Friday 19 December 2014

BLACK SOCIAL HISTORY : AFRICAN AMERICAN " ANTONIO GATES " IS A FOOTBALL TIGHT END FOR THE SAN DIEGO CHARGER'S OF THE NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE (NFL) : GOES INTO THE " HALL OF BLACK GENIUS "

     BLACK          SOCIAL         HISTORY                                                                                                                                                                                                            Antonio Gates


Antonio Gates
AntonioGatesByPhilKonstantin.jpg
Gates on the set of KUSI in June 2008.
No. 85     San Diego Chargers
Tight end
Personal information
Date of birth: June 18, 1980 (age 34)
Place of birth: Detroit, Michigan
Height: 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)Weight: 255 lb (116 kg)
Career information
High school: Detroit (MI) Central
College: Kent State
Undrafted in 2003
Debuted in 2003 for the San Diego Chargers
Career history
Roster status: Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of Week 15, 2014
Receptions777
Receiving yards9,855
Receiving average12.7
Receiving TDs97
Stats at NFL.com
Antonio Ethan Gates, Jr. (born June 18, 1980) is an American football tight end for the San Diego Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He has been selected onto the Pro Bowl eight times and is a five time NFL All-Pro.[1] Gates was signed as an undrafted free agent in 2003 after playing college basketball for Kent State University. He attended college at Kent State his junior and senior years after brief stints at Michigan State University and Eastern Michigan University.[2]

Early years

Antonio Gates, Jr was born in 1980 to Antonio and Mattie Gates in Detroit, Michigan. He attended Central High School where he excelled at both basketball and football. Playing alongside friend and future NFL player Dwight Smith, it was in basketball where Gates had the most success as he led Central High School to Michigan’s Class-A Final Four in his junior year. As a senior, he averaged 27 points and 12 rebounds a game, and led Central all the way to the Michigan state championship.
After his stellar season, Gates was named runner-up for the Mr. Basketball of Michigan award to Dane Fife.[3]

College career

Originally, Gates enrolled at Michigan State University wanting to play football under then-coach Nick Saban as well as basketball under coach Tom Izzo but upon enrolling Saban wanted him to play only football.[4] Gates then chose to pursue playing basketball by transferring to Eastern Michigan University to play basketball. He played there part of a season, subsequently played at two junior colleges and eventually played two seasons at Kent State University in northeastern Ohio.
As a Golden Flash, Gates played two seasons as power forward. His junior season he averaged 16.0 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game[5] His senior season he received Honorable Mention All-American Honors from the Associated Press after averaging 20.6 points, 7.7 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game. His senior season his team won its first regular season Mid-American Conference (MAC) championship in school history after finishing the regular season with a 24-5 overall record with a 17-1 record in the MAC. Gates helped the Golden Flashes win their second consecutive MAC tournament and earn its resulting berth in the 2002 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament In the NCAA tournament he gave crucial performances that helped Kent State reach the Elite Eight as a 10 seed by upsetting 7 seed Oklahoma State (69-61), 2 seed Alabama (71-58) and 3 seed Pittsburgh (78-73). He finished with a record of 54-16 in two years of playing.[6]
His jersey number, 44 was retired on Feb 27, 2010 making him just the fourth Golden Flash to receive the honor.

NFL career

San Diego Chargers

After being told by scouts that he was too much of a “tweener” to make the NBA, Gates (6′4″) arranged a workout in front of NFL scouts. Despite never playing football in college,[7] as many as 19 teams were believed to have contacted Gates about a tryout. Gates chose to work out first for the San Diego Chargers. Recognizing his potential, the Chargers immediately signed him to a contract as an undrafted free agent.

2003

Lost in the hoopla of this incredible performance, and the disappointment of San Diego's league-worst 4-12 record was Antonio’s rise from third string to starter by November. He was learning on the job, but each game he got better and better. After finishing a solid 2003 rookie season in which he caught 24 passes for 389 yards and two scores, he was picked by many experts to have a breakout season in 2004.

2004

In only his second season in the NFL, Gates became quarterback Drew Brees' favorite target, finishing the season with 81 receptions for 964 yards and 13 touchdowns. On December 19, Gates tied the NFL season record for touchdowns by a tight end (13) in a 21–0 win over the Cleveland Browns, and he went on to break that record in an overtime loss to the Indianapolis Colts on December 26. Gates was selected to the 2005 Pro Bowl and caught a TD pass from Colts' quarterback Peyton Manning to help the AFC to a 38–27 victory. Additionally, Gates was on the receiving end of a 33 yard pass from teammate Drew Brees in a flea-flicker play selected by fans online.

2005[edit]

On August 23, 2005, after holding out for a contract extension, Gates inked a six-year deal worth up to $24 million with the San Diego Chargers. Because of his holdout, Gates was suspended for one game–the home opener against the Dallas Cowboys, a loss. Gates went on to have another stellar season, catching 89 passes for 1,101 yards and 10 touchdowns, but the Chargers missed the playoffs by a single win.

2006

With the departure of Drew Brees during the offseason, it was assumed that Gates would suffer a decline in production in 2006, with first-year starter Philip Rivers at the helm. Gates had a relatively quiet start to the season, but he finished the year strongly and ended up with 924 receiving yards and nine touchdowns. He caught two touchdown passes on December 10 against Denver to help the Chargers clinch their division.
Gates was a Pro Bowler and All-Pro for the third straight year. Undefeated at Qualcomm during the regular season, the Chargers and their fans anticipated a trip to the Super Bowl but they were beaten by the New England Patriots at home in a controversial game 24–21.[8]

2007

In 2007, Gates wasn't selected to the All Pro team but was still a pro bowler. During the season he caught 75 passes for 984 yards and nine touchdowns. He was once again a key factor in the Chargers 11-5 campaign but not during the playoffs. He dislocated a toe on his right foot just before the postseason, which slowed him down during the Chargers playoff run.
Gates was not the only Chargers star player injured: both LaDainian Tomlinson and Philip Rivers had leg injuries which dropped the Chargers chances of reaching the Super Bowl. However, with effort and toughness they still managed to play well, reaching the AFC Championship where they lost to the 18 and 0 Patriots.

2008

Gates said he was leaning toward having surgery to repair a dislocated left big toe that slowed his performance during the NFL 2008 Playoffs, but was undecided on whether to have surgery or not, "There is higher chance I'm going to have surgery". Gates also pulled out of his 5th Pro Bowl selection because of his injuries alongside his teammateLaDainian Tomlinson. Gates finished the season with 60 receptions for 704 yards and eight touchdowns.
On February 23, 2008, Gates said he would have foot surgery to fix the injury that has hurt him in the final part of the season. He would face a 4–6 month recovery time. He seemed questionable for Week 1 and even sounded worried about his status for the opening day of the 2008 season, however, he ended up playing every game despite complaints that his toe was bothering him during the first half of the season. He finished the season with 60 receptions for 704 yards and eight touchdowns.

2009

Finally healthy after a couple injury-plagued seasons, Gates enjoyed the finest year of his career. He caught 79 passes for a career-high 1,157 yards and eight TDs. He hauled in at least five passes in 10 of the team's first 11 games.
The team had a great regular season, finishing the year with 13 wins, one of the best record of the year. However they were bounced in their first postseason game by the New York Jets.

2010

Gates began the 2010 season by signing a lucrative 5-year $36 million contract with $20 million guaranteed. In the first nine games of the 2010 season, he had 40 receptions and 9 touchdowns.[9] Foot injuries slowed the second half of his season. He was invited to the 2011 Pro Bowl, the seventh consecutive year he was chosen as the AFC starter.,[9]although he skipped the all-star game due to his lingering injuries.

2011

Gates tried to play through his chronic foot problems but was forced to sit out Weeks 3-5. He came back after the bye week and started every game the rest of the way, finishing with more than 60 catches (64) for the seventh time in his career. He also scored seven TDs and was voted into his eighth Pro Bowl. Gates became the Chargers’ all-time receptions leader on a six-yard catch on a 4th-and-5 early in the fourth quarter against Detroit. It was his 587th career catch, surpassing Charlie Joiner’s 586.

2012

Gates had another record making season, becoming the fifth tight end in NFL history with 600 career catches and runner-up for most TDs in Chargers franchise history with 83. The tight end and his quarterback Philip Rivers have proved to be a formidable pair, connecting for a total of 56 TD catches, the most out of any QB-tight end combination in the NFL.

2013

Gates played all 16 games for the first time since 2009, finishing with 70 receptions (77) for the fourth time in his career. However, Gates only scored four touchdowns, his lowest total ever since his rookie year.

2014

Gates passed Lance Alworth to become the Chargers' career leader in receiving yards in Week 7 against the Broncos.[10]

Records and awards

  • On October 3, 2010, Gates became the seventh tight end with 500 career receptions.
  • In 2005 and 2006, Antonio Gates was selected as the NFL's All-Pro tight end.
  • On February 27, 2010, His number 44 was retired by Kent State.

Regular season stats

Receiving
YearTeamGRecYardsY/RTD
2003San Diego152438916.22
2004San Diego158196411.913
2005San Diego1589110112.410
2006San Diego167192413.09
2007San Diego167598413.19
2008San Diego166070411.78
2009San Diego1679115714.68
2010San Diego105078215.610
2011San Diego136477812.27
2012San Diego154953811.07
2013San Diego167787211.34
2014San Diego145866211.410
Career1777779,85512.797

Personal life

Gates married his longtime girlfriend, model Sasha Dindayal, on July 9, 2011.[11]

The couple resides in Hollywood Hills in Los Angeles, CA. [12]
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