Mark Estelle
Encyclopedia
Mark Estelle is a professional American and Canadian football
defensive back
for the Montreal Alouettes
of the Canadian Football League
.
He has also formerly played for the Houston Texans
of the National Football League
and the Cologne Centurions
of NFL Europe
.
in Carson, California
, Estelle was a standout in football, baseball
, and track & field
. In football, he was an All-Conference cornerback and in track & field, he was the Los Angeles City Champion in the long jump
. Mark Estelle graduated from Carson High School in 1999.
for one year and lettered in football and track & field. In football, he was a first team All-JUCO selection, unanimously voted into the All-Western State Conference
team, and named the Team's Defensive Player of the Year.
, and he was a three-year letterwinner in football. As a junior, he made 30 tackles, an interception, a fumble recovery, and 13 pass deflections.
training camps. The following year, he signed with the Houston Texans
and was assigned to the Cologne Centurions
of NFL Europa where he made 16 tackles, 11 knockdowns, and three forced fumbles. He moved on to the Texans training camp and finally joined the Alouettes in September and played in the final regular season game and started in the Canadian Football League East Division
championship and the 93rd Grey Cup
. He returned to the Alouettes for the 2007
and 2008 CFL season
s and was named an East Division All-Star in 2008. He was supposed to become a free agent
after the season, but was re-signed by the Alouettes on February 16, 2009.
Gridiron football
Gridiron football , sometimes known as North American football, is an umbrella term for related codes of football primarily played in the United States and Canada. The predominant forms of gridiron football are American football and Canadian football...
defensive back
Defensive back
In American football and Canadian football, defensive backs are the players on the defensive team who take positions somewhat back from the line of scrimmage; they are distinguished from the defensive line players and linebackers, who take positions directly behind or close to the line of...
for the Montreal Alouettes
Montreal Alouettes
The Montreal Alouettes are a Canadian Football League team based in Montreal, Quebec.The current franchise named the Alouettes moved to Montreal from Baltimore, Maryland, in 1996 where they had been known as the Baltimore Stallions...
of the Canadian Football League
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League or CFL is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of gridiron football closely related to American football....
.
He has also formerly played for the Houston Texans
Houston Texans
The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston, Texas. The team is currently a member of the Southern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
of the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
and the Cologne Centurions
Cologne Centurions
The Cologne Centurions were an American football team that played in NFL Europe. The Centurions began competing in the league in the 2004 season, having replaced the defunct Barcelona Dragons. They played their home games at RheinEnergieStadion in Cologne....
of NFL Europe
NFL Europe
NFL Europe was an American football league which operated in Europe from 1991 until 2007. Backed by the National Football League , the largest professional American football league in the United States, it was founded as the World League of American Football to serve as a type of spring league...
.
High school years
While attending Carson High SchoolCarson High School (Carson, California)
Carson High School is a four-year public high school in Carson, California, United States. It is a part of the Los Angeles Unified School District. Carson High was ranked 974 on Newsweek's 1300 Top U.S. High Schools. Carson High is located on the corner of 223rd Street and Main Street...
in Carson, California
Carson, California
Carson is a city in Los Angeles County, California. As of the 2010 census, Carson had a total population of 91,714. Located south of downtown Los Angeles and approximately 14 miles away from the Los Angeles International Airport, it is known as a suburb of the city....
, Estelle was a standout in football, baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
, and track & field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
. In football, he was an All-Conference cornerback and in track & field, he was the Los Angeles City Champion in the long jump
Long jump
The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength, and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a take off point...
. Mark Estelle graduated from Carson High School in 1999.
Junior college career
Estelle attended Los Angeles Southwest CollegeLos Angeles Southwest College
Los Angeles Southwest College is a community college located in an unincorporated area of Los Angeles County, California, United States, near the city of Los Angeles...
for one year and lettered in football and track & field. In football, he was a first team All-JUCO selection, unanimously voted into the All-Western State Conference
Western State Conference
The Western State Conference is a college athletic conference that is affiliated with the California Community College Athletic Association. The conference was established in 1950, making it the oldest community college conference in California...
team, and named the Team's Defensive Player of the Year.
NCAA career
Estelle attended Utah State UniversityUtah State University
Utah State University is a public university located in Logan, Utah. It is a land-grant and space-grant institution and is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities....
, and he was a three-year letterwinner in football. As a junior, he made 30 tackles, an interception, a fumble recovery, and 13 pass deflections.
Professional career
In 2005, Estelle attended the Montreal Alouettes and Baltimore RavensBaltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens are a professional football franchise based in Baltimore, Maryland.The Baltimore Ravens are officially a quasi-expansion franchise, having originated in 1995 with the Cleveland Browns relocation controversy after Art Modell, then owner of the Cleveland Browns, announced his...
training camps. The following year, he signed with the Houston Texans
Houston Texans
The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston, Texas. The team is currently a member of the Southern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
and was assigned to the Cologne Centurions
Cologne Centurions
The Cologne Centurions were an American football team that played in NFL Europe. The Centurions began competing in the league in the 2004 season, having replaced the defunct Barcelona Dragons. They played their home games at RheinEnergieStadion in Cologne....
of NFL Europa where he made 16 tackles, 11 knockdowns, and three forced fumbles. He moved on to the Texans training camp and finally joined the Alouettes in September and played in the final regular season game and started in the Canadian Football League East Division
Canadian Football League East Division
The East Division is one of the two regional divisions of the Canadian Football League. Although the CFL was not founded until 1958, the East Division and its clubs are descended from earlier leagues.- Pre-1907 :...
championship and the 93rd Grey Cup
93rd Grey Cup
The 93rd Grey Cup game was held on November 27, 2005, at B.C. Place Stadium in Vancouver, British Columbia between the Edmonton Eskimos and the Montreal Alouettes, to decide the winner of the 2005 season of the Canadian Football League. The Eskimos prevailed over the Alouettes in a 38-35 overtime...
. He returned to the Alouettes for the 2007
2007 CFL season
The 2007 CFL season was the 54th season of modern Canadian professional football. Officially, it was the 50th season of the league, and many special events were held to commemorate the event. Regular-season play began on June 28, 2007 at the Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario and concluded on...
and 2008 CFL season
2008 CFL season
The 2008 CFL season was the 55th season of modern Canadian professional football. Officially, it was the 51st season for the league. It was also the first CFL season in which all of the league's regular season and post-season games, including the Grey Cup game, were aired on TSN. This meant the CFL...
s and was named an East Division All-Star in 2008. He was supposed to become a free agent
Free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player whose contract with a team has expired and who is thus eligible to sign with another club or franchise....
after the season, but was re-signed by the Alouettes on February 16, 2009.