Mike Horton (American football)

Mike Horton (born October 7, 1997) is an American football offensive guard for the Arlington Renegades of the XFL. He played college football for the Auburn Tigers and has also been a member of the Carolina Panthers.

Mike Horton
No. 70 – Arlington Renegades
Position:Offensive guard
Personal information
Born: (1997-10-07) October 7, 1997
Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
Height:6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:325 lb (147 kg)
Career information
High school:Lakeside (GA)
College:Auburn (2015–2019)
Undrafted:2020
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of 2022
Games played:3
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Early life

Horton was born in Atlanta, Georgia on October 7 in either 1996 or 1997.[1][2] He attended Lakeside High School and was ranked a three-star prospect.[3] He was a two-way player at tackle in football and also played basketball and competed in track and field.[4][5] Horton was named a first-team all-region player, was selected to the Semper Fi All-American Bowl, and was ranked by 247Sports as one of the top-60 prospects in the state, additionally being ranked the 23rd-best nationally at his position by ESPN.[5] He received interest from numerous NCAA Division I FBS teams and initially committed to play for the Florida Gators, but later flipped to Auburn.[6][7]

College career

As a true freshman at Auburn in 2015, Horton redshirted.[8] The following year, he appeared in 12 games, seeing extensive action as the sixth offensive lineman on the depth chart, often playing as an extra blocker in run formations.[5][9] He started seven games in 2017, mainly as a left guard.[10] Horton moved to right guard in 2018 but didn't have a great transition, ranking 627th out of 836 college lineman according to Pro Football Focus' rankings.[11] He started 12 games as a senior in 2019, finishing his stint at the school with 32 career starts.[5]

Professional career

Carolina Panthers

After going unselected in the 2020 NFL Draft, Horton was signed by the Carolina Panthers as an undrafted free agent.[12] He was released at the final rosters cuts and was afterwards re-signed to the practice squad.[13][14] He was elevated to the active roster as a COVID-19 replacement for their game against the New Orleans Saints, but did not play and returned to the practice squad afterwards.[1][15] He was elevated again for the team's following game against the Atlanta Falcons, but was inactive.[16] He was signed to a reserve/future contract on January 4, 2021.[17]

Horton was released at roster cuts again in 2021, being re-signed to the practice squad soon after.[18][19] He was released from the practice squad on September 14, but was brought back on September 27.[20][21] He was elevated to the active roster for their week 10 game against the Arizona Cardinals, and made his debut in the game, appearing on six special teams snaps, 24% of the their total special teams snaps.[22][23] He received another elevation for their game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in week 16 and appeared on two snaps.[23][24] Horton was elevated for a final time against the New Orleans Saints one week later and played three snaps.[19][23] He thus played in a total of three games in the 2021 season, appearing on 11 snaps.[1] He signed a reserve/future contract on January 10, 2022.[25] Horton was released by the Panthers following the 2022 preseason and was not re-signed to the practice squad.[26]

Arlington Renegades

Horton was selected in the third round (18th overall) of the offensive line phase of the 2023 XFL Draft by the Arlington Renegades.[26] He made the team's final roster and appeared in all 10 games as a starter, helping them win the 2023 XFL Championship Game over the DC Defenders.[2][27][28]

References
  1. "Mike Horton Stats". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
  2. "Mike Horton Stats". Pro Football Archives.
  3. "Michael Horton, 2015 Offensive Guard, Auburn". Rivals.com.
  4. Thompson, Edgar (February 3, 2015). "Meet Gators offensive tackle recruit Mike Horton". The Baltimore Sun.
  5. "Mike Horton". Auburn Tigers.
  6. Melnick, Andrew (August 1, 2014). "Mike Horton commits to Florida: Gators land 3-Star OT". FanSided.
  7. Sinor, Wesley (February 4, 2015). "Three-star OT Mike Horton flips from Florida, signs with Auburn". AL.com.
  8. Matthews, Bryan (April 15, 2016). "Horton loves Auburn 'to my soul'". Rivals.com.
  9. Vitale, Josh (January 9, 2017). "Auburn's Mike Horton ready to go from 6th offensive lineman to starter in 2017". Opelika-Auburn News.
  10. Crepea, James (May 10, 2018). "Auburn's most experienced offensive lineman is right guard Mike Horton". AL.com.
  11. Green, Tom (May 17, 2019). "Mike Horton looks to improve upon right guard role for Auburn". AL.com.
  12. Weaver, Tim (April 27, 2020). "Panthers agree to terms with 5 linebackers, 17 total undrafted free agents". USA Today.
  13. Simmons, Myles (September 5, 2020). "Panthers reduce roster to 53 players". Carolina Panthers.
  14. Simmons, Myles (September 6, 2020). "Panthers announce initial practice squad additions". Carolina Panthers.
  15. Inabinett, Mark (October 24, 2020). "Carolina Panthers call up Mike Horton". AL.com.
  16. Simmons, Myles (October 29, 2020). "Week 8 Inactives: Zach Kerr, Russell Okung will not play against Atlanta". Carolina Panthers.
  17. Weaver, Tim (January 4, 2021). "Panthers extend TE Colin Thompson, sign 14 others to futures contracts". USA Today.
  18. Rizzuti, Anthony (August 31, 2021). "Panthers cut QB Will Grier". USA Today.
  19. "Mike Horton Transactions & Injuries". sportsforecaster.com.
  20. Inabinett, Mark (September 14, 2021). "Montravius Adams, Kerryon Johnson back in NFL". AL.com.
  21. Rizzuti, Anthony (September 27, 2021). "Panthers officially place rookie CB Jaycee Horn on IR". USA Today.
  22. Inabinett, Mark (November 13, 2021). "Mike Horton in line to make his NFL debut with Carolina on Sunday". AL.com.
  23. "Mike Horton Career Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
  24. Inabinett, Mark (December 25, 2021). "Daren Bates returns from IR for Atlanta Falcons". AL.com.
  25. Rizzuti, Anthony (January 12, 2022). "Panthers sign two more players for 2022". USA Today.
  26. Inabinett, Mark (November 16, 2022). "XFL values offensive linemen with Alabama football roots". AL.com.
  27. Rolfe, Ben (February 12, 2023). "2023 XFL Rosters: Opening Weekend Names Include Josh Gordon, Kalen Ballage, and Paxton Lynch". Pro Football Network.
  28. McCarthy, JD (May 14, 2023). "Four former Tigers win XFL Championship". USA Today.
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