D'Wayne Bates Bio -
Helping bring the Purple to Pasadena in 1995, Bates had a breakout freshman year racking up a team-leading 49 catches for 889 yards, including a season-best 145 yards vs. USC in the Rose Bowl. Proving this to be no fluke, he backed those stats up in 1996 by setting NU records for receiving yards (1,196) and touchdown catches (12).
In 1997, Bates was expected to lead the offense in defending Northwestern's back-to-back Big Ten titles. However, a fractured fibula sidelined him for all but one game of his junior season. Bates returned for his final season in 1998 in a big way, having career highs in catches (83) and receiving yards (1,245). In addition, he was named first-team All-Big Ten for the second time.
In just three seasons, Bates set Northwestern's career marks for total receptions (210), touchdown catches (26) and receiving yards (3,370). At the time of his induction, he ranked sixth on the Big Ten Conference's career list for receiving yards and fifth for total receptions.
Bates played professionally with the Chicago Bears and the Minnesota Vikings, with his best season coming in 2002 with the Vikings (50 catches for 689 yards and 4 TD's).
