Mr. Gatti’s Showdown: Spotlighting legends Walter Garrison and Lewis Baker

LewHebronAs part of the Texas Football Showdown game series, Dave Campbell’s Texas Football and Mr. Gatti’s spotlight a legendary player from each school in the rivalry game. The players honored this week competed about 40 years apart and didn’t have the opportunity to experience the Lewisville-Hebron rivalry during their playing days, but both have been impactful icons on and off the football field. Walt Garrison Lewisville High School, 1958-1962Oklahoma State University, 1962-1966Dallas Cowboys, 1966-1974 Walt Garrison is undoubtedly one of Lewisville High School’s most beloved alumni, but after an illustrious career in the NFL – and on the rodeo circuit – Garrison jokes that many in Lewisville don’t even remember what position he played for the Farmers. Garrison was a Pro Bowl fullback for the Dallas Cowboys, but he actually began his career as a linebacker at both Lewisville and Oklahoma State. It wasn’t until the spring of his freshman year at OSU that a new head coach – Phil Cutchin – required linebackers to play either center or fullback on offense. With Cutchin in charge, Garrison’s move to fullback stuck. He didn’t like the position change at first, but it began to grow on him over time. “I didn’t know anything about running back at first, but I could block,” Garrison said with a laugh. “Lots of people say to me, ‘Oh, we remember how you used to carry the ball at Lewisville!’ No, you don’t – you think you do, but you don’t.” The rest, of course, is history. Garrison went on to earn All-Big Eight honors at Oklahoma State, played in the East-West Shrine Game, the Senior Bowl, the Coaches All-America Game and the College All-Star Game before being drafted 79^th overall by the Cowboys in 1966. With the Cowboys, Garrison was a Super Bowl (VI) champion and finished his career with 3,886 yards rushing, 1,794 receiving yards and 39 total touchdowns. But while Garrison was successful on the field, it was what he did off the field that made him unique. In his early years with the Cowboys, Garrison was behind the great Don Perkins on the depth chart. On the Saturday nights before home games, while he was mostly a special teams player, Garrison would attend the team meeting, grab a meal to go and head over to Mansfield to compete in the weekly rodeo – all while still managing to make it back in time for coach Tom Landry’s 11 p.m. curfew. Finally, someone called Landry – much to the legendary coaches surprise – to praise him for letting Garrison go “bulldogging” the night before a game. It wasn’t long after that call that the habit was put to an end. “It went on a few times before Coach Landry called me into his office,” Garrison said. “He said, ‘We won’t be doing that anymore, will we?’ I said ‘No sir, we won’t.’ So I never did it again.” Although the secret Saturday night rodeo excursions were brought to an end, Garrison continued to compete in the offseason. Garrison used his love for rodeo to help support the Multiple Sclerosis Society, and he ran the Walt Garrison All-Star Rodeo for more than 30 years to benefit MS research. “All the money we raised went to MS, because a buddy of mine had MS,” Garrison said. “We raised a lot of money for MS, and that makes you feel good especially when you know where the money is going. I feel very fortunate to be where I am, so it’s always nice to give back.” Garrison was known for his toughness and dependability on the field, and missed just seven games in nine seasons before suffering a career-ending injury in an offseason rodeo accident. A truly one-of-a-kind man both on and off the football field, Garrison credits his toughness and strong work ethic to his dad. “My daddy always taught me to do the best I could every chance I got,” Garrison said. “He used to tell me, ‘I better not catch you loafing on the football field.’ I never did, because I respected my dad a lot.” The Lewisville legend has been a strong supporter of the Farmers over the years, and said that being spotlighted by Dave Campbell’s Texas Football and Mr. Gatti’s is a true honor. “I always pull for Lewisville, and I go to all the games I can,” Garrison said. “I’m very proud to be from Lewisville, and I’m very proud of everywhere I’ve been. I feel like I was very fortunate.” Lewis Baker Hebron High School, 1999-2003Oklahoma High School, 2003-2007San Francisco 49ers, 2008-2009 ; Hamilton Tiger-Cats, 2009Las Vegas Locomotives, 2010-2011 More than 40 years after Walt Garrison began his career as a linebacker at Lewisville, Lewis Baker played linebacker as a member of the first class to go through all four years at the new Hebron High School. Despite not even playing football until eighth grade – and not receiving any legitimate playing time until high school – Baker quickly emerged as one of the top recruits in the state by his junior year under coach Brian Brazil. As a young program, the Hawks struggled in Baker’s time at Hebron. But looking back on his sophomore year, Baker vividly recalled an encounter with then-defensive coordinator Joe McBride during a blowout loss as an extremely impactful moment in his life. “We didn’t have a lot of pride, and it showed,” Baker said. “At halftime, Coach McBride was in tears. This man truly cared about us, and was just so passionate. That was just a defining moment for me – it set a standard in my mind for how I should prepare and go about things in football and life.” Baker and McBride – who is now the Athletic Coordinator at Coppell ISD – share an extremely close relationship to this day, and McBride has played a big role in Baker’s life. As the offers started to pour in after his junior season, Baker began to feel the pressure of the recruiting process. But in the end, it was the combination of a high school friend, McBride and then-Oklahoma defensive coordinator Brent Venables that convinced Baker to continue his career in Norman. McBride was working at an Oklahoma summer football camp, and called Baker before the final day to try to arrange a way for him to get up to the camp for the last day. Baker made it, and although the Sooners had yet to extend an offer, it didn’t take long for the coaching staff to recognize what they were missing. “I was in camp for 15 minutes, and Coach Venables pulled me out of camp and into his office,” Baker said. “He offered me a scholarship on the spot, and gave me all the reasons why he thought I should be there.” Over the next few weeks, the family first mentality that head coach Bob Stoops and the Sooners had made a lasting impact on Baker as he continued to develop a close relationship with Venables. In the end, Baker said that’s what sealed the deal in his recruitment. Over the next five years, Baker went on to have an extremely successful career with the Sooners as a versatile defender where he saw time at both safety and linebacker. He was named a captain as a senior, and finished as an honorable mention Big 12 selection before signing as an undrafted free agent with the San Francisco 49ers in 2008. Baker never played for the 49ers, but moved on to play in the Canadian Football League and won a championship with the Las Vegas Locomotives in the United Football League in 2010 before retiring in 2011. Now, in addition to his job in information technology, Baker – who is known for his own passionate personality similar to that of McBride and Venables – does inspirational speaking at both high schools and colleges in the area. Stoops invited him back to Oklahoma to do a pre-game chapel service earlier this season, and Baker has talked to several high school football teams since. In addition to being recognized as Hebron’s legendary player this week, Baker was also invited by coach Brian Brazil to speak to the team prior to the game. “It’s something I really, really enjoy,” Baker said. “Who doesn’t need a little pep talk every now and then to just let them know that someone is thinking about them and is there for them if they need it? I’ve always been a very, very passionate person. I’m not a great speaker, but I just speak from heart.” Baker’s appearance at Friday’s Texas Football Showdown will be his first time back to a Hebron game since his playing days. While he is on the Hawks’ side, Baker gave a word of advice to both teams. “Go out there and play your hearts out,” Baker said. “That’s all you can do. The objective is always to win, and I wish those guys all the best.”