Inducted 2022

An outstanding football and track athlete at Bakersfield High School and Bakersfield College, Staat played four seasons in the NFL after he was selected in the second round (No. 41 overall) by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1998 NFL Draft. Staat spent three seasons with Pittsburgh and concluded his NFL career with the St. Louis Rams in 2003.

After retiring from the NFL, Staat enlisted in the Marine Corps in 2005 at the age of 29 and spent four years in the Marines, including a deployment to Iraq. He concluded his service in 2009, becoming a third-generation Veteran. He returned to Bakersfield where he joined many national and local Veterans organizations. He formed the Jeremy Staat Foundation in 2011 which was established to be a foundation of inspiration, motivation and mentorship to our youth while bringing awareness to our Veterans.

In 2012, he rode a bicycle 3,248 miles across the country from Bakersfield to Washington, D.C., to raise awareness about Veterans suicide. In doing so, Staat earned the Military Order of the Purple Heart Veteran of the Year Award as well as a Beautiful Bakersfield Humanitarian of the Year Award.

At BHS, Staat lettered four times in football and three times in track. He was a California All-State honorable mention, two-time time All-Area and All-South Yosemite League first-team pick and played in the North-South Shrine California All-Star football game. He was named The Bakersfield Californian’s All-Area Lineman of the Year as a senior. The Drillers went 39-2-1 during Staat’s seasons there. In track and field he earned All-Area and All-SYL honors and All-Area Athlete of the Year by The Californian. He was also the CIF state champion his senior year in the discus (183-8).

At BC, Staat was an all-conference offensive tackle in football, helping the Renegades post a 20-2 record in his two seasons. He was an all-Western State Conference selection and named honorable mention JC All-American by JC Grid-Wire. In track, Staat set school records en route to the state title in the men’s shot (58-1/4) and discus (a BC record 182-4 he still holds). At the Southern California championships, Staat became the first athlete to win the shot, discus and hammer in the same meet. He is a member of the California Community College Athletics and BC Track and Field Halls of Fame.