Wes Chandler
Encyclopedia
Wesley Sandy "Wes" Chandler (born August 22, 1956) is a former American college and professional football
player who was a wide receiver
in the National Football League
(NFL) for eleven seasons in the 1970s and 1980s. Chandler played college football
for the University of Florida
, and thereafter, he played professionally for the New Orleans Saints
, the San Diego Chargers
and the San Francisco 49ers
of the NFL. He was a four-time Pro Bowl
selection and holds the NFL record for most receiving yards per game in a season. After retiring as a player, Chandler has become a football coach, and most recently he was the offensive coordinator
for the New York Sentinels of the United Football League (UFL).
. He attended New Smyrna Beach High School
, where he was a standout high school football
player for the New Smyrna Beach Barracudas. Chandler scored twenty-two touchdown
s as a senior
in 1973 (scoring five in a single game), and rushing for 1,052 yards and catching twenty-two reception
s as a wishbone running back
. In 2007, thirty-three years after he graduated from high school, the Florida High School Athletic Association
(FHSAA) recognized Chandler as one of the "100 Greatest Players of the First 100 Years" of Florida high school football.
to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida
, where he was a wide receiver for coach Doug Dickey
's Florida Gators football
team from 1974 to 1977. While he was a Florida undergraduate, Chandler became a member of Alpha Phi Alpha
Fraternity
(Theta Sigma Chapter). As a Gator, he caught ninety-two passes for 1,963 yards and a school record twenty-two touchdowns in a run-oriented offense, adding six more scores on rushes and kick returns. and leading the team in receiving yards in 1975, 1976 and 1977. Chandler was a first-team All-Southeastern Conference
(SEC) selection and a first-team All-American in 1976 and 1977, a first-team Academic All-America
n in 1977, and the recipient of the Gators' Fergie Ferguson Award as a senior team captain
in 1977. He is widely considered to be one of the best football players to ever play for the University of Florida, and has been named to several all-time Gators and all-SEC teams, and was inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame as a "Gator Great" in 1989.
selected Chandler in the first round (third pick overall) in the 1978 NFL Draft
, and he played for the Saints for four seasons from to . Chandler was selected to the Pro Bowl
after his second season in the league after finishing with 1,069 yards and six touchdown reception
s. He was traded to the San Diego Chargers
in 1981 to replace star receiver John Jefferson
, who was traded to the Green Bay Packers
after a bitter contract hold-out. He led the NFL with 1,032 receiving yards and nine receiving touchdowns for the strike-shortened season; his average of 129 yards receiving per game that year is still an NFL record. Chandler completed his career with the San Francisco 49ers
in . One of his more notable performances was in a 1981 AFC playoff game known as The Epic In Miami
, where he caught six passes for 106 yards and returned a punt fifty-six yards for a touchdown in the Chargers 41–38 victory. He also caught nine passes for 124 yards in a playoff win over the Pittsburgh Steelers
in the following season.
Chandler retired from the NFL during the 1988 season after an eleven-year playing career. During his NFL career, he caught 559 passes for 8,966 yards and fifty-six touchdowns, rushed for eighty-four yards, returned forty-eight kickoffs for 1,048 yards, and gained 428 yards on sixty-seven punt returns. Overall, he amassed 10,526 all-purpose yards. At the time of his retirement, Chandler ranked twelfth in NFL history in receiving yards and thirteenth in receptions. He also earned four Pro Bowl
selections, including three with the San Diego Chargers. In 2001, Chandler was inducted into the San Diego Chargers Hall of Fame.
, including a stint as head coach
of the Berlin Thunder
in 1999. Before that, he also coached at the University of Central Florida
in Orlando, Florida
and Father Lopez Catholic High School
in Daytona Beach, Florida
.
Chandler has established a scholarship fund for minority students through the Wes Chandler Celebrity Golf Classic.
Chandler's nephew, Dallas Baker
, was a standout wide receiver for the Florida Gators and was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers
in the 2007 NFL Draft
.
has a song from their album Please Refrain from Fronting titled "Take Wes Chandler For Instance." Ralph Macchio
's character in the movie The Karate Kid wore a San Diego Chargers jersey with Chandler's number, 89, during several scenes of the movie.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
player who was a wide receiver
Wide receiver
A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
in 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...
(NFL) for eleven seasons in the 1970s and 1980s. Chandler played college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
for the University of Florida
University of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
, and thereafter, he played professionally for the New Orleans Saints
New Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans, Louisiana. They are members of the South Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League ....
, the San Diego Chargers
San Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers are a professional American football team based in San Diego, California. they were members of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
and the San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and...
of the NFL. He was a four-time Pro Bowl
Pro Bowl
In professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...
selection and holds the NFL record for most receiving yards per game in a season. After retiring as a player, Chandler has become a football coach, and most recently he was the offensive coordinator
Offensive coordinator
An offensive coordinator is a member of the coaching staff of a gridiron football team who is in charge of the offense. Generally, along with his defensive counterpart, he represents the second level of command structure after the head coach...
for the New York Sentinels of the United Football League (UFL).
Early life
Chandler was born in New Smyrna Beach, FloridaNew Smyrna Beach, Florida
New Smyrna Beach is a city in Volusia County, Florida, United States. The population was 20,048 according to the 2000 census. As of 2007, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 23,161.-History:...
. He attended New Smyrna Beach High School
New Smyrna Beach High School
New Smyrna Beach High School is a high school located in New Smyrna Beach, Florida. Their mascot is the Barracuda, which is most commonly referred to as the "Cuda." The high school opened in 1963 on what is now called Barracuda Boulevard...
, where he was a standout high school football
High school football
High school football, in North America, refers to the game of football as it is played in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both of these nations....
player for the New Smyrna Beach Barracudas. Chandler scored twenty-two touchdown
Touchdown
A touchdown is a means of scoring in American and Canadian football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone.-Description:...
s as a senior
Senior (education)
Senior is a term used in the United States to describe a student in the 4th year of study .-High school:...
in 1973 (scoring five in a single game), and rushing for 1,052 yards and catching twenty-two reception
Reception (American football)
In American football, a reception is part of a play in which a forward pass from behind the line of scrimmage is received by a player in bounds, who, after the catch, proceeds to either score a touchdown or be downed. Yards gained from the receiving play are credited to the player as receiving...
s as a wishbone running back
Running back
A running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running...
. In 2007, thirty-three years after he graduated from high school, the Florida High School Athletic Association
Florida High School Athletic Association
The Florida High School Athletic Association is an organization whose purpose is to organize sports competition for high school It is a member of the National Federation of State High School Associations ....
(FHSAA) recognized Chandler as one of the "100 Greatest Players of the First 100 Years" of Florida high school football.
College career
Chandler received an athletic scholarshipAthletic scholarship
An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university awarded to an individual based predominantly on his or her ability to play in a sport...
to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida
Gainesville, Florida
Gainesville is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Alachua County, Florida, United States as well as the principal city of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area . The preliminary 2010 Census population count for Gainesville is 124,354. Gainesville is home to the sixth...
, where he was a wide receiver for coach Doug Dickey
Doug Dickey
Douglas Adair "Doug" Dickey is a former American college football player and coach and college athletics administrator. Dickey is a South Dakota native who was raised in Florida and graduated from the University of Florida, where he played college football...
's Florida Gators football
Florida Gators football
The Florida Gators football team represents the University of Florida in the sport of American football. The Florida Gators compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletics Association and the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference...
team from 1974 to 1977. While he was a Florida undergraduate, Chandler became a member of Alpha Phi Alpha
Alpha Phi Alpha
Alpha Phi Alpha is the first Inter-Collegiate Black Greek Letter fraternity. It was founded on December 4, 1906 at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. Its founders are known as the "Seven Jewels". Alpha Phi Alpha developed a model that was used by the many Black Greek Letter Organizations ...
Fraternity
Fraternities and sororities
Fraternities and sororities are fraternal social organizations for undergraduate students. In Latin, the term refers mainly to such organizations at colleges and universities in the United States, although it is also applied to analogous European groups also known as corporations...
(Theta Sigma Chapter). As a Gator, he caught ninety-two passes for 1,963 yards and a school record twenty-two touchdowns in a run-oriented offense, adding six more scores on rushes and kick returns. and leading the team in receiving yards in 1975, 1976 and 1977. Chandler was a first-team All-Southeastern Conference
Southeastern Conference
The Southeastern Conference is an American college athletic conference that operates in the southeastern part of the United States. It is headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama...
(SEC) selection and a first-team All-American in 1976 and 1977, a first-team Academic All-America
Academic All-America
Academic All-America program is a student-athlete recognition program...
n in 1977, and the recipient of the Gators' Fergie Ferguson Award as a senior team captain
Captain (sports)
In team sports, a captain is a title given to a member of the team. The title is frequently honorary, but in some cases the captain may have significant responsibility for strategy and teamwork while the game is in progress on the field...
in 1977. He is widely considered to be one of the best football players to ever play for the University of Florida, and has been named to several all-time Gators and all-SEC teams, and was inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame as a "Gator Great" in 1989.
Professional career
After college, the New Orleans SaintsNew Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans, Louisiana. They are members of the South Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League ....
selected Chandler in the first round (third pick overall) in the 1978 NFL Draft
1978 NFL Draft
The 1978 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held May 2–3, 1978...
, and he played for the Saints for four seasons from to . Chandler was selected to the Pro Bowl
Pro Bowl
In professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...
after his second season in the league after finishing with 1,069 yards and six touchdown reception
Reception (American football)
In American football, a reception is part of a play in which a forward pass from behind the line of scrimmage is received by a player in bounds, who, after the catch, proceeds to either score a touchdown or be downed. Yards gained from the receiving play are credited to the player as receiving...
s. He was traded to the San Diego Chargers
San Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers are a professional American football team based in San Diego, California. they were members of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
in 1981 to replace star receiver John Jefferson
John Jefferson
John Jefferson is a retired American football wide receiver in the National Football League . He was selected out of Arizona State University in the first round of the 1978 NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers. He played three seasons in San Diego, where he became the first NFL player to gain...
, who was traded to the Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
after a bitter contract hold-out. He led the NFL with 1,032 receiving yards and nine receiving touchdowns for the strike-shortened season; his average of 129 yards receiving per game that year is still an NFL record. Chandler completed his career with the San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and...
in . One of his more notable performances was in a 1981 AFC playoff game known as The Epic In Miami
The Epic in Miami
The Epic in Miami is the name given to a National Football League AFC divisional playoff game between the San Diego Chargers and the Miami Dolphins that took place on January 2, 1982 in the Miami Orange Bowl...
, where he caught six passes for 106 yards and returned a punt fifty-six yards for a touchdown in the Chargers 41–38 victory. He also caught nine passes for 124 yards in a playoff win over the Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC...
in the following season.
Chandler retired from the NFL during the 1988 season after an eleven-year playing career. During his NFL career, he caught 559 passes for 8,966 yards and fifty-six touchdowns, rushed for eighty-four yards, returned forty-eight kickoffs for 1,048 yards, and gained 428 yards on sixty-seven punt returns. Overall, he amassed 10,526 all-purpose yards. At the time of his retirement, Chandler ranked twelfth in NFL history in receiving yards and thirteenth in receptions. He also earned four Pro Bowl
Pro Bowl
In professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...
selections, including three with the San Diego Chargers. In 2001, Chandler was inducted into the San Diego Chargers Hall of Fame.
Post-playing career
Chandler eventually went to Dallas after seven years coaching in NFL EuropeNFL 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...
, including a stint as head coach
Head coach
A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches...
of the Berlin Thunder
Berlin Thunder
The Berlin Thunder were a professional American football team in NFL Europe, which was a springtime American football league serving primarily as a developmental league for the National Football League. Most of the players were young American professional players assigned by NFL teams to receive...
in 1999. Before that, he also coached at the University of Central Florida
University of Central Florida
The University of Central Florida, commonly referred to as UCF, is a metropolitan public research university located in Orlando, Florida, United States...
in Orlando, Florida
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
and Father Lopez Catholic High School
Father Lopez Catholic High School
Father Lopez Catholic High School is a private, Roman Catholic high school in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orlando. 265 students are enrolled.- History :...
in Daytona Beach, Florida
Daytona Beach, Florida
Daytona Beach is a city in Volusia County, Florida, USA. According to 2008 U.S. Census Bureau estimates, the city has a population of 64,211. Daytona Beach is a principal city of the Deltona – Daytona Beach – Ormond Beach, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area, which the census bureau estimated had...
.
Chandler has established a scholarship fund for minority students through the Wes Chandler Celebrity Golf Classic.
Chandler's nephew, Dallas Baker
Dallas Baker
Dallas Leon Baker is an American professional football player who is a wide receiver with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League...
, was a standout wide receiver for the Florida Gators and was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC...
in the 2007 NFL Draft
2007 NFL Draft
The 2007 National Football League Draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City on April 28 and April 29, 2007. The draft was televised for the 28th consecutive year on ESPN and ESPN2. The NFL Network also broadcast coverage of the event, its second year doing so...
.
Pop culture references
Minneapolis avant garde jazz trio Happy AppleHappy Apple
Happy Apple is an American jazz trio.Formed in 1996 in Minneapolis, members of the band are David King , Michael Lewis and Erik Fratzke ....
has a song from their album Please Refrain from Fronting titled "Take Wes Chandler For Instance." Ralph Macchio
Ralph Macchio
Ralph George Macchio is an American actor, best known for his roles as Daniel LaRusso in the Karate Kid series, Bill Gambini in My Cousin Vinny, and Johnny Cade in The Outsiders. He is also known to American television audiences for his season five recurring role as Jeremy Andretti on the...
's character in the movie The Karate Kid wore a San Diego Chargers jersey with Chandler's number, 89, during several scenes of the movie.
See also
- 1976 College Football All-America Team1976 College Football All-America TeamThe 1976 College Football All-America team is composed of various organizations that choose College All-America teams that season. The organizations that chose the teams were Associated Press, United Press International, Newspaper Enterprise Association, Football Writers Association of America,...
- 1977 College Football All-America Team1977 College Football All-America TeamThe 1977 College Football All-America team is composed of various organizations that choose College All-America teams that season. The organizations that chose the teams were Associated Press, United Press International, Newspaper Enterprise Association, Football Writers Association of America,...
- Florida GatorsFlorida GatorsThe Florida Gators are the intercollegiate sports teams that represent the University of Florida located in Gainesville, Florida. The "Lady Gators" is an alternative nickname sometimes used by the Gators women's teams...
- Florida Gators football, 1970–1979
- List of Alpha Phi Alpha brothers
- List of Florida Gators football players
- List of New Orleans Saints first-round draft picks
- List of New Orleans Saints players