Jake Bequette

George Jules "Jake" Bequette III (born February 21, 1989) is a former American football defensive end and United States Army infantry officer who served in Iraq in support of Operation Inherent Resolve. He was selected in the third round with the 90th overall pick by the Patriots in the 2012 NFL Draft. He played high school football at Catholic High in Little Rock, Arkansas, and college football for the University of Arkansas. Bequette was rated highly as a defensive end prospect in that year's draft.[1] He was an unsuccessful candidate for the Republican nomination in the 2022 United States Senate election in Arkansas.[2]

Jake Bequette
refer to caption
Bequette at the 2011 Arkansas spring football game.
No. 91
Position:Defensive end
Personal information
Born: (1989-02-21) February 21, 1989
Little Rock, Arkansas, U.S.
Height:6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:265 lb (120 kg)
Career information
High school:Little Rock (AR) Catholic
College:Arkansas
NFL Draft:2012 / Round: 3 / Pick: 90
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Games played:8
Player stats at NFL.com

Amateur career

Jake Bequette was born George Jules Bequette III in Little Rock.[3][4] Bequette attended Catholic High School in Little Rock.[5] After high school, Bequette attended the University of Arkansas, where he played college football for the Arkansas Razorbacks from 2007 to 2011. During his career, he started 42 of 48 games, recording 140 tackles and 23.5 sacks. As a senior, he was a first-team All-Southeastern Conference selection.[6]

Bequette was named the Defensive MVP of the 2012 Cotton Bowl, helping the 2011 Arkansas Razorbacks football team defeat Kansas State, 29-16, as the Razorbacks finished the 2011 season with a record of 11-2, and a No. 5 final ranking in all polls. Bequette finished the game with five tackles and three quarterback sacks. Bequette is a third-generation Razorback: his grandfather George and father Jay both played for Arkansas, as did his uncle.[7][8]

Professional career
Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeightArm lengthHand span40-yard dash10-yard split20-yard split20-yard shuttleThree-cone drillVertical jumpBroad jump
6 ft 4+5⁄8 in
(1.95 m)		 274 lb
(124 kg)		 32 in
(0.81 m)		 9+1⁄4 in
(0.23 m)		4.82 s1.71 s2.83 s4.07 s6.90 s34.0 in
(0.86 m)		9 ft 5 in
(2.87 m)
All values from NFL Combine[9][10]

Bequette was selected in the third round by the New England Patriots in the 2012 NFL Draft.[11] He played in three games in 2012, and five games in 2013. He was released by the Patriots on August 30, 2014, as part of final roster cuts.[12] He did not see extensive playing time during his time with the Patriots, but re-signed with the team's practice squad shortly after the 2014 cuts. Bequette received a Super Bowl ring with the Patriots in 2014.

Before the 2015 season, the Patriots switched Bequette from defensive end to tight end.[13][14] Bequette was waived by the Patriots and subsequently placed on injured reserve after clearing waivers on August 28, 2015.[15] He was released with an injury settlement on September 4, 2015, and became a free agent.[16]

Post-NFL career

In August 2017, Bequette joined the United States Army. After basic training and Officer Candidate School, he went on to become a Ranger-qualified infantry officer in the 101st Airborne Division. Bequette later served a five-month deployment in Iraq in 2019.[17]

In January 2021, he launched The Arkansas Fund,[18] a nonprofit dedicated to helping small businesses in Arkansas that have struggled as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. In July 2021, he announced his candidacy for U.S. Senate against Arkansas Senator John Boozman, challenging Boozman from the right in the Republican primary for the 2022 election.[19][20] On May 24, 2022, Boozman ultimately won with 58% of the vote to Bequette’s 20%, easily avoiding a runoff.[21]

References
  1. "Jake Bequette - Arkansas, DE : 2012 NFL Draft Scout Player Profile". Archived from the original on May 17, 2012. Retrieved March 6, 2016.
  2. "Former NFL player Jake Bequette launches bid for Senate seat in Arkansas". TheGuardian.com. July 12, 2021. Archived from the original on April 19, 2022. Retrieved April 19, 2022.
  3. "NFL 100 Player Pylons". Centennial Plaza. Archived from the original on May 28, 2022. Retrieved May 23, 2022. A search of Bequette returns "George J. Bequette III".
  4. "George Jules Bequette Sr". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. March 14, 2011. Archived from the original on May 24, 2022. Retrieved May 23, 2022.
  5. Demirel, Evin (July 19, 2011). "Family lineman". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Archived from the original on May 23, 2022. Retrieved May 23, 2022.
  6. "Southeastern Conference". Archived from the original on November 15, 2013. Retrieved March 6, 2016.
  7. "Jake Bequette". University of Arkansas. July 20, 2011. Archived from the original on November 4, 2012. Retrieved May 23, 2022.
  8. Kelly, Kevin (January 4, 2012). "Bequette family has long Razorback history". Fox 16 KLRT. Archived from the original on January 15, 2023. Retrieved May 23, 2022.
  9. "Jake Bequette Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved October 5, 2023.
  10. "2012 NFL Draft Scout Jake Bequette College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved October 5, 2023.
  11. "2012 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 14, 2023.
  12. "Report: Pats cut DE Jake Bequette, LB Steve Beauharnais, DT Jerel Worthy". weei.com. Archived from the original on September 3, 2014. Retrieved August 30, 2014.
  13. "New England Patriots DE Jake Bequette adding TE work to his repertoire". ESPN.com. May 29, 2015. Archived from the original on January 6, 2016. Retrieved March 6, 2016.
  14. "New England Patriots Mailbag -- Back to Deflategate and Tom Brady's appeal to NFL". ESPN.com. June 16, 2015. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved March 6, 2016.
  15. "Patriots place TE Jake Bequette on Injured Reserve". New England Patriots. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved March 6, 2016.
  16. "Patriots reach injury settlement with Jake Bequette". New England Patriots. Archived from the original on November 8, 2020. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  17. Howe, Jeff. "From Patriot to patriot: Former defensive end Jake Bequette thriving in 101st Airborne". The Athletic. Archived from the original on July 12, 2021. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  18. Hale, Tyler (February 13, 2021). "Former Razorback Jake Bequette Launches Relief Fund for Arkansas Businesses". AMP. Archived from the original on June 29, 2021. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  19. "Former NFL player, Iraq war veteran Jake Bequette challenges Arkansas Sen. Boozman". Fox News. July 12, 2021. Archived from the original on April 21, 2022. Retrieved July 12, 2021.
  20. "Former NFL player announces bid for Senate seat in Arkansas". AP NEWS. July 12, 2021. Archived from the original on July 14, 2021. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  21. "Sen. John Boozman clinches Republican nomination in Arkansas". PBS. May 24, 2022. Archived from the original on May 31, 2022. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
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