Shawn Knight
Born: (1972-01-19) January 19, 1972
Norfolk, Virginia, U.S.
Career information
StatusRetired
CFL statusAmerican
Position(s)QB
Height5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Weight175 lb (79 kg)
CollegeWilliam & Mary
High schoolMaury High School
(Norfolk, Virginia)
Career history
As player
1995–1996Toronto Argonauts
Career highlights and awards
Career stats
Comp-Att2–4
Yards18
TD-INT0–0
Rushing attempts2
Rushing yards10

Shawn Knight (born January 19, 1972) is an American former professional gridiron football quarterback who played in the Canadian Football League (CFL). Knight played college football and college baseball at William & Mary.

Early life and high school

Knight was born and grew up in Norfolk, Virginia and attended Matthew Fontaine Maury High School. He committed to play at William & Mary, where coach Jimmye Laycock offered him opportunity to play quarterback, over scholarship offers from James Madison, North Carolina, and Virginia.[1]

College career

Knight redshirted his freshman year at William & Mary and spent the next two seasons as the backup to future NFL quarterback Chris Hakel.[2] He set an NCAA record for passing efficiency and was named second team All-Yankee Conference in his redshirt junior after completing 69.4 percent of his passes for 2,235 yards and 22 touchdowns.[3][4] As a senior, Knight completed 125 of 177 passes for 2,055 yards, 22 touchdowns and four interceptions and was again named second team All-Yankee Conference. Knight finished his collegiate career with 5,705 passing yards, 46 touchdown passes and 6,408 yards of total offense.[1] While at William & Mary, he was teammates with future NFL head coaches Sean McDermott and Mike Tomlin, who was also his roommate.[5][6]

Knight also played baseball as a junior and senior. As a junior, he batted .316 and stole 38 bases in 45 attempts despite not having played since his senior year in high school. Knight was selected in the 75th round of the 1993 Major League Baseball draft, but opted not to sign with the team and return to William & Mary.[7] He hit for a .295 average as a senior.[8]

Professional career

Due to his size, Knight was not considered an NFL prospect. He was heavily scouted by Canadian Football League league teams and signed with the Toronto Argonauts of the on April 11, 1995.[3][9] He played in five games during the 1995 season, seeing limited action. Knight was released by Toronto during the 1996 season.[10]

Knight also played professional baseball in the San Diego Padres organization after being selected in the 13th round of the 1994 Major League Baseball draft. He spent one season with the Padres' Class A affiliate, the Spokane Indians, in between his redshirt junior and senior years and batted .280.[11]

Post-football career

After retiring from football, Knight initially worked in the legislative affairs division of a law firm in Richmond, Virginia. He later became the athletics director at Huguenot High School before becoming an administrator for the Virginia High School League.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Miller, Ed (July 30, 2014). "Whatever happened to ... W&M QB Shawn Knight". The Virginian-Pilot. Retrieved February 4, 2022.
  2. ↑ "TRIBE QB TRIGGERS EXPLOSIVE OFFENSE". Daily Press. October 20, 1993. Retrieved February 4, 2022.
  3. 1 2 Denn, Charlie (July 30, 2014). "TRIBE QB KNIGHT HAS FULL PLATE IN HIS FUTURE COLLEGE FOOTBALL WILL SOON BE BEHIND HIM, BUT BASEBALL OR THE CFL MAY BE AHEAD". The Virginian-Pilot. Retrieved February 4, 2022.
  4. ↑ "YANKEE CONFERENCE AT A GLANCE". Hartford Courant. August 26, 1994. Retrieved February 5, 2022.
  5. ↑ Wilson, Ryan (February 4, 2016). "William & Mary played important role in Sean McDermott's NFL success". CBS Sports. Retrieved February 4, 2022.
  6. ↑ Bouchette, Ed (April 29, 2020). "The one thing Mike Tomlin's college coach never thought he'd do". The Athletic. Retrieved February 4, 2022.
  7. ↑ "TRIBE QB IS LIKELY TO RETURN". Daily Press. June 6, 1993. Retrieved February 4, 2022.
  8. ↑ "2-SPORT COMPROMISE GOOD FOR ALL". Daily Press. June 6, 1993. Retrieved February 4, 2022.
  9. ↑ "Transactions". Hartford Courant. April 11, 1995. Retrieved February 4, 2022.
  10. ↑ Minium, Harry (June 17, 1994). "LONIE GLIEBERMAN'S BID TO BRING THE CANADIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE TO HAMPTON ROADS WAS A NIGHTMARE. BUT HE STILL DREAMS ABOUT WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN. 'I THINK IT WOULD HAVE WORKED,' HE SAYS". The Virginian-Pilot. Retrieved February 4, 2022.
  11. ↑ Minium, Harry (August 14, 1994). "WILLIAM AND MARY QB KNIGHT RETURNS FROM CLASS A BASEBALL". The Virginian-Pilot. Retrieved February 4, 2022.
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