Mike Martin (born November 18, 1960) is an American former professional football player who was a

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 ...

for seven seasons with the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its h ...

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). He played

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for the Illinois Fighting Illini.

Early life

Martin grew up in Washington, D.C., and attended Eastern High School.

College career

Martin played football at the University of Illinois, where during his senior year he caught a record 77 receptions for 1,068 yards. In four years for the Fighting Illini, he caught 143 passes for 2,300 yards (a 16.1 average) with 15 touchdowns. He also returned punts and kicoffs. As of the beginning of the Fighting Illini's 2022 season, Martin ranks fourth all-time in single-season receptions (77), ninth in career receptions (143), fifth in career receiving yardage (2,300), and tied for fourth in single-game receptions with 12 against Ohio State in 1982.

NFL

Martin was chosen by the Bengals in the eighth round of the 1983 NFL draft. In his seven seasons, he caught 67 passes for 1,017 yards (a 15.1 average) with 6 receiving touchdowns, with his most productive receiving year 1987 with 20 receptions for 394 yards. He returned 140 punts for 1,381 yards (a 9.9 average), including a league-leading 15.7 yards per return in 1983. He also returned 75 kicks for 1,643 yards, a 21.9 average. He was a member of the Bengals' team which went to the 1989 Super Bowl, won by the San Francisco 49ers, 20–16. Martin did not play, as his season ended with an injury in the season's 6th game.

Coaching

After his playing career ended, Martin operated several night clubs in the Cincinnati area. In 2002, Martin was named coach of Taft High School in Cincinnati, tapped to revive a program which had been disbanded due to lack of student participation. He coached the Senators for eight years, compiling a record of 44–28.

Personal life

Martin met his wife, Michelle, at Illinois where she was cheerleader. They married in 1986. They currently live in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, where his family including daughter Morgan owns several smoothie bars and a fitness facility. Martin is vice president of the Marcus Martin Foundation, named for his late son, who died at from a pulmonary embolism at age 25 in 2014. The foundation provides financial support for college-bound high school students, conducts free youth football camps, and educates about the dangers of pulmonary embolism.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Martin, Mike 1960 births Living people American football return specialists American football wide receivers Cincinnati Bengals players Illinois Fighting Illini football players High school football coaches in Ohio Eastern High School (Washington, D.C.) alumni Coaches of American football from Washington, D.C. Players of American football from Washington, D.C.