received honorable-mention honors. His 97-yard kickoff return for a touchdown against Washington State University was the fourth-longest in school history. He collected 31 kickoff returns for a 23.5-yard average.
In
In 1991, he did not enroll at the school so he could concentrate on his track career. He declared for the NFL draft in 1992.
In 2013, he was inducted into the University of Arizona Sports Hall of Fame.[4]
Olympics
At the June
In the
Personal bests
Event | Time (seconds) | Venue | Date |
---|---|---|---|
50 meters
|
5.75 | Los Angeles, California | February 15, 1992 |
100 meters
|
10.17 | Sheffield, England | July 21, 1991 |
200 meters
|
20.01 | Zürich, Switzerland | August 19, 1992 |
Professional career
Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | Vertical jump |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
5 ft 9+3⁄4 in (1.77 m) |
187 lb (85 kg) |
31+7⁄8 in (0.81 m) |
9 in (0.23 m) |
4.48 s | 1.61 s | 2.62 s | 34.5 in (0.88 m) |
Bates was selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the sixth round (150th overall) of the 1992 NFL draft.[6] Because of contract negotiations, he did not sign with Seattle and held out during the 1992 season, although the time away from playing helped him to reshape his body for football.
On March 7, 1993, he signed an incentive laden contract including a $15k workout bonus, $10k playoff percentage time bonus and over $50k in performance bonus. He was a backup
On August 28, 1995, the Carolina Panthers claimed Bates off waivers only to turn around and trade him the next day to the Cleveland Browns in exchange for linebacker Travis Hill.[8][9] Bates spent the last 3 games of the season on the inactive list and was not retained. On March 11, 1996, he signed as a free agent with the Panthers and began his great run of seasons with the franchise,[10] returning 33 kicks for 998 yards, with a remarkable average of 30.2 yards per return - and one kick returned for a touchdown.
After five seasons in Carolina, Bates was let go, and the
On March 31, 2003, he re-signed with Carolina but was let go in the final cut-down process for the regular season on August 31. On September 10, Bates was signed by the New York Jets, but a right-hand injury placed him on the injured reserve list on November 11, and he was later released on December 23. On December 26, he was claimed off waivers by the Dallas Cowboys for their playoff run. He was not re-signed after the season.
Bates finished with 9,154 total yards in kick returns and five kick-return touchdowns (the NFL record for kickoff return touchdowns in a career is six). He was selected to the NFL 1990s All-Decade Team.
Panthers franchise records
As of 2017[update]'s NFL off-season, Michael Bates held at least 12 Panthers franchise records, including:[11]
- Kick Returns: career (233), season (59 in 1998), game (9 on 1998-10-04 @ATL), playoff game (5 on 1997-01-05 DAL; with Rod Smart and Mark Jones)
- Kick Return Yds: career (5,987), season (1,480 in 1998), playoff game (155 on 1997-01-05 DAL)
- Yds per kick return: career (25.7), season (30.24 in 1996), playoff game (31 on 1997-01-05 DAL )
- Kick Return TDs: career (5), season (2 in 1999; with Steve Smith Sr.)
Pro Bowl records
- Most career kick returns (17)
- Most career kick return yards (488)
Personal life
His brother Mario played for the Arizona Cardinals and was a second-round draft choice of the New Orleans Saints in 1992 from Arizona State.[12] Another brother, Marion, played college football at Southern California and Arizona.
During his
References
- ^ "No. 36 • UA's Bates takes bronze at 1992 Olympics". Retrieved March 5, 2018.
- ^ "Amphitheater's all-time greatest high school football players". Retrieved March 5, 2018.
- ^ "Pima County Sports Hall of Fame". Retrieved March 5, 2018.
- ^ "University of Arizona Sports Hall of Fame". Retrieved March 5, 2018.
- ^ "Former sprinter, NFL player visits Mesa Verde". Tucson Local Media. March 6, 2013. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
- ^ "1992 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2023-05-07.
- ^ "NFL Transactions". Retrieved March 5, 2018.
- ^ "Panthers release Barry Foster". Retrieved March 5, 2018.
- ^ "NFL Transactions". Retrieved March 5, 2018.
- ^ "Transactions". Retrieved March 5, 2018.
- ^ "Carolina Panthers Team Encyclopedia". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved June 16, 2018.
- ^ Brothers in Pro Football Archived 2013-10-20 at the Wayback Machine