The San Francisco 49ers announced that Trent Baalke has been named Vice President of Player Personnel. Baalke will oversee all aspects of player personnel, including the draft, free agency, trades and re-signings. As he did as the Director of Player Personnel for the previous two seasons, he will continue to manage the college scouting and pro personnel departments.
In addition to the promotion of Baalke, the team has announced the following moves. Director of Pro Personnel Tom Gamble has been assigned additional college scouting responsibilities. Joel Patten has been named Director of College Scouting, while Matt Malaspina has been promoted to National Scout. Justin Chabot will now scout the Southeast Region after previously handling the South Region, which will now be covered by newly hired scout Bob Morris.
“We are very excited to reward Trent with this promotion,” said Team President and CEO Jed York of Baalke. “During his tenure with the 49ers, Trent has exhibited leadership, organization and superb skills as a talent evaluator. Those attributes have served our team well in recent months. We have a great talent in Trent that we are pleased to have leading our personnel department moving forward.”
“I am thankful for the opportunity the 49ers organization has given me,” said Baalke. “This position comes with a certain level of responsibility to the team as well as its fans, and it is one that I take a lot of pride in. Throughout my career, I have had the opportunity to work with some tremendous people. I plan to draw from those experiences in an effort to help the 49ers return to the championship level of play that this franchise and its fans deserve.”
More on Baalke
Entering his 13th NFL season, Baalke has spent the past two seasons as the 49ers Director of Player Personnel, after being promoted to that role in 2008. Prior to joining the team as a Western Region Scout, in 2005, he spent four years on the Washington Redskins scouting staff, serving as the College Scouting Coordinator in his final year. From 2001 to 2003, Baalke served as Washington’s National Scout and traveled throughout the country in search of rising talent. Before joining the Redskins, Baalke spent three seasons (1998-2000) as a scout with the New York Jets.
Baalke’s path to the NFL was quite unique. From 1990 to 1995, he held the position of defensive line/strength and conditioning coach at South Dakota State. In that role, he helped promote players such as former Pro Bowl guard Adam Timmerman and current NFL kicker Adam Vinatieri to NFL scouts. Surprisingly, his work in the college ranks did not lead directly to professional sports as he then spent time as the athletic director at Shanley High School in Fargo, ND. It was during that tenure that he received his first NFL opportunity with the New York Jets.
Baalke cut his coaching teeth as a graduate assistant and defensive line coach in 1989 for North Dakota State. He helped play a role in the team finishing with a 14-0 record and a Division II National Championship, while also working with defensive lineman Phil Hansen, who went on to play 11 seasons for the Buffalo Bills.
A double major at Bemidji State (MN), Baalke received his bachelor’s degree in health and physical education. He went on to earn his master’s degree in secondary education and sports administration while coaching at North Dakota State. Baalke played outside linebacker and was a two-time All-Northern Sun Conference and an All-Mid West Region honoree at Bemidji.
More on Patten
Joel Patten, 52, enters his 15th season as an NFL scout. In 2009, he served as a Regional Scout for the St. Louis Rams. Prior to joining the Rams, he was a National Scout for the Washington Redskins from 2004-08, where he worked alongside 49ers Vice President of Player Personnel Trent Baalke, in 2004. Patten also spent time as a Regional Scout for the Houston Texans (2000-03) and the Redskins (1996-99).
Patten played tackle for eight seasons in the NFL and three years in USFL. He originally entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent with the Cleveland Browns, Patten played in 56 games for the Browns (1980-82), Colts (1987-88), Chargers (1989-90) and LA Raiders (1991-92). He also played for the Washington Federals (1983-84) and the Orlando Renegades (1985) of the USFL.
Patten played collegiately at Duke University, where he graduated in 1980.
More on Morris
Bob Morris joins the 49ers after spending the previous eight years as an Area Scout for the Cleveland Browns.
Prior to becoming a scout, Morris served as a collegiate assistant coach at the Division I-A level for 21 years. He started his coaching career as a secondary coach at Northern Illinois University from 1980-83, after working the previous two years as a graduate assistant at the University of Colorado.
Morris then served as secondary coach for 10 seasons (1984-93) at Indiana University and helped the Hoosiers reach six bowl games. He was defensive coordinator/secondary coach at Purdue University from 1994-95 and served as the Boilermakers’ special teams coordinator, in 1996.
Morris was passing game coordinator/secondary coach at the University of Akron from 1998-2000, and was the Zips defensive coordinator/secondary coach in 2001.
The Boulder, CO, native received a master’s degree in sports psychology and a bachelor’s degree in secondary education from the University of Colorado. Morris was a two-year letter winner as a defensive back and punt returner for the Buffaloes, and helped Colorado win the 1976 Big-8 Championship. Morris also lettered three years in basketball.
