Byron Craig Westbrook
(born December 26, 1984) is an
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 with ...
coach and former
cornerback
A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such offensive running plays as sweeps and reverses. They create tur ...
. He was signed by the
Washington Redskins
The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...
as an
undrafted 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 ...
in 2007 and played for the team until 2011. He played
college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States.
Unlike most ...
at
Salisbury University
Salisbury University is a public university in Salisbury, Maryland. Founded in 1925, Salisbury is a member of the University System of Maryland, with a fall 2016 enrollment of 8,748.
Salisbury University offers 42 distinct undergraduate and 14 ...
. Since 2017, he has been head football coach at
Bladensburg High School
Bladensburg High School is a public high school located in Bladensburg, Maryland, United States. The school, which serves grades 9 through 12, is a part of the Prince George's County Public Schools district.
The school serves: the towns of Blad ...
in
Bladensburg, Maryland
Bladensburg is a town in Prince George's County, Maryland. The population was 9,657 at the 2020 census. Areas in Bladensburg are located within ZIP code 20710. Bladensburg is from central Washington.
History
Originally called Garrison's Landi ...
.
Early years
Born in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
and raised in
Fort Washington, Maryland
Fort Washington is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. It borders the Potomac River, situated 20 miles south of the downtown Washington, DC. As of the 2020 census it had a popul ...
, Westbrook attended and played
high school football
High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...
at
DeMatha Catholic High School
DeMatha Catholic High School is a four-year Catholic high school for boys located in Hyattsville, Maryland, United States. Named after John of Matha, DeMatha is under the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington and is a member of the Washington Ca ...
in
Hyattsville, Maryland
Hyattsville is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, and also a close, urban suburb of Washington, D.C. The population was 21,187 at the 2020 United States Census.
History
Before Europeans reached the area, the upper An ...
.
College career
Westbrook set a record for career interceptions at
Salisbury University
Salisbury University is a public university in Salisbury, Maryland. Founded in 1925, Salisbury is a member of the University System of Maryland, with a fall 2016 enrollment of 8,748.
Salisbury University offers 42 distinct undergraduate and 14 ...
with 18. He was a 2006 American Football Coaches Association
All-American. In addition, he was a three-time All-
Atlantic Central Football Conference
The Atlantic Central Football Conference (ACFC) was a college athletic conference which competed in football only in the NCAA Division III. Its member teams were located in Delaware, Maryland and Virginia. The conference disbanded following the 2 ...
first-team selection at defensive back and was a two-time first-team selection on special teams. He is also the only Salisbury University graduate to play in the NFL. Westbrook graduated from Salisbury in December 2006 with a
B.S.
A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years.
The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University ...
in
information systems
An information system (IS) is a formal, sociotechnical, organizational system designed to collect, process, information storage, store, and information distribution, distribute information. From a sociotechnical perspective, information systems a ...
.
Professional career
Washington Redskins
Westbrook was signed by the
Washington Redskins
The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...
as an
undrafted 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 ...
on May 15, 2007. On September 1, he was released after not making final roster cuts, but was signed to the team's practice squad the next day.
On August 30, 2008, he was released after not making the team's final roster again. He was re-signed to the team's practice squad the next day.
On February 11, 2009, the Redskins re-signed Westbrook.
The Redskins decided not to tender restricted free agent contract to Westbrook by March 13 deadline, which allowed him to become an
unrestricted 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 ...
for the
2012 season.
Post-football career
In January 2017, Westbrook was hired as the head football coach at
Bladensburg High School
Bladensburg High School is a public high school located in Bladensburg, Maryland, United States. The school, which serves grades 9 through 12, is a part of the Prince George's County Public Schools district.
The school serves: the towns of Blad ...
in
Bladensburg, Maryland
Bladensburg is a town in Prince George's County, Maryland. The population was 9,657 at the 2020 census. Areas in Bladensburg are located within ZIP code 20710. Bladensburg is from central Washington.
History
Originally called Garrison's Landi ...
.
Personal
He is the younger brother of
Brian Westbrook
Brian Collins Westbrook (born September 2, 1979) is a former American football running back who played for nine seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the third round of the 2002 NFL Draft af ...
, a two-time
Pro Bowl
The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players.
The format has changed thro ...
running back
A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...
. His cousin,
Lawrence Westbrook, is currently a point guard for the
Neckar Riesen Ludwigsburg of the German
Basketball Bundesliga
The Basketball Bundesliga (BBL) (English language: ''Federal Basketball League''), for sponsorship reasons named easyCredit BBL, is the highest level league of professional club basketball in Germany. The league comprises 18 teams. A BBL season ...
league.
Westbrook was inducted into the Salisbury University Athletics Hall of Fame in 2017.
References
External links
Washington Redskins bio archived by archive.org
Salisbury University May 15, 2007 Press Release*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Westbrook, Byron
1984 births
Living people
DeMatha Catholic High School alumni
American football cornerbacks
Salisbury Sea Gulls football players
Washington Redskins players
People from Fort Washington, Maryland
Players of American football from Washington, D.C.
High school football coaches in Maryland
Players of American football from Maryland
Coaches of American football from Maryland