Terry Baker
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Terry Wayne Baker (born May 5, 1941) is an American former
Early life and education
Born in Pine River, Minnesota, Baker was raised in Portland, Oregon, and attended its Jefferson High School, where was a standout three-sport athlete. Baker was a three-year letter winner in basketball, and led the Democrats to the Portland Interscholastic League city championship his senior year. Baker was also a great baseball player; he lettered all four years and led Jefferson to the 1959 state championship.
Football was Baker's most dominant sport and he played quarterback and tailback for the Democrats. In his junior and senior seasons, the Democrats were 23–0 and won consecutive state championships. As a senior, he threw for 1,261 yards and ran for 438 yards.[3]
College career
Baker played point guard on the Oregon State basketball team, and quarterback in football, but was a halfback as a sophomore in 1960. He threw for 3,476 yards and 23 touchdowns and rushing for 1503 yards and 15 touchdowns, and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering in 1963.
On November 27, 1962, Baker
Baker's 99-yard run in the first quarter against Villanova in the frigid Liberty Bowl (in Philadelphia in mid-December 1962), the only score in Oregon State's 6–0 victory,[5][6][7] remains an NCAA record. Because plays from scrimmage can never start from the goal line, the record can never be broken, only tied.[citation needed]
Professional career
Baker was the first overall pick in the
Before going into training camp with the Rams, he led the College All-Stars to victory in the Chicago College All-Star Game that matched them against the defending NFL champion (Green Bay Packers), the last time the college team would beat an NFL team before the game was discontinued in 1976. When Baker arrived in camp, he dazzled in the presentation of calling out signals and handing the ball out while doing soft throws for warm-up lobs. However, as camp went on, it was discovered that he did not have a strong arm to throw the ball hard more than a general lob, as his arm was used to rolling out to throw in college rather than throwing a straight pass from the pocket. The result was that while he could throw short passes capably, his long passes were susceptible to being intercepted due to low velocity. In a game against the Detroit Lions, Baker threw three interceptions, with one returned for a touchdown.[10] He went 6-of-12 for 72 yards while rushing four times for 21 yards in a 23-2 loss.[11] Four games later, he went 5-of-7 for 68 yards with one interception versus the Chicago Cardinals while running five times for 25 yards. These were his only two games where he served as a primary quarterback (aside from two games where he was sent to throw one pass). He scored his only touchdowns in his final season of 1965. He caught 8 passes for 82 yards against the Chicago Bears on September 26; he caught a ten-yard pass from Bill Munson in the fourth quarter that served as the go-ahead points in a 30-28 win.[12] The next week against the Minnesota Vikings, Baker caught a 38-yard pass from Gabriel in the first quarter, but the Rams lost 38-35 while he caught four passes for 61 yards.[13] He scored his last touchdown on October 17, 1965, rushing the ball one yard in his only carry against the San Francisco 49ers in a loss.[14]
In total, Baker rushed 58 times for 210 yards in his career with thirty catches for 302 yards in three seasons with the Rams as quarterback-turned-halfback-turned-receiver before he was released in the summer of 1966. He went to the
Later years
Baker was inducted into the
See also
References
- ^ a b Wright, Alfred (January 7, 1963). "Sportsman of the Year: Terry Baker". Sports Illustrated. p. 16.
- ^ "Heisman Trophy". Archived from the original on December 8, 2007. Retrieved 2008-01-05.
- ^ "Terry Baker". Heisman. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
- ^ "VanderKelen sparks Stars to 20-17 win". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. August 3, 1963. p. 1B.
- ^ "Oregon State wins Liberty Bowl, 6-0". Reading Eagle. (Pennsylvania). UPI. December 16, 1962. p. 41.
- ^ "Beavers win on Baker's big run". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. December 16, 1962. p. 1B.
- ^ "Fumbles foil Villanova's bid for grid upset". Bend Bulletin. (Oregon). UPI. December 17, 1962. p. 3.
- ^ "Terry Baker". pro-football-reference.com. Retrieved 2008-01-05.
- ^ "Beavers in the Pros" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-02-08. Retrieved 2008-01-04.
- ^ "Two Big Surprises: Longshot Makes It, a Sureshot Doesn't : TERRY BAKER : He Seemed to Have It All and the Rams Went for It". Los Angeles Times. 26 April 1987.
- ^ "Detroit Lions at Los Angeles Rams - September 14th, 1963". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
- ^ "Chicago Bears at Los Angeles Rams - September 26th, 1965". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
- ^ "Minnesota Vikings at Los Angeles Rams - October 3rd, 1965". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
- ^ "Terry Baker Career Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
- ^ Eggers, Kerry (November 22, 2012). "Heisman redux for Terry Baker". Portland Tribune. Retrieved 6 June 2017.
- ^ "Tonkon Torp Firm History". tonkon.com. Tonkon Torp LLP. Retrieved 6 June 2017.
- ^ "Terry Baker – Football | Oregon Sports Hall of Fame & Museum". Retrieved 2021-02-01.
- ^ "Terry Baker (1988) - Hall of Fame". Oregon State University Athletics. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
- ^ "Terry Baker – Football | Oregon Sports Hall of Fame & Museum".
- ^ "Numbers you don't mess with in the Pac-12". 3 June 2015.
Further reading
- Beau Riffenburgh, "Terry Baker: A Different Success", The Coffin Corner, vol. 9, no. 7 (1987).
External links
- Terry Baker at the College Football Hall of Fame
- Terry Baker at Heisman.com
- Career statistics and player information from NFL.com · Pro Football Reference
- Terry Baker Oral History Interview