Which region produced some of the world's fastest sprinters in the late 1970s and which school has won the most football state titles?
If you answered Baker, you're correct: Baker has won five football state titles, more than all other area schools combined, which is why the Gators are starting the Mount Rushmore series, which will celebrate the top four names from all 11 area programs (Destin is excluded because it's new) to honor athletes and coaches, past and present.
The selection of these four is likely to be controversial, as was the case with the faces of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln, carved into stone in the Black Hills region of South Dakota.
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How do we compare a player who peaked after graduation to a player who filled a trophy case all four years of his life? How do we compare a coach who puts a flag over a tiny window to a coach who brings more wins during his tenure?
There's really no set formula for our selection, just that we all deserve the name Mount Rushmore. We'll leave it to the vote below, which runs until Monday at 2 p.m.
So let's take a look at Baker's “Mount Rushmore”: In my opinion, these four are beyond question.
Baker's Mount Rushmore
Matt Brunson
Brunson has been involved in five state title wins at Baker High School, first as a player from 1983-85, then as an assistant in 1993 and finally as head coach in 2020, ending a region-wide state championship drought dating back to 1995 at Fort Walton Beach.
From Baker's commitment to the weight room to the Wing-T offense, from the “no one can beat the Gators” mentality to the offseason get-togethers, Brunson's coaching style is built on family, brotherhood and trust. He's a shepherd in a sheep's world. He's a man who exudes positive vibes and praise. He's a person of character. Matt Brunson is Baker himself, entering his 12th year at the helm with a 114-21 record.
Joe Branson
Parents often listen: If Matt Brunson laid the foundation, Joe led the Gators over the final hurdle and won a state title in 2020.
Baker's all-around athlete performances as punter, kick returner, tailback, quarterback and wide receiver included 109 all-purpose yards, one touchdown and 10 tackles in the Gators' 27-14 state title win over Hawthorne. In his retirement game, Baker led all running backs in the state of Florida with 2,538 yards and 30 touchdowns, earning him his second consecutive Daily News Player of the Year honors and capping off a two-year run in which he threw for 5,100 yards and 57 touchdowns.
He also recorded 81 tackles and three interceptions and excelled in baseball, basketball, football, track and weightlifting for the Gators.
John Ensor
Ensor helped usher in the first and only football dynasty in the Daily News coverage area. From 1980-1985, Ensor became one of only five Florida coaches to lead their teams to six consecutive state semifinal appearances. Five of those appearances resulted in state championships, which Baker won from 1983-1985.
Houston McTeer
In 1978, McTeer appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated as the world's fastest sprinter. Three years earlier, as a senior at Baker High School, he had run the 100-yard dash in 9.0 seconds, a world record in a discipline that would later be replaced by the 100-meter dash.
Unfortunately, McTeer injured his hamstring and missed the 1976 Olympics. In 1980, McTeer set the world indoor record in the 60-meter sprint, securing a spot on the U.S. outdoor team, but unfortunately, McTeer's gold medal hopes were dashed when President Jimmy Carter ordered the U.S. to boycott the Moscow Summer Olympics.
