Michael Robert Prior (born November 14, 1963) 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 ...
who played for the
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...
,
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...
and
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...
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). He played college football at
Illinois State
Illinois State University (ISU) is a Public university, public university in Normal, Illinois. Founded in 1857 as Illinois State Normal University, it is the oldest public university in Illinois. The university emphasizes teaching and is reco ...
.
He currently serves as the Youth Football Commissioner for the
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...
.
Early years
Prior attended
Marian Catholic High School in
Chicago Heights, Illinois
Chicago Heights is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 27,480 at the 2020 census. In earlier years, Chicago Heights was nicknamed "The Crossroads of the Nation". Currently, it is nicknamed "The Heights".
Geograp ...
where he played football, baseball, and wrestling. Prior played both football and baseball at
Illinois State
Illinois State University (ISU) is a Public university, public university in Normal, Illinois. Founded in 1857 as Illinois State Normal University, it is the oldest public university in Illinois. The university emphasizes teaching and is reco ...
, setting the school record for batting average at .388.
He also set the school record in punt return yardage and had his No. 15 jersey retired by the football team.
Immediately following his college career, Prior was drafted by the
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...
in the fourth round of the
1985 Major League Baseball Draft
First round draft picks
The following are the first round picks in the 1985 Major League Baseball draft.
Supplemental First Round Selections
Background
Six of the first eight draft picks from the June regular phase had at least one full ...
and the
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...
in the seventh round of the
1985 NFL Draft
The 1985 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. The draft was held April 30 and May 1, 1985, at the Omni Park Central Hotel in New York City, New York. The league also hel ...
.
He was also drafted by the
Baltimore Orioles
The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...
in the 18th round of the 1984 draft and by the
Houston Astros
The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...
in the fourth round of the 1986 secondary draft. Prior chose football because it would be easier to raise a family and involve less traveling than working through baseball's minor leagues.
Professional career
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Prior played his rookie season with the
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...
in 1985.
He almost made the starting lineup at safety, but the late add of
David Greenwood
David Murphy-Kasim Greenwood (born May 27, 1957) is an American retired professional basketball player whose National Basketball Association (NBA) career spanned 12 years from 1979 to 1991. Greenwood made his NBA debut on October 13, 1979 and was ...
relegated Prior to mainly special teams action as a member of the Bucs. A fractured wrist sustained in a preseason game against 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 ...
landed him on injured reserve; he was waived from that list in October.
Indianapolis Colts
Prior joined the
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...
in February 1987. He was cut by the team on September 1, but later returned as a replacement player in the
1987 NFL Strike, starting three games. After the strike ended, the team retained him, initially utilizing Prior on special teams but later moving him up to a defensive starter. In 1989, Prior intercepted a
Bernie Kosar
Bernard Joseph Kosar Jr. (born November 25, 1963) is a former American football quarterback who played collegiately at the University of Miami where he led the team to a national championship in 1983. He subsequently played professionally in ...
pass and returned it for a touchdown in overtime to help the Colts defeat the
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 ( ...
. He was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week for his exploits. In 1990, Prior caught his first NFL pass on a successful fake punt attempt. Prior was injured early in the 1991 season, and was placed on the injured reserve list in October. He stayed with team through the 1992 season and then became a free agent.
Green Bay Packers
Prior signed with the
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...
in April 1993.
The team brought him on as a replacement for the recently departed
Chuck Cecil
Charles Douglas "Chuck" Cecil (born November 8, 1964) is an American football coach and former player in the National Football League (NFL). He is currently the safeties coach at the University of Arizona in Tucson, his alma mater. He previously ...
. In his debut season, Prior moved into the punt returner role late in the year when
Robert Brooks
Robert Darren Brooks (born June 23, 1970) is a former American football wide receiver who attended University of South Carolina and played for the Green Bay Packers (1992–1998) and the Denver Broncos.
Biography Early life
Brooks sta ...
was injured. Injuries in the defensive backfield led to an increased late-season role in 1994. Prior nabbed an interception 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 ...
.
He was released by the team before the 1998 season but was quickly re-signed. The Packers did not re-sign Prior after the season.
After football
Prior is married with three daughters. He graduated from Illinois State with a degree in business administration. Prior was previously athletic director for St. Luke School in Indianapolis. He has served as the Youth Football Commissioner for the
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...
since 2005.
and is also an assistant football coach at
Cathedral High School in Indianapolis.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Prior, Mike
1963 births
Living people
People from Chicago Heights, Illinois
American football safeties
Illinois State Redbirds football players
Tampa Bay Buccaneers players
Indianapolis Colts players
Green Bay Packers players
Sportspeople from Cook County, Illinois
Players of American football from Illinois
National Football League replacement players