Sean Russell Dawkins (February 3, 1971 – August 9, 2023) was an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

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 nine seasons 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

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 ...

for the California Golden Bears, earning consensus

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

honors. A first-round draft pick in the 1993 NFL draft, he played professionally for the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. Since the 2008 India ...

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 National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

and

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...

of the NFL.

Early life

Sean Russell Dawkins was born in

Red Bank, New Jersey Red Bank is a borough in Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Incorporated in 1908, the community is on the Navesink River, the area's original transportation route to the ocean and other ports. Red Bank is in the New York metro ...

, but raised in

Sunnyvale, California Sunnyvale () is a city located in the Santa Clara Valley in northwestern Santa Clara County, California, United States. Sunnyvale lies along the historic El Camino Real (California), El Camino Real and U.S. Route 101 in California, Highway 1 ...

. He distinguished himself as a wide receiver at Homestead High School in

Cupertino, California Cupertino ( ) is a city in Santa Clara County, California, United States, directly west of San Jose, California, San Jose on the western edge of the Santa Clara Valley with portions extending into the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains. The ...

College career

Dawkins earned an

athletic scholarship An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university or a private school, private high school awarded to an individual based predominantly on their ability to play in a sport. Athletic scholarships are common in the U ...

to attend the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

, where he played for the California Golden Bears. While at Cal, Dawkins used his speed and size (6 feet 4 inches, 215 pounds) to establish himself as one of the country's most dangerous deep threats. His first two seasons at California were unqualified successes for him personally, as well as his Golden Bear teammates. In 1990, California won their first Bowl Game since 1938, defeating Wyoming in the Copper Bowl. The following season, the Bears dominated nationally ranked Clemson in the Citrus Bowl, which earned them the No. 7 ranking in the final CNN/''USA Today'' Coaches Poll, their highest finish since 1950. It also marked the first time in school history that California won bowl games in consecutive seasons. The 1992 season, however, included a new coach. After transforming the California program from a laughingstock into a national power, coach Bruce Snyder left Berkeley for Arizona State and was replaced by Keith Gilbertson. Gilbertson's squad struggled to a 4–7 record in 1992, but Dawkins was one bright spot in an otherwise forgettable year. Dawkins was recognized a consensus first-team All-American after the season in 1992, an honor which encouraged him to forgo his senior season and enter the

NFL Draft The NFL draft, officially known as the Annual Player Selection Meeting, is an annual event which serves as the most common source of player recruitment in the National Football League. Each team is given a position in the drafting order in reve ...

Professional career

Dawkins was selected in the first round of the 1993 NFL draft by the Indianapolis Colts as the 16th overall pick and the second wide receiver chosen. In his third season with the Colts, Indianapolis won two playoff games before falling to 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 ...

in the AFC Championship game. He played in two more playoff games in his career, but both were losses. After one season in New Orleans, Dawkins signed as a free agent with the Seattle Seahawks in 1999. He enjoyed his finest personal year in 1999 with 58 receptions for 992 yards. After two campaigns with Seattle, Dawkins spent his final year with the Jacksonville Jaguars. His career was clearly on the decline by that point, as he made only 20 catches with the Jaguars that season. Before the 2002 season, he signed with the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. The Vikings compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. Founded in 1960 as ...

but was among the final cuts and never played in the NFL again.

Life after football

Dawkins pursued a career in real estate in

Sacramento, California Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat, seat of Sacramento County, California, Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento Rive ...

, and later trained to become a police officer in

San Jose, California San Jose, officially the City of San José ( ; ), is a cultural, commercial, and political center within Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area. With a city population of 997,368 and a metropolitan area population of 1.95 million, it is ...

. Dawkins died on August 9, 2023, at the age of 52.

NFL career statistics

References

External links

Player profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dawkins, Sean 1971 births 2023 deaths Sportspeople from Red Bank, New Jersey Sportspeople from Sunnyvale, California Players of American football from Santa Clara County, California American football wide receivers California Golden Bears football players All-American college football players Indianapolis Colts players Jacksonville Jaguars players New Orleans Saints players Seattle Seahawks players Minnesota Vikings players Homestead High School (California) alumni