Before Jamesville-Dewitt football takes the field at this year's home games, they'll remember a player who had a tremendous impact on the team, a player whose life was taken far too soon. Rasheed Baker died in June after being shot in Syracuse. Matt Jarchow shares the legacy he's left behind.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- For four years, on the fields of Jamesville-Dewitt High School, Rasheed Baker ran wild.
The two-time All-CNY player ran for more than 1,000 yards as a senior.
“He could make you miss or run you over, and he did it play after play after play,” Coach Eric Ormond said.
Ormund watched Rasheed grow stronger year after year.
“He was just a tremendous player,” he said.
From the bleachers, mom Rasheada Caldwell saw it too.
“Awesome," she said. "Awesome experience. I love sitting in the stands watching the games.”
Caldwell, like so many, saw the moves -- she also saw the character.
“Just his team leadership that he had, and he always wanted to make sure that he got his team prepared," Caldwell said. "He wanted to put it in his shoulder.”
After finishing school in 2014, Baker put his sights on a new passion, working with youth. He had just gotten a job with the county in June, working in child support.
“The sky was going to be the limit,” Caldwell said. “Never could have imagined that my son would ever be shot.”
Baker was shot and killed in the city’s Valley Drive area June 5. Police are still investigating. No arrest has been made.
As the J-D football team prepares for another season, players and coaches do so with Rasheed in mind. The player and the person who had such an impact on the program is gone.
“I want to talk with this group so that they understand who Rasheed was and what kind of an impact he had on the community,” Ormond said.
Friday night, the team and community honored Rasheed with a moment of silence before the game, keeping a legacy living on.