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For the baseball player, see Michael Rucker (baseball).

Mike Rucker
refer to caption
Rucker with the Panthers
No. 93
Position: Defensive end
Personal information
Born: (1975-02-28) February 28, 1975 (age 49)
St. Joseph, Missouri, U.S.
Height:6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:275 lb (125 kg)
Career information
High school: Benton (St. Joseph)
College: Nebraska
NFL draft: 1999 / Round: 2 / Pick: 38
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Tackles:421
Sacks:55.5
Interceptions:1
Player stats at NFL.com ·  PFR

Michael Dean Rucker (born February 28, 1975) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end for nine seasons with the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Nebraska Cornhuskers, and was selected by the Panthers in the second round of the 1999 NFL draft.

Early years

Rucker played both sides of the ball in high school including catching 15 passes for 300 yards as a tight end. He was the team's leading tackler with 168 stops, including 58 solos, leading Benton to a 28-8 three-year record. Rucker placed fourth in the state in the shot put as a junior and was the state champion in 1994, with a throw of 54–2. He went unbeaten in 10 meets during his senior season. Rucker lettered 10 times in high school, including three each in football and basketball and four in track. [1] He was a two-time all-state lineman, and made the All-America team his senior year. In addition, he also lettered in track & field four years, and was a state champion shot putter. He also earned three letters on the Benton High School basketball team.

College career

Rucker attended the University of Nebraska, where he played for the Nebraska Cornhuskers football team. He redshirted as a true freshman, and then collected his first sack the following season. He was a member of the national champion Cornhuskers team in 1995 and 1997. As a senior in 1998, he made second-team All- Big 12, despite missing much of the season because of injury. He finished his college days as Nebraska's fourth all-time tackler behind the line of scrimmage, with 40 stops.

Collegiate statistics

Mike Rucker Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
Season Class GP Cmb Solo Ast TfL Sck Int Yds Lng TD PD FF FR Yds TD
1995 Fr 10 14 4 10 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
1996 So 13 34 17 17 16 8 0 0 0 0 1 2 2 0 0
1997 Jr 13 41 20 21 16 8.5 0 0 0 0 4 1 1 0 0
1998 Sr 13 60 28 32 14 2.5 0 0 0 0 1 3 0 0 0
Career 49 149 69 80 48 21 0 0 0 0 6 6 3 0 0

Notes - Statistics include bowl game performances.

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
6 ft 4+3⁄4 in
(1.95 m) 		260 lb
(118 kg) 		32+7⁄8 in
(0.84 m) 		9+1⁄2 in
(0.24 m)		 4.90 s 1.71 s 2.85 s 4.33 s 7.40 s 33.5 in
(0.85 m)		 9 ft 7 in
(2.92 m)		 17 reps
All values from NFL Combine [2]

Rucker was drafted by Carolina in the second round (38th overall) of the 1999 NFL draft. [3] He collected three sacks his rookie year, playing in all 16 games. His first sack came against Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Jeff Blake. He registered 2.5 sacks in his second season, and became a starter for the 2001 NFL season. He ended the season leading the team with 9 sacks. He was the NFL Defensive Player of the Month for September 2003, when he had 5 sacks, 21 tackles, 13 hurries and one batted pass during the first four games of the 2003 NFL season. He and fellow defensive end Julius Peppers were the only duo to register 10 sacks each. The following year, Rucker again won Defensive Player of the Month for September, becoming only the 11th player in history to win POTM honors for the same month in two consecutive years; former Panther Sam Mills won POTM in November 1995 and 1996. Rucker finished the season with 12 sacks, and earned his first berth in the Pro Bowl.

On December 17, 2006, in a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Rucker suffered an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear in his left knee, causing him to miss the remainder of the 2006 season. [4] He returned for his final season in 2007, before announcing his retirement from the game on April 22, 2008.

NFL statistics

Year Team GP Tackles Fumbles Interceptions
Comb Solo Ast Sack FF FR Int Yds Avg Lng TD PD
1999 CAR 16 30 24 6 3.0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 2
2000 CAR 16 39 33 6 2.5 1 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 1
2001 CAR 16 55 43 12 9.0 3 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 1
2002 CAR 16 66 57 9 10.0 4 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 7
2003 CAR 14 58 46 12 12.0 1 0 1 0 0.0 0 0 5
2004 CAR 16 38 35 3 3.5 1 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 5
2005 CAR 15 44 35 9 7.5 4 2 0 0 0.0 0 0 3
2006 CAR 14 39 25 14 5.0 1 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 2
2007 CAR 16 47 33 14 3.0 1 2 0 0 0.0 0 0 3
Career [5] 139 416 331 85 55.5 16 7 1 0 0.0 0 0 29

Other activities

Rucker, along with former teammates Mike Minter, Stephen Davis, and Muhsin Muhammad, are co-founders of Ruckus House, a child development and learning facility. One of Rucker's long-term goals for Ruckus House is to get one in every city which has an NFL team.

In 2005 Mike founded Vision Group Realty, a full service real estate brokerage firm, providing brokerage services to both buyers and sellers of residential and commercial real estate. The firm headquarters is located in Charlotte, NC, and services relocating clients locally, nationally and globally.

In the 2008 offseason, he traveled to Afghanistan to visit with troops along with Luis Castillo, Tommie Harris, and Sports Illustrated writer Peter King. Rucker made a video documentary of his experiences for NFL Network, stating that if he was not a pro football athlete, he could easily envision himself in the military.

Mike Rucker is a commentator on preseason games for the Carolina Panthers on the Panthers Television Network. [6]

Family

Rucker's younger brother, Martin was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in 2008 NFL draft, 111th overall.

References

  1. ^ "Mike Rucker - 1998 - Football".
  2. ^ "1999 NFL Draft Scout Mike Rucker College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  3. ^ "1999 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
  4. ^ "NFL injuries: Vick likely to play; Jags expect Drew healthy, unsure about Taylor". USA Today. December 18, 2006.
  5. ^ "Mike Rucker Stats". ESPN. ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved June 16, 2014.
  6. ^ "Panthers TV adds new features". www.panthers.com. Archived from the original on May 11, 2009.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mike Rucker.
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