Early life and education

Baker was born May 5, 1941 in Pine River, Minnesota. He attended Jefferson High School in Portland, Oregon and was a standout three-sport athlete for the school's teams, the Democrats.

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 earned a letter all four years of high school in baseball and led his team to the 1959 Oregon School Activities Association state championship.

Football, however, was Baker's most dominant sport. Baker played quarterback and tailback for the Democrats. In his junior and senior seasons, the Democrats were 23-0 and won two Oregon State Athletic Association state championships. As a senior, he threw for 1,261 yards and ran for 438 yards.

College career

Baker played point guard on the Oregon State basketball team. He also played football for Oregon State from 1960 to 1962, throwing for 3,476 yards and 23 touchdowns and rushing for 1503 yards and 15 touchdowns. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering in 1963.

On November 27, 1962, he won the Heisman Trophy for his achievements during the 1962 season. He was the first player from a school west of Texas to win the award. In addition to winning the Heisman, he also won the Maxwell Award and the W. J. Voit Memorial Trophy in 1962, was a consensus first team All-American, was named as the Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year, was a Helms Foundation Award recipient and won 14 player of the year awards, including from AP, UPI and The Sporting News. He also played in the 1963 College All-Star Game, the last time the College All-Stars would ever defeat the reigning NFL champion.

Baker's 99-yard run against Villanova in the 1962 Liberty Bowl, the only score in Oregon State's 6-0 victory, remains an NCAA record. Because plays from scrimmage can never start from the goal line, the record can never be broken, only tied.

Professional career

After graduation, Baker was the first overall pick in the 1963 NFL Draft, by the Los Angeles Rams. He played with the Rams for three seasons and then for the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League (CFL), while earning a J.D. at the University of Southern California Law School.

Later years

Baker was inducted into the State of Oregon Sports Hall of Fame in 1980, the College Football Hall of Fame in 1982 and the Oregon State University Sports Hall of Fame in 1988. Oregon State has retired his #11 football jersey.

Baker is now retired from law practice and living in Portland, Oregon.

[ Source: Wikipedia ]