Shearer was born in Houston, Texas.[1] He graduated from Westlake High School in Westlake Hills, Texas,[2] a suburb of Austin, where he played for the Westlake Chaparrals high school football team.
College career[]
Shearer received an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Texas at Austin, where he played for the Texas Longhorns football team from 1974 to 1977.[3] He was a two-time All-Southwestern Conference selection in (1975, 1977),[4] As a senior team captain in 1977, he averaged ten tackles per game, led the Longhorns to a No. 1 ranking,[3] and was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American.[5] He was also awarded the Outland Trophy, recognizing him as the best interior lineman during the 1977 college football season.[3][6]
Professional career[]
The Chicago Bears picked Shearer in the third round (74th pick overall) of the 1978 NFL Draft,[7] and he played for the Bears from 1978 to 1981.[1] In three NFL seasons, he appeared in thirty-four regular season games for the Bears, and started two of them.[8] He did not play during the 1979 regular season,[8] and his pro career was later cut short by a knee injury.[9]
↑2011 NCAA Football Records Book, Award Winners, National Collegiate Athletic Association, Indianapolis, Indiana, p. 7 (2011). Retrieved June 26, 2012.
↑Associated Press, "Shearer Named Outland Winner," The News and Courier (December 11, 1977). Retrieved June 26, 2012.
