Quinton Baker, Preston Mixon removed from football team
August 19, 2019
Quinton Baker has been dismissed from the WKU football team for a second time, as he was one of two Hilltoppers released from the program, the Herald confirmed with the program on Monday.
Baker, a redshirt junior running back, and redshirt sophomore offensive lineman Preston Mixon were removed from the WKU football team on Saturday. Neither player was seen at Sunday night’s WKU football practice, according to a Bowling Green Daily News report.
“Quinton Baker and Preston Mixon have been dismissed as of Saturday for a violation of team rules,” WKU team spokesman Bryan Fyalkowski told the Herald on Monday morning. “The team is handling other disciplinary matters internally.”
“Due to consistent violation of team rules, running back Quinton Baker is no longer a member of the WKU Football program and was removed from the team’s roster on Friday,” the program said in a statement on April 7, 2018.
Baker spent the 2018 season at Football Championship Subdivision school Portland State. He played in just two games.
First-year head coach Tyson Helton allowed Baker to rejoin the team as a walk-on during spring practice, and the 5-foot-9-inch transfer was later ruled immediately eligible by the NCAA in May.
During his time on the field at WKU, Baker had been productive. The Ashland native ran for 233 yards and one touchdown as a sophomore in 2017, averaging 3.6 yards per carry in seven games.
Just a year prior, Baker was a member of the Conference USA All-Freshman team after running for 542 yards and four touchdowns as a true freshman in 2016.
But Baker’s tenure on the Hill has been plagued by issues off the field. Baker was arrested in April 2016 on several charges, including operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol or drugs and possession of marijuana, according to a Bowling Green Daily News report.
Baker also missed the 2017 season opener due to his involvement in a March 5, 2017, brawl at the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity house that left a man injured.
Baker was charged in the incident and pleaded guilty to complicity to second-degree wanton endangerment and complicity to fourth-degree assault under extreme emotional disturbance.
Mixon appeared in two games a season ago after redshirting in 2017. The 6-foot-4-inch, 290-pounder saw snaps as a sixth lineman in short yardage situations in 2018. A former three-star recruit, Mixon was a highlight of Sanford’s first recruiting class at the helm in February 2017.
Baker was projected to be one of several running backs competing for playing time in WKU’s backfield this fall, while Mixon was slated to be a member of a deep offensive line rotation that features several returning letterwinners.
Sports Editor Drake Kizer can be reached at 270-745-2653 and [email protected]. Follow Drake on Twitter at @drakekizer_.
