:format(webP)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tbt/VX3PLZJGRZHFBKYIB5UAK2IGRA.jpg "Chiefs receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling (11) seen here beating Bucs linebacker Lavonte David (54) for a deep ball during the teams' 2022 regular season meeting, is the sixth player from Lakewood High to play for a Super Bowl team.")
The Pinellas County program that has helped launch more than a dozen NFL careers will watch yet another alumnus blast into a rarefied atmosphere Sunday evening.
Chiefs receiver (and former USF standout) Marquez Valdes-Scantling, whose team faces the Eagles on Sunday night in Super Bowl 57, becomes the sixth player from Lakewood High to reach the NFL’s globally watched title game. The Spartans’ half-dozen Super Bowl participants are more than any other Tampa Bay area school, which stands to reason.
The 17 NFL players produced by Lakewood are tied with Hillsborough High for most of any local program, according to Pro Football Reference. The Terriers, however, have produced only three Super Bowl participants, including Steve Kiner, who was on Washington’s taxi squad (now known as the practice squad) when it lost to the undefeated Dolphins in Super Bowl 7.
Valdes-Scantling, a 2013 Lakewood graduate, was drafted in the fifth round by the Packers in 2018 and played four seasons in Green Bay before signing a three-year, $30 million contract with the Chiefs last March.
He’s coming off a monstrous performance (six catches, 116 yards, one TD) in a 23-20 victory against the Bengals in the NFC title game. In terms of yardage, Valdes-Scantling was Kansas City’s third-leading receiver in the regular season (42 catches, 687 yards, two TDs).
He’s one of three players from Lakewood’s 2011 team alone to reach a Super Bowl, joining offensive tackle Isaiah Wynn (Patriots, Super Bowl 53) and defensive end Dante Fowler (Rams, Super Bowl 53).
Super Bowl Spartans
The six former Lakewood High players who have played for Super Bowl teams:
WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Class of 2013 (Chiefs, Super Bowl 57)
OT Isaiah Wynn, Class of 2014 (Patriots, Super Bowl 53)*
DE Dante Fowler, Class of 2012 (Rams, Super Bowl 53)
WR Bernard Reedy, Class of 2010 (Patriots, Super Bowl 52)^
OT Cornell Green, Class of 1995 (Bucs, Super Bowl 37)
FB William Floyd , Class of 1990 (49ers, Super Bowl 29)
* On injured reserve at time of Super Bowl
^ On team’s roster, but deemed inactive for Super Bowl
Contact Joey Knight at jknight@tampabay.com. Follow @TBTimes_Bulls
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