Justin Earl Skaggs (April 22, 1979 – June 15, 2007) was an

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

player. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

Evangel University Evangel University is a private Christian university and seminary in Springfield, Missouri, United States. It is affiliated with the Assemblies of God Christian denomination, which is also headquartered in Springfield. The campus sits on that ...

. After going undrafted in the

2001 NFL draft The 2001 NFL draft was the 66th draft annual of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible professional football players. The draft, which is officially referred to as the "NFL Player Selection Meeting", was held at the Th ...

, Skaggs went on to have a seven-year professional football career in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL),

NFL Europe NFL Europe League (simply called NFL Europe and known in its final season as NFL Europa) was a professional American football league that functioned as the List of developmental and minor sports leagues, developmental minor league of the Nati ...

, and

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 Arena Football League season, 1987 season, making it the third longest-runnin ...

(AFL). In his career, Skaggs played for the Redskins,

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the 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 ...

, and

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (colloquially known as the Bucs) are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC S ...

of the NFL. He also played for 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, t ...

and the

Orlando Predators The Orlando Predators were a professional arena football team based in Orlando, Florida and member of the Arena Football League (AFL). The team was most recently owned by Orlando Predators LLC, a company owned by David A. Siegel, and played it ...

, and

Utah Blaze The Utah Blaze was a professional arena football team based in Salt Lake City, Utah and competed in the West Division of the Arena Football League. Home games were played at the EnergySolutions Arena. In 2013, the team did not submit proper ...

of the

(AFL). In 2007, he died at the age of 28 from stage III

oligodendroglioma Oligodendrogliomas are a type of glioma that are believed to originate from the oligodendrocytes of the brain or from a oligodendrocyte progenitor cell, glial precursor cell. They occur primarily in adults (9.4% of all primary brain and central ne ...

, an inoperable

brain cancer A brain tumor (sometimes referred to as brain cancer) occurs when a group of cells within the brain turn cancerous and grow out of control, creating a mass. There are two main types of tumors: malignant (cancerous) tumors and benign (non-cance ...

Early life and college career

Born in

Wentzville, Missouri Wentzville is an exurb of St. Louis that is located in western St. Charles County, Missouri, United States. As of the 2023 U.S. Census Bureau estimates, the city had a total population of 47,497, making it the 15th largest city in Missouri. Went ...

, Skaggs attended St. Clair High School in

Saint Clair, Missouri St. Clair is a city in Franklin County, Missouri, United States. The population was 4,791 at the 2020 census. Geography St. Clair is located between the Meramec River to the southeast and the Bourbeuse River to the northwest. Interstate 44 in Mis ...

. At

, an NAIA school, Skaggs had 22 receptions for 295 yards and four touchdowns and earned third-team All-

Heart of America Athletic Conference The Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC or The Heart) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Member institutions are located in Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska in ...

honors as a senior in 2000.

Professional career

NFL and NFL Europe

After going undrafted in the

, Skaggs signed with 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 of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East ...

in April 2001 and spent the season on the practice squad. He appeared in one game in 2002 before being released on November 13. In 2003, he played in eight games for the

, with 37 receptions for 401 yards and five touchdowns. On July 29, 2003, Skaggs signed with the

, but he was cut on August 24. In January 2004, Skaggs signed with the

. During training camp, the Buccaneers released Skaggs on August 4, the day after he injured his hamstring.

Arena Football League

After not being able to stay with a team in the NFL, Skaggs turned to the

, where he was signed by the

for the 2005 season. He had 33 receptions for 370 yards with three touchdowns in his first year. His best season came in

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

, when he moved to the expansion

, becoming one of its inaugural players. For that year, he had 52 receptions for 665 yards and 13 touchdowns. Named the team's Iron Man of the Year, he also had 34 tackles, (eight solo), and three forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery. Skaggs did well in

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

, with four receiving and four rushing touchdowns, as well as 22 tackles.

Personal life and death

Skaggs was married with two children. In late May 2007, after having headaches, Skaggs visited a doctor for what he thought was a neck injury.

MRI Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a medical imaging technique used in radiology to generate pictures of the anatomy and the physiological processes inside the body. MRI scanners use strong magnetic fields, magnetic field gradients, and rad ...

s and

CAT scans A computed tomography scan (CT scan), formerly called computed axial tomography scan (CAT scan), is a medical imaging technique used to obtain detailed internal images of the body. The personnel that perform CT scans are called radiographers or ...

located several tumors in the left lobe of his

brain The brain is an organ (biology), organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals. It consists of nervous tissue and is typically located in the head (cephalization), usually near organs for ...

, and doctors diagnosed him with stage III

, an inoperable

, on June 1. In spite of the diagnosis, he showed up for a game three days later against the

Colorado Crush The Colorado Crush were an arena football team based in Denver, Colorado. They began play as a 2003 Arena Football League expansion team. The Crush played in the Central Division of the American Conference until the Arena Football League suspen ...

. Although he did not play, he inspired his team to an important 51–14 win that kept their playoff hopes alive. He started suffering extremely severe headaches in the early morning on June 14, and was admitted to University of Utah Hospital in Salt Lake City, where doctors discovered an increase in

intracranial pressure Intracranial pressure (ICP) is the pressure exerted by fluids such as cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) inside the skull and on the brain tissue. ICP is measured in millimeters of mercury ( mmHg) and at rest, is normally 7–15 mmHg for a supine adu ...

. He underwent emergency surgery, but emerged unresponsive and on a

ventilator A ventilator is a type of breathing apparatus, a class of medical technology that provides mechanical ventilation by moving breathable air into and out of the lungs, to deliver breaths to a patient who is physically unable to breathe, or breathi ...

. On June 15, surrounded by family, Skaggs was taken off life support. His funeral, held at

EnergySolutions Arena The Delta Center is an indoor venue in Salt Lake City. Opened in 1991, the arena is the home of the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Utah Mammoth of the National Hockey League (NHL). The arena has a seating capacity ...

on June 18, was attended by over 300, including AFL Commissioner

C. David Baker Carl David Baker (born February 16, 1953) is a former American football executive and politician. He was President and Chief Executive Officer, CEO of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio from 2014 to 2021. Baker was raised in Downey, ...

and Redskins owner

Daniel Snyder Daniel Marc Snyder (born November 23, 1964) is an American businessman and former owner of the Washington Commanders, an American football franchise belonging to the National Football League (NFL). He bought the team, then known as the Redskin ...

. On March 29, 2008, the number 3 was retired by the Blaze in Skaggs' honor.

References

External links

Profile at ArenaFan
{{DEFAULTSORT:Skaggs, Justin 1979 births 2007 deaths American football wide receivers Washington Redskins players Amsterdam Admirals players Tampa Bay Buccaneers players Utah Blaze players Deaths from brain cancer in the United States Deaths from cancer in Utah People from Wentzville, Missouri Sportspeople from St. Charles County, Missouri Evangel Valor football players People from Franklin County, Missouri Players of American football from Missouri

Early life and college career

Professional career

NFL and NFL Europe

Arena Football League

Personal life and death

See also

References

External links