Michael Antonio Brooks (born March 12, 1967) 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 ...

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

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

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...

and

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 divisi ...

. He also was a member of the

Baltimore CFLers The Baltimore Stallions (known officially as the "Baltimore Football Club" and previously as the "Baltimore CFL Colts" in its inaugural season) were a Canadian Football League team based in Baltimore, Maryland, in the United States, which played ...

and Memphis Mad Dogs in the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

(CFL). 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 ...

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The universit ...

Early years

Brooks attended

Walter Hines Page High School Walter Hines Page Senior High School is a public high school in Greensboro, North Carolina commonly referred to as Page High School or simply Page. History Walter Hines Page Senior High School opened its doors in September, 1958, under the leader ...

, where he was an All-State

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, p ...

and

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 ...

. He was a teammate of future NFL players

Haywood Jeffires Haywood Franklin Jeffires (pronounced "Jeffries"; born December 12, 1964) is a former professional American football player who was selected by the Houston Oilers in the 1st round (20th overall) of the 1987 NFL Draft out of North Carolina State. ...

and

Todd Ellis Todd Ellis (born May 16, 1967) is a former American football quarterback. He was drafted by the Denver Broncos in the ninth round of the 1990 NFL Draft, but never appeared in an NFL game. He played one season for the Sacramento Surge of the World ...

, while helping his team win three straight state championships. He won the

100 metres The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been conteste ...

state championship as a senior.

College career

Brooks accepted a football scholarship from

. He was an

outside 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, ...

as a freshman. The next year, he was moved to

free safety Safety is a position in gridiron football on the defense. The safeties are defensive backs who line up ten to fifteen yards from the line of scrimmage. There are two variations of the position: the free safety and the strong safety. Their dut ...

and became a starter. As a junior, he registered 105 tackles (led the team) and at the time tied for second best in school history with 14 passes defensed. He had 10 tackles against the University of South Carolina. As a senior, he posted 82 tackles (second on the team), 2 interceptions and 7 passes defensed. In the 1988 Peach Bowl, he received defensive MVP honors after making a bowl record 3 interceptions (he also had 8 passes defensed) and helping N.C. State win 28-23. He finished his college career with 277 tackles, 8 interceptions, 4 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries and 30 passes defensed (tied for second in school history). He also was an All-American sprinter, helping the school win three straight

ACC ACC most often refers to: * Atlantic Coast Conference, an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic conference located in the US *American College of Cardiology, A US-based nonprofit medical association that bestows credentials upon cardiovascular spec ...

outdoor

track Track or Tracks may refer to: Routes or imprints * Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity * Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across * Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...

titles.

Professional career

San Diego Chargers

Brooks was signed 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 ...

by the

after the

1989 NFL Draft The 1989 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 23–24, 1989, at the Marriott Marq ...

in May. He was waived on September 3 and signed to the

practice squad In sports, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, ...

, where he spent the first 14 weeks of the season, before being promoted to the active roster for the last 2 contests. He only played in the season finale against the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...

. He was released on September 3,

1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...

. On September 26, 1990, he was re-signed for depth purposes because of injuries. He was released on October 11.

Dallas Cowboys

On November 7,

, he was signed to the

. On December 10, he was promoted to active roster to play because of injuries, posting 2

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their "position". Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

tackles. On August 20,

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...

, he was placed on the

injured reserve list 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 ...

after tearing his left

anterior cruciate ligament The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of a pair of cruciate ligaments (the other being the posterior cruciate ligament) in the human knee. The two ligaments are also called "cruciform" ligaments, as they are arranged in a crossed formation ...

Denver Broncos

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...

, he was signed 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 ...

by the

. He was cut on August 24.

Baltimore Baltimore CFLers (CFL)

On May 21,

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which Sinking of the MS Estonia, sank in ...

, he signed with the

of the

. He was a part of the franchise's inaugural season, while helping his team reach the

Grey Cup The Grey Cup (french: Coupe Grey) is both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. The game is contested be ...

(first American-based CFL team to achieve this goal) and receiving Eastern All-Star honors. He was released in June

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...

Memphis Mad Dogs (CFL)

On July 31,

, he signed with the Memphis Mad Dogs of the

. He originally was placed on the practice roster, but later played in three regular season games. His main role was on the special teams, where he made seven tackles. On September 16, he was released after refusing to accept a new contract with a reduced salary.

Personal life

After football, he worked for

American Express American Express Company (Amex) is an American multinational corporation specialized in payment card services headquartered at 200 Vesey Street in the Battery Park City neighborhood of Lower Manhattan in New York City. The company was found ...

References

External links

They came to play: from the NFL to CFL
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brooks, Michael 1967 births Living people Players of American football from Greensboro, North Carolina American football safeties NC State Wolfpack football players NC State Wolfpack men's track and field athletes San Diego Chargers players Dallas Cowboys players Baltimore Stallions players Memphis Mad Dogs players