Ronyell Whitaker (born March 19, 1979) is a former professional

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 wi ...

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...

. He was signed by the NFL's

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) South division. The cl ...

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 2002 and played for 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 expansi ...

, the Detroit Lions and the CFL's

Winnipeg Blue Bombers The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a professional Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Blue Bombers compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West division. They play their home games at IG Fie ...

before retiring from professional football in 2010.

Early years

Ronyell Deshawn Whitaker was born March 19, 1979, in Norfolk, Virginia, the son of Sylvonia Whitaker and Woodrow Mitchell. Ronyell is the nephew of Hall Of Fame boxer Pernell 'Sweet Pea' Whitaker. He graduated from Norfolk's

Lake Taylor High School Lake Taylor High School is a public high school located in Norfolk, Virginia and is the "Home of the Mighty Titans". It is administered by Norfolk City Public Schools. The school colors are red and black and its mascot is the Titans. Lake Taylor ...

, where he "

lettered Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...

four years as a running back, defensive back and return man"; he scored 84 touchdowns and ran for 6,458 yards. Whitaker was 3x All American and All Tidewater Player Of The Year Whitaker played college football at

Virginia Tech Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also has educational facilities in six re ...

, where he was a 3 year starter "rated the No. 3 cornerback in the nation by ''

The Sporting News The ''Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a pr ...

'' ndranked the No. 6 cornerback by

Lindy's Lindy's was two different deli and restaurant chains in Manhattan, New York City. The first chain, founded by Leo "Lindy" Lindemann, operated from 1921 to 1969.("Opening date was Aug. 20, 1921.") In 1979, the Riese Organization determined that ...

." 2x Big East All Conference & AP All American

Professional career

In 2006, he led NFL Europe in interceptions and defensive touchdowns, with 141 return yards and two touchdowns, and was named to the All NFL Europe team. In one of his games in the NFLE in 2006, his 100-yard interception return for a score was his team's sole touchdown of the game. On February 6, 2007, the Vikings released him after 2 seasons. Whitaker spent a brief stint with the Detroit Lions (NFL) before being released just after the end of the 2008–2009 season. Whitaker then signed with the

of 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 ...

. He was released on June 25, 2009.

Career after football

, Whitaker is back in Minnesota, CEO/Owner of Privately owned Whitaker Group LLC, Minneapolis–Saint Paul area real estate team, specializing in relocation transactions for the Vikings, as well as

short sales In finance, being short in an asset means investing in such a way that the investor will profit if the value of the asset falls. This is the opposite of a more conventional " long" position, where the investor will profit if the value of t ...

References

1979 births Living people American football cornerbacks American players of Canadian football Canadian football defensive backs Virginia Tech Hokies football players Tampa Bay Buccaneers players Minnesota Vikings players Rhein Fire players Detroit Lions players Winnipeg Blue Bombers players {{Canadianfootball-defensiveback-stub