Outstanding Alumni - 2011
Trent Baalke
Bemidji State University Graduate 1987
In January, Trent Baalke was named general manager of the NFL's San Francisco 49ers after spending five years in the organization as a regional scout, director of player personnel and vice president of player personnel.
Baalke, a 1987 Bemidji State graduate with a degree in health and physical education, played football for the Beavers from 1982-86 and helped the program get back on a winning track. He recorded 169 tackles during his four-year career, was named All-Northern Intercollegiate Conference in 1985 and helped the Beavers finish as high as third in the NSIC. After leaving BSU, he was a graduate assistant for the North Dakota State football program that finished 14-0 and won a national championship in 1990. He later coached at South Dakota State before entering the NFL in 1998 as a scout with the New York Jets. Later, he was a national scout and college scouting coordinator with the Washington Redskins before joining the 49ers in 2005.
After graduating from BSU, Baalke earned a master's degree in educational administration from North Dakota State. He lives in Loveland, CO, with his wife, Beth, who also is a BSU alum. They have two daughters, Katlynn and Cassie.