Dante Hughes
Encyclopedia
Daymeion Dante Hughes is an American football
cornerback
who currently plays for the San Diego Chargers
of the NFL
.
He was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts
in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft
. He played college football
at California
.
in Los Angeles, California
and was a student and a letterman in football, basketball, tennis, and track. In football, he was an All-League and an All-City honoree as a junior. As a senior, he was named the Coliseum League's co-Player of the Year. In basketball, he was a two-year starter. On Rivals.com's list of Top 100 California Players, Hughes came in at number 41 and was subsequently recruited by many regional and out of state football powers, but eventually landed at Cal as a true freshman.
Golden Bears
for four years where he was eventually recognized as the Lott Trophy
winner in 2006 and a first team All-America
while leading the nation in interceptions at the time with 8. Although only recognized for his plethora of defensive achievements in his senior year, he was prolific in breaking up passes and making pinpoint tackles to stop the passer's progress in all four years. Due to his ability to completely shut down one side of the field, he has been given the label of a 'shutdown corner," a title only given to the best of defensive backs, including Deion Sanders
and Champ Bailey
.
In 2003, as a freshman, Hughes started five games. Hughes recorded a tying-team high with two interceptions, 30 tackles, and recovered a fumble. Hughes first interception was returned 72-yards for a touchdown against Oregon State. Hughes was awarded the Bob Simmons Award as the team's most valuable freshman.
As a sophomore in 2004, Hughes started in 11 of 12 games. Hughes was the team's 12th leading tackler with 26 tackles and was second on the team with 6 broken up passes. Hughes starred in the Big Game
against Stanford, where he recorded four broken up passes and two tackles. Also, Hughes had three four-tackle games.
In his junior season of 2005, Hughes led the PAC-10 with 17 defended passes, 12 of those broken up. He ranked second in the PAC-10 and 16th nationally with five interceptions. Hughes also finished fourth on the team with 62 tackles. Against the University of Washington
, Hughes took an interception back 41-yards for a touchdown. Against the University of Southern California
, Hughes recorded a season-best 10 tackles and broke up two tackles. Against Washington State
, Hughes blocked a kick and had three pass break-ups. In the Las Vegas Bowl
against Brigham Young University
, Hughes' interception on BYU's final drive clinched the win for Cal.
In his final season of 2006, Hughes was the PAC-10 Defensive Player of the Year and won the Ronnie Lott IMPACT Trophy
. Hughes was first-team All-American and recorded eight interceptions and defended 19 passes. Hughes was second on the team with 72 tackles too. Against USC, Hughes had seven tackles and broke up a pass. Against UCLA, Hughes recorded a team-best 10 tackles, three pass break-ups, and an interception. Hughes intercepted a key pass in the endzone against Washington and recorded a season-high 11 tackles and two interceptions against Arizona State, one of which was taken back for a touchdown. Hughes also returned an interception 30-yards for a score against Portland State and recorded two interceptions against the University of Minnesota
. Along with Syd'Quan Thompson
, the highly regarded duo led the Golden Bears to one of its best defensive seasons ever in terms of pass defense.
and one of the first cornerbacks taken. However, slower than expected 40-yard dash times likely led to his selection by the Indianapolis Colts late the third round.
Hughes and Tim Jennings
competed for the nickel back duties behind projected starter Kelvin Hayden
and left corner Marlin Jackson
. Hughes competed against fellow-rookie Michael Coe
. Hughes finished the season with 14 tackles in only 10 games.
Hughes was waived on September 5, 2009.
was placed on injured reserve. On October 24, 2009 he was waived by San Diego, but was re-signed on October 27.
On October 3, 2010 he was released to make room for Wilson. On October 6, 2010 Hughes was re-signed to the 53-man roster. For the 2010 season he has played in 4 games and made 2 tackles.
.
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...
cornerback
Cornerback
A cornerback is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in American and Canadian football. Cornerbacks cover receivers, to defend against pass offenses and make tackles. Other members of the defensive backfield include the safeties and occasionally linebackers. The cornerback position...
who currently plays for 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...
of the NFL
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...
.
He was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League ....
in the third round of 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...
. He 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...
at California
California Golden Bears football
The California Golden Bears football team is the college football team of the University of California. The team plays its home games at California Memorial Stadium, however the team played at San Francisco's AT&T Park in 2011 while Memorial Stadium was being renovated, the team will return to...
.
Early years
Hughes attended Crenshaw High SchoolCrenshaw High School
Crenshaw High School is a secondary school located in South Los Angeles, California.The school first opened in 1968 and currently enrolls an average of 2,600 students. Its address is 5010 11th Avenue, near the corner of 50th Street. The school colors are blue and gold, and its mascot is the...
in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
and was a student and a letterman in football, basketball, tennis, and track. In football, he was an All-League and an All-City honoree as a junior. As a senior, he was named the Coliseum League's co-Player of the Year. In basketball, he was a two-year starter. On Rivals.com's list of Top 100 California Players, Hughes came in at number 41 and was subsequently recruited by many regional and out of state football powers, but eventually landed at Cal as a true freshman.
College career
Hughes played defensive back for the University of CaliforniaUniversity of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
Golden Bears
California Golden Bears football
The California Golden Bears football team is the college football team of the University of California. The team plays its home games at California Memorial Stadium, however the team played at San Francisco's AT&T Park in 2011 while Memorial Stadium was being renovated, the team will return to...
for four years where he was eventually recognized as the Lott Trophy
Lott Trophy
The Lott IMPACT Trophy is presented annually to the college football Defensive IMPACT Player of the Year. IMPACT is an acronym for: integrity, maturity, performance, academics, community, and tenacity. The award purports to equally recognize the personal character of the winning player as well as...
winner in 2006 and a first team All-America
All-America
An All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
while leading the nation in interceptions at the time with 8. Although only recognized for his plethora of defensive achievements in his senior year, he was prolific in breaking up passes and making pinpoint tackles to stop the passer's progress in all four years. Due to his ability to completely shut down one side of the field, he has been given the label of a 'shutdown corner," a title only given to the best of defensive backs, including Deion Sanders
Deion Sanders
Deion Luwynn Sanders , nicknamed "Prime Time" and "Neon Deion", is a former National Football League cornerback and Major League Baseball outfielder who currently works as an NFL Network analyst...
and Champ Bailey
Champ Bailey
Roland "Champ" Bailey is an American football cornerback for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League. Bailey was drafted in the 1st round of the 1999 NFL Draft by the Washington Redskins. He played college football at the University of Georgia.Bailey is 8th among Broncos in all-time...
.
In 2003, as a freshman, Hughes started five games. Hughes recorded a tying-team high with two interceptions, 30 tackles, and recovered a fumble. Hughes first interception was returned 72-yards for a touchdown against Oregon State. Hughes was awarded the Bob Simmons Award as the team's most valuable freshman.
As a sophomore in 2004, Hughes started in 11 of 12 games. Hughes was the team's 12th leading tackler with 26 tackles and was second on the team with 6 broken up passes. Hughes starred in the Big Game
Big Game (football)
The Big Game is an American college football rivalry game played by the California Golden Bears football team of the University of California, Berkeley and the Stanford Cardinal football team of Stanford University. It is typically played in late November or early December...
against Stanford, where he recorded four broken up passes and two tackles. Also, Hughes had three four-tackle games.
In his junior season of 2005, Hughes led the PAC-10 with 17 defended passes, 12 of those broken up. He ranked second in the PAC-10 and 16th nationally with five interceptions. Hughes also finished fourth on the team with 62 tackles. Against the University of Washington
University of Washington
University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
, Hughes took an interception back 41-yards for a touchdown. Against the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
, Hughes recorded a season-best 10 tackles and broke up two tackles. Against Washington State
Washington State University
Washington State University is a public research university based in Pullman, Washington, in the Palouse region of the Pacific Northwest. Founded in 1890, WSU is the state's original and largest land-grant university...
, Hughes blocked a kick and had three pass break-ups. In the Las Vegas Bowl
Las Vegas Bowl
The Maaco Bowl Las Vegas is an NCAA-sanctioned Division I-A post-season college football bowl game that has been played annually at 40,000-seat Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. since 1992. From 1992 to 1996, matchups featured the champion teams from the Big West and Mid-American...
against Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
, Hughes' interception on BYU's final drive clinched the win for Cal.
In his final season of 2006, Hughes was the PAC-10 Defensive Player of the Year and won the Ronnie Lott IMPACT Trophy
Lott Trophy
The Lott IMPACT Trophy is presented annually to the college football Defensive IMPACT Player of the Year. IMPACT is an acronym for: integrity, maturity, performance, academics, community, and tenacity. The award purports to equally recognize the personal character of the winning player as well as...
. Hughes was first-team All-American and recorded eight interceptions and defended 19 passes. Hughes was second on the team with 72 tackles too. Against USC, Hughes had seven tackles and broke up a pass. Against UCLA, Hughes recorded a team-best 10 tackles, three pass break-ups, and an interception. Hughes intercepted a key pass in the endzone against Washington and recorded a season-high 11 tackles and two interceptions against Arizona State, one of which was taken back for a touchdown. Hughes also returned an interception 30-yards for a score against Portland State and recorded two interceptions against the University of Minnesota
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
. Along with Syd'Quan Thompson
Syd'Quan Thompson
Syd'Quan Thompson is an American football cornerback for the Denver Broncos. Thompson was drafted by the Broncos as the 225th overall selection in the 2010 NFL Draft. He played college football at California.-Early life:...
, the highly regarded duo led the Golden Bears to one of its best defensive seasons ever in terms of pass defense.
Indianapolis Colts
After his senior season, he was expected to be an early first day pick in the 2007 NFL Draft2007 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...
and one of the first cornerbacks taken. However, slower than expected 40-yard dash times likely led to his selection by the Indianapolis Colts late the third round.
Hughes and Tim Jennings
Tim Jennings
Tim Jennings is an American football cornerback for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the second round of the 2006 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Georgia....
competed for the nickel back duties behind projected starter Kelvin Hayden
Kelvin Hayden
Kelvin Darnell Hayden, Jr. is an American football cornerback for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the second round of the 2005 NFL Draft out of the University of Illinois. He returned a Rex Grossman interception 56 yards for a...
and left corner Marlin Jackson
Marlin Jackson
-Indianapolis Colts:Jackson was selected by the Indianapolis Colts with the 29th overall pick of the 2005 NFL Draft. As an NFL rookie he had 52 tackles and one interception. Marlin played mostly in passing situations with one start in 15 games. In his second season, he had 82 tackles and 1...
. Hughes competed against fellow-rookie Michael Coe
Michael Coe (American football)
Michael Coe is an American football cornerback for the New York Giants of the National Football League. He attended Cordova High School in Memphis, TN. He was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the fifth round of the 2007 NFL Draft...
. Hughes finished the season with 14 tackles in only 10 games.
Hughes was waived on September 5, 2009.
San Diego Chargers
On October 20, 2009, Hughes signed with the San Diego Chargers after Antwan ApplewhiteAntwan Applewhite
Antwan Deandre Applewhite is an American football linebacker for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League. He was signed by the San Diego Chargers as an undrafted free agent in 2007...
was placed on injured reserve. On October 24, 2009 he was waived by San Diego, but was re-signed on October 27.
On October 3, 2010 he was released to make room for Wilson. On October 6, 2010 Hughes was re-signed to the 53-man roster. For the 2010 season he has played in 4 games and made 2 tackles.
Personal
He is known by his middle name, Dante, to his close friends and family members. He is the son of Ronald and Catana Hughes and will be graduating with a degree in art practice. Hughes and his art were featured on the sports page of the San Jose Mercury NewsSan Jose Mercury News
The San Jose Mercury News is a daily newspaper in San Jose, California. On its web site, however, it calls itself Silicon Valley Mercury News. The paper is owned by MediaNews Group...
.