David Andrew Baas (born September 28, 1981) 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 with ...
center
Center or centre may refer to:
Mathematics
*Center (geometry), the middle of an object
* Center (algebra), used in various contexts
** Center (group theory)
** Center (ring theory)
* Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...
. 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 ...
for the
University of Michigan
, mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth"
, former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821)
, budget = $10.3 billion (2021)
, endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...
, and was recognized as a consensus All-American and the top college center. The
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...
selected him in the second round of the
2005 NFL Draft
The 2005 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 NFL draft, draft was held April 23–24, 2005 NFL seaso ...
, and he was a member of the New York Giants'
Super Bowl XLVI
Super Bowl XLVI was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion New York Giants and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion ...
championship team against the
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...
.
Early years
Baas was born in
Bixby, Oklahoma
Bixby is a city in Tulsa County, Oklahoma, Tulsa and Wagoner County, Oklahoma, Wagoner counties in the U.S. state of Oklahoma, and is a suburb of Tulsa, Oklahoma, Tulsa. The population was 28,609 at the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census and ...
Sarasota, Florida
Sarasota () is a city in Sarasota County on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The area is renowned for its cultural and environmental amenities, beaches, resorts, and the Sarasota School of Architecture. The city is located in the sout ...
, and was a letterman in high school football and track and field for the Riverview Rams. In football, he was awarded ''USA Today'' All-USA honors. During his junior year, he recorded a school-record 70 pancake blocks.
College career
Baas attended the
University of Michigan
, mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth"
, former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821)
, budget = $10.3 billion (2021)
, endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...
, where he played for coach
Lloyd Carr
Lloyd Henry Carr Jr. (born July 30, 1945) is a former American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at the University of Michigan from 1995 through the 2007 season. Under Carr, the Michigan Wolverines compiled a record ...
's
Michigan Wolverines football
The Michigan Wolverines football team represents the University of Michigan in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. Michigan has the most all-time wins in college football history. The team is known for its ...
team from 2001 to 2004. He earned first-team All-
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...
honors three times. He started at
left guard
In gridiron football, a guard (G), otherwise known as an offensive guard (OG), is a player who lines up between the center and the tackles on the offensive line of a football team on the line of scrimmage used primarily for blocking. Right g ...
until the middle of his senior season, when he was moved to
center
Center or centre may refer to:
Mathematics
*Center (geometry), the middle of an object
* Center (algebra), used in various contexts
** Center (group theory)
** Center (ring theory)
* Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...
. As a senior in 2004, he was the Hugh H. Rader awardee as the Wolverines' best offensive lineman, a finalist for the
Outland Trophy
The Outland Trophy is awarded to the best college football interior lineman in the United States as adjudged by the Football Writers Association of America. It is named after John H. Outland. One of only a few players ever to be named an All-Ame ...
, given to college football's best interior lineman, and a co-recipient of the
Rimington Trophy
The Dave Rimington Trophy is awarded to the player considered to be the best American football center in college football. Dave Rimington was a center who played at the University of Nebraska from 1979 to 1982.
A member of the National College F ...
, awarded to college football's top center. He was also recognized as a consensus first-team All-American in
2004
2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO).
Events January
* January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
. He majored in general studies.
Professional career
San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers drafted Baas in the second round (33rd overall) of the 2005 NFL Draft. He played in 13 games in 2005 and started in 5 of them. Baas' first game was in the historical
Mexico City
Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...
game on October 2 against the
Arizona Cardinals
The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...
as a special teams player. On December 4, he made his first start as a right guard against the same Cardinals team when
Eric Heitmann
Eric Wade Heitmann (born February 24, 1980) is a former center. He was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the 7th round (239th overall) of the 2002 NFL Draft.
College career
Heitmann graduated from Stanford University where he was voted firs ...
was moved to center.
Baas played in all 16 games in 2006, mainly as a special teams player and as an extra eligible tackle on the offensive line.
In 2007, Baas started in 8 of the 15 games that he played in at right guard, after then-starter
Justin Smiley
Justin Smiley (born November 11, 1981) is a former American football guard. He was originally drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the second round of the 2004 NFL Draft. He played college football at Alabama.
He was a member of the Miami Dolp ...
was put on
injured reserve
The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...
with a shoulder injury.
He was re-signed to a one-year contract on April 13, 2010.
New York Giants
On July 29, 2011, Baas signed with the
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...
as an unrestricted free agent. Baas was the starting center during Super Bowl XLVI in which the Giants defeated the
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...
.
In the August 18, 2013 preseason game against the Colts, David Baas sprained his MCL in the first quarter and underwent an MRI and additional tests. The Giants reported Baas could be out for 3–6 weeks. The Giants fell to the Colts 20-12 in the game. Due to injuries, Baas appeared in only 3 games for the Giants during the 2013 regular season, the last being a week 7 game against the
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...
. In that game, he suffered a knee injury and was placed on injured reserve following the game.
On March 10, 2014, Baas was waived/failed physical from the Giants, designated as a post-June 1 cut. It was reported Baas may never play again due to neck and knee injuries.
Personal
Baas is married to his wife, Elizabeth, and they reside in
Lakewood Ranch, Florida
Lakewood Ranch is a planned community and census-designated place in southeastern Manatee County and northeastern Sarasota County, Florida, United States, consisting of approximately . It is part of the North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, Florida Met ...