Mike McGruder (born May 6, 1964) 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 ...

player who played 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 ...

. He played in

Super Bowl XXXI Super Bowl XXXI was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Green Bay Packers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champio ...

with 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 ...

as a

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 played a total of 12 years of professional football in the NFL and CFL (Saskatchewan Roughridershttp://cflapedia.com/). This Cleveland Heights, Ohio High School track and football stand out began his professional career after being a four-year starter at

Kent State University Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio. The university also includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio and additional facilities in the region and internationally. Regional campuses are located in As ...

. McGruder was team football captain his senior year and 2 year captain of the track team at

. McGruder was among league leaders being tied for third in the NFC with 5 interceptions in 1993 while playing with 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 ...

. McGruder was a finalist for the NFL

Bart Starr Award The Athletes in Action/Bart Starr Award is given annually to a National Football League (NFL) player who "best exemplifies outstanding character and leadership in the home, on the field, and in the community." Nominees are gathered from the public ...

in 1997. Mike McGruder was voted one of the best names in the NFL. McGruder has two daughters, Jenerra and Dior.

References

1964 births Living people American football cornerbacks Green Bay Packers players Miami Dolphins players San Francisco 49ers players Tampa Bay Buccaneers players New England Patriots players Kent State Golden Flashes football players Players of American football from Cleveland Cleveland Heights High School alumni {{Defensiveback-1960s-stub