Chris Weinke (born July 31, 1972 in St. Paul, Minnesota) is a professional football player with the Carolina Panthers. Before college, he attended Cretin-Derham Hall High School in Minnesota. After there, he signed with Florida State University, but instead, opted to go to the Toronto Blue Jays minor league baseball system where he spent six years, advancing to the Triple-A level before enrolling at Florida State in Tallahassee. At Florida State as a sophomore in 1998 he led the Seminoles to a 9-1 record and #2 national ranking before a season-ending neck injury forced him to the sidelines. During his junior season he led the #1 ranked 'Noles to a 12-0 record and their second National Champonship, defeating Michael Vick and the Virginia Tech Hokies 46-29 in the 2000 Sugar Bowl. He also won the Heisman Trophy, which is given to college football's best player, along with the Davey O'Brien and Johnny Unitas awards. As a senior in 2000 again he led the Seminoles to their third title game in a row, a 13-2 loss to the Oklahoma Sooners in the 2001 Orange Bowl. He is still the oldest person ever to win the Heisman. He was then picked in the fourth round (106th overall) in the 2001 NFL Draft. Like many Heisman Trophy winners before him, he has had a less than stellar career in the NFL. He has played in only 22 games, only playing once since 2002. On October 16, 2005, Weinke saw his first action since the 2002 season when starter Jake Delhomme went down with an injury against the Detroit Lions, Weinke threw a TD pass to WR Ricky Proehl, giving the Panthers the 21-20 win over the Lions.
Preceded by: Ron Dayne Heisman Trophy Winner 2000 Succeeded by: Eric Crouch Preceded by: Steve Beuerlein Carolina Panthers Starting Quarterbacks 2001 Succeeded by: Rodney Peete
