Barry Antoine Minter (born January 28, 1970) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL) for the Chicago Bears and

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (A ...

. He played college football at the University of Tulsa.

Early years

Minter attended Mount Pleasant High School, where he

lettered Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...

in football,

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

and track. As a junior, he earned All-state honors in the

pole vault Pole vaulting, also known as pole jumping, is a track and field event in which an athlete uses a long and flexible pole, usually made from fiberglass or carbon fiber, as an aid to jump over a bar. Pole jumping competitions were known to the Myc ...

. As a senior, he received All-district honors in football and

. While playing for the Tigers football team, Barry would often play tuba, in uniform, with the Goin' Gold Tiger Marching Band at halftime during games. He accepted a football scholarship from the University of Tulsa, where he was

redshirted Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically, a student's athletic eligibility in a given sport is four seasons, aligning with the ...

as a freshman. Although he was recruited as a

safety Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings There are two slightly dif ...

, he was converted into a

in 1989. He was a backup during his first two seasons and underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee in 1990. As a junior, he started 10 games at outside linebacker, becoming the defense best player, while ranking second on the team in tackles with 89 (56 solo), despite missing the eighth game of the season because of a left knee ligament sprain. He also compiled 5 sacks, 2 quarterback pressures, 11 tackles for loss, 3 passes defensed, 6 forced fumbles and 3 interceptions, including one returned for a 48-yard

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Amer ...

against the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. T ...

. As a senior, he posted 119 tackles (2 for loss), 9 quarterback pressures, one sack and one interception that he returned for a 74-yard

against the

University of Texas at El Paso The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is a public research university in El Paso, Texas. It is a member of the University of Texas System. UTEP is the second-largest university in the United States to have a majority Mexican American stud ...

. He was nicknamed "Deer" because of his acceleration, finishing his college career with 261 tackles (141 solo), 11 tackles for loss, 7 sacks, 12 quarterback pressures and 6 interceptions.

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys

He was selected by the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divi ...

in the sixth round (168th overall) of the

1993 NFL Draft The 1993 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 25–26, 1993, at the Marriot Ma ...

. On August 17, after former Cowboys defensive coordinator

Dave Wannstedt David Wannstedt (born May 21, 1952) is a former American football coach. He has been the head coach of the Chicago Bears and Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). He was also the head coach of the University of Pittsburgh foot ...

became the

head coach A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manager", as in assoc ...

for the Chicago Bears, he was traded along with

Vinson Smith and a sixth-round draft pick (#198- Carl Reeves), in exchange for

John Roper,

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Lik ...

Kelly Blackwell and

Markus Paul. It has been reported that Cowboys head coach Jimmy Johnson accepted the trade to help close friend

in his new job, with all of the players received eventually being waived.

Chicago Bears

Minter was used both as an outside and

middle linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, ...

in nickel packages until 1996, when he became a starter at

after

Bryan Cox Bryan Keith Cox Sr. (born February 17, 1968) is an American football coach and former player. He is the assistant defensive line coach for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for Western Illino ...

was lost for the season with a broken thumb and finished with 106 tackles. The next year, he led the team with 125 tackles and 6 sacks. He led the team in tackles 4 straight years (–), until injuring his back in the second game of the 2000 season and being replaced in the starting lineup by rookie

Brian Urlacher Brian Urlacher (; born May 25, 1978) is an American former football linebacker who spent his entire 13-season career in the National Football League (NFL) with the Chicago Bears. He played college football for the New Mexico Lobos, where h ...

, who became an

All-Pro All-Pro is an honor bestowed upon professional American football players that designates the best player at each position during a given season. All-Pro players are typically selected by press organizations, who select an "All-Pro team," a list t ...

and never relinquished the position back to him. Minter was released because of salary-cap reasons on June 1, 2001. He is also one of the standout stars of the Nintendo 64 game known as Blitz.

Cleveland Browns

On August 12, 2001, the

signed him as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

. He appeared in one game before being waived on September 20.

References

External links

Replacement Game Never Ends
{{DEFAULTSORT:Minter, Barry Living people 1970 births People from Mount Pleasant, Texas Players of American football from Texas American football middle linebackers Tulsa Golden Hurricane football players Chicago Bears players Cleveland Browns players