Baigeh Joe Tucker (born October 12, 1980) is a former professional football

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 ...

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 Pittsburgh Steelers and

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 ...

. He also was a member of the

BC Lions The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place. The Lions played their first seas ...

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 at the

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, ...

. He is distinguished as being the first

Sierra Leonean Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierra ...

to play in the

Early years

B.J., short for Baigeh Joe, was born in

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierr ...

and moved with family to Seattle in 1990. He did not take up football until his freshman year of high school. Tucker attended

Nicolet High School Nicolet High School is a public secondary school located in Glendale, Wisconsin. It is the only school in the Nicolet Unified School District, which serves Glendale, Fox Point, Bayside, and River Hills. Primary schooling is administered by thr ...

, where he played as a

, wide receiver 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 handoffs from the quarterback to rush the ball, to line up as a receiver to catch the ball, and block. Ther ...

. He led the team in rushing as a junior. The next year, he received Super Prep All-American, All-conference and North Shore Conference Defensive Back of the Year honors, while registering 38 receptions for 628 yards at wide receiver. He was a standout

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...

athlete, winning the state

100 100 or one hundred ( Roman numeral: C) is the natural number following 99 and preceding 101. In medieval contexts, it may be described as the short hundred or five score in order to differentiate the English and Germanic use of "hundred" to de ...

and

200 metres The 200 metres, or 200-meter dash, is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 metre racetrack, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques is needed to successfully run the race. A slightl ...

. He also won those events at the Nike Junior Olympics meet in Seattle in 1998. He won 6 state track titles (two each in the

200 __NOTOC__ Year 200 ( CC) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Severus and Victorinus (or, less frequently, year 953 ''Ab ur ...

and 4 × 100 relay) and was named Wisconsin's 1998 Track Athlete of the Year.

College career

Football

Tucker accepted a scholarship from the

. He appeared in only one game as a freshman. In 2000, he was the top backup and nickel back, appearing in 9 games (2 starts), while making 23 tackles and 7 passes defensed. The next year, he started the first two contests and finished with 9 games appearances, 15 tackles and 2 passes defensed. As a senior, he focused on football and became a starter at right cornerback, posting 76 tackles, 5

interception In ball-playing competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for a player of the same team ...

s (led the team and second in the conference), 12 passes defensed, one fumble recovery and one forced fumble. He finished his college career after playing in 34 games (18 starts), registering 115 tackles (94 solo), 21 passes defensed and 5 interceptions.

Track and field

In 1999, he was a part of the school's Big Ten Conference Champion indoor and outdoor teams, finishing second in the

60 metres 60 metres, or 60-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field. It is a championship event for indoor championships, normally dominated by the best outdoor 100 metres runners. At outdoor venues it is a rare distance, at least for senior ath ...

at the 2000 indoor finals. In 2000, he helped defend the Big Ten Conference Champion indoor and outdoor championships. In 2001, he finished second in 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 ...

as the school won the Big Ten Conference outdoor track title. His personal bests were 10.35 seconds in the

, 21.10 in the

and 6.70 seconds in the

Personal bests

Professional career

2003 NFL Combine

Dallas Cowboys

Tucker was selected by the

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 divi ...

in the sixth round (178th overall) of the

2003 NFL Draft The 2003 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League (NFL) teams selected amateur college football players. The draft is known officially as the "NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting" and has been conducted annually since 1936. T ...

, because of his track speed. He was waived on August 17.

New Orleans Saints

On August 19, 2003, he was claimed off waivers by the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

and was later released on August 31.

Oakland Raiders

The Oakland Raiders signed him to their practice squad on September 4, 2003, but was later cut.

Pittsburgh Steelers

The Pittsburgh Steelers signed him to their practice squad on December 12, 2003. He was signed to the active roster on December 24. He was waived before the start of the season on May 20, 2004.

Seattle Seahawks

On February 1, 2005, 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 Seattle Seahawks and was allocated to the

Amsterdam Admirals The Amsterdam Admirals were a professional American football team based in Amsterdam, Netherlands, playing in the NFL Europe. History The Admirals were formed in 1995 as part of the NFL's plan to restart the World League of American Football, to ...

of NFL Europe. He had a strong showing there, including being named All-NFL Europe, tied for the league lead with 5

s and helped his team win

World Bowl XIII World Bowl XIII, officially known as Yello Strom World Bowl XIII, was NFL Europe's 2005 championship game. It was played at the LTU arena in Düsseldorf, Germany on June 11, 2005. In this match-up, the 6–4 Amsterdam Admirals got back to the ...

. He was released on September 4.

San Francisco 49ers

On October 8, 2005, the

signed him to their roster, before being cut 2 days later and signed him to the practice squad on October 12. He would later be waived and signed during different periods of times. On July 16, 2007, 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 ...

with a pectoral muscle injury. He wasn't re-signed after the season.

BC Lions (CFL)

On September 16,

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

, he signed with the

of the

CFL 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 played in four games mainly on

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 ...

, before being released on June 18, 2009. He is currently a firefighter in Tacoma, WA, serving since 2011.

References

External links

Tucker fighting for more than NFL career
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tucker, B.J. 1980 births Living people Sportspeople from Freetown Sierra Leonean emigrants to the United States Sportspeople from the Milwaukee metropolitan area Sierra Leonean players of American football Sierra Leonean players of Canadian football Players of American football from Wisconsin American football cornerbacks Wisconsin Badgers football players Pittsburgh Steelers players Amsterdam Admirals players San Francisco 49ers players Sherbro people BC Lions players