Michael (Mike) Christopher Adams (born March 25, 1974) is a former

gridiron football Gridiron football ( ),"Gridiron football"
''Encyclopædia Britannica'' ...

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

and

return specialist A return specialist or kick returner is a player on the special teams unit of a gridiron football team who specializes in returning punts and kickoffs. There are few players who are exclusively return specialists; most also play another positio ...

from Grand Prairie (Dalworth) Texas. Adams played high school football for the Sam Houston Texans in

Arlington, Texas Arlington is a city in Tarrant County, Texas, Tarrant County, Texas, United States. It is part of the Mid-Cities region of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan statistical area, and is a principal c ...

. He was a 3× first-team all district selection from 1989 to 1991. He was selected as the district 8-5A MVP his senior season that ultimately saw him gather all-state and all-American honors that same season. He attended the

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 students as of fall 2 ...

at Austin from 1992 to 1996. He became a four-year starter for a Texas Longhorn team that won conference championships in 1994, 1995, and 1996. He was voted team MVP as a sophomore in 1993. Adams received UPI honorable mention all-American honors in 1993 and 1995. Upon graduation, Adams held every receiving, kick and punt return, and all purpose yards records at the university. Only Ricky Williams and Cedric Benson have accumulated more yards than Adams. He was inducted into the Longhorn Hall of Honor in October 2021. He was drafted by the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

of 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) in 1997 and played as a rookie until a knee injury midway through the season ended his season. He later played for the

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

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

(CFL) in 2000 and the XFL's

San Francisco Demons The San Francisco Demons (originally named San Jose Demons) were a short-lived springtime American football team based in San Francisco, California. This team was part of the failed XFL begun by Vince McMahon of World Wrestling Entertainment an ...

in 2001. Since his subsequent retirement from football, Adams has been an educator and coach for 17 years in various school districts across the state of Texas. Career highlights include serving as assistant head football coach and head boys track coach from 2013-2015 at Manor High School. Adams also served as an assistant principal at Manor High in 2015. He served as an assistant principal at Canyon High School in

New Braunfels, Texas New Braunfels ( ) is a city in Comal County, Texas, Comal and Guadalupe County, Texas, Guadalupe counties in the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat of Comal County. The city covers and had a population of 90,403 as of the 2020 United Sta ...

. He continued to coach as well, serving as the passing game coordinator and an assistant track coach for Canyon High Athletics from 2021-2023. During the 2023-2024 school year, Adams coached his final season of football at Vandegrift High School in Austin, Tx. That team was ranked in the top 5 all season in 6A, eventually completing an undefeated regular season record of 10-0. Adams currently serves as an assistant principal and campus athletic liaison at Pflugerville Connally High School in Austin, Tx.

College career

At the University of Texas, Adams was a three-time All Conference wide receiver. He was a USA Today freshman All-American (1992), the 1993 University of Texas team MVP and first-team All-Southwest Conference player in 1993 and 1995. He was a third-team All-Big 12 Conference player in 1996. Adams graduated as UT's all-time leading receiver in yards and receptions, touchdown receptions, all purpose yards leader, and set several other school records including the record for consecutive games with a reception, career 100-yard receiving games, and career kickoff and punt return yards. He averaged 17.2 yards per touch during his time on campus. Only

Ricky Williams Errick Miron (born Errick Lynne Williams Jr.; May 21, 1977), known professionally as Ricky Williams, is an American former professional football running back who played for 11 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) and one season in the ...

and Cedric Benson have more all purpose yards than Adams.

Professional career

Adams was drafted in the seventh round of the 1997 NFL draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers with the 223rd overall pick. He played for one season, seeing action in his first six games as a rookie until he suffered a season ending and ultimately career ending knee injury against the Indianapolis Colts on TNT Sunday night football in which he recorded a season high 5 kickoff returns for 123 yards. He recorded one career reception for 39 yards against the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. They play the ...

. The BC Lions signed Adams for the 2000 season, and he played in eight regular season games. He caught 23 passes for 355 yards and two touchdowns. The Lions went on to win the Grey Cup that season, but Adams did not play in that game due to being drafted by the startup XFL. As a result, his name is not on the Grey Cup plaque. Although he was drafted by the

in the 10th Round of the 2001 XFL Draft 75 player overall; he never played for the team due to re-injuring the same knee injured with the Steelers.

Later life

Adams went back to school and earned a bachelor's degree in Applied Learning and Development from the University of Texas in 2009. He then earned a master's degree in Curriculum and Instruction from

Concordia University Concordia University () is a Public university, public English-language research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College (Montreal), Loyola College and Sir George Williams Universit ...

in 2011. He became a teacher, coach and school administrator in Central Texas.

References

External links

NFL.com profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Adams, Mike 1974 births Living people Players of American football from Dallas Players of Canadian football from Dallas American football wide receivers Canadian football wide receivers Texas Longhorns football players Pittsburgh Steelers players BC Lions players Players of Canadian football from Texas