- Tony Dorsett
Infobox NFLretired
|width=
position=Running back
number=33
birthdate=birth date and age|1954|4|7Rochester, Pennsylvania
deathdate=
debutyear=1977
finalyear=1988
draftyear=1977
draftround=1
draftpick=2
college=Pittsburgh
teams=
*Dallas Cowboys (1977-1987)
*Denver Broncos (1988)
stat1label=Rushing Yards
stat1value=12,739
stat2label=Average
stat2value=4.3
stat3label=Total TDs
stat3value=92
nfl=DOR467199
highlights=
* 4xPro Bowl selection (1978, 1981, 1982, 1983)
* 5xAll-Pro selection (1977, 1978, 1981, 1982, 1983)
* 1976Heisman Trophy Winner
* 1976Maxwell Award Winner
* 1976Walter Camp Award Winner
* Dallas Cowboys Ring of Honor
HOF=59
CollegeHOF=70019Anthony "Tony" Drew Dorsett (born
April 7 ,1954 inRochester, Pennsylvania ) is a formerAmerican football running back in the NFL for theDallas Cowboys and theDenver Broncos .College career
Dorsett was a college football running back at the
University of Pittsburgh and helped to lead them to a national title in 1976, also picking up theHeisman Trophy , theMaxwell Award , theWalter Camp Award (Player of the Year) and led the nation in rushing with 1,948 yards. He was a four-time All-American, and he finished his college career with 6,082 total rushing yards, then an NCAA record. This would stand as the record until it was surpassed by Ricky Williams in 1998.Dorsett is considered one of the greatest running backs in college football history. In 2007, he was ranked #7 on ESPN's Top 25 Players In College Football History list.
In the first game of the 1976 season, the Panthers faced off against Notre Dame in South Bend, IN. A year earlier, Dorsett had finished with 303 yards rushing in Pitt's 34-20 victory over the Irish. "They even grew the grass high" said Carmen DeArdo, a diehard Pitt alumnus, "and everyone knew Tony would get the ball." "They didn't let that grass grow long enough," Dorsett said later. He darted 61 yards on his first run of the season and tacked on 120 more by the end of the 31-10 Pitt win. [ [http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/football/college/heisman/2000/dorsett_0825/ CNNSI.com - College Football - Heisman Heroes - Suzuki presents Heisman Heroes: Tony Dorsett - Friday August 25, 2000 01:29 PM ] ]
NFL career
Dorsett was drafted by the
NFL 'sDallas Cowboys in the first round of the1977 NFL Draft and played with them through 1987.In Dorsett's rookie year, he rushed for 1,007 yards and 12 touchdowns and won the Rookie of the Year honors. Dorsett was announced starter for the 10th game of the Cowboys' season, and he would stay starter for many years. Dorsett was the first player to win the college football championship one year, then win the
Super Bowl the next, when the Cowboys beat theDenver Broncos 27-10 to winSuper Bowl XII . Ironically, Dorsett ended his career as a Denver Bronco. In his sophomore season, 1978, Dorsett recorded 1,325 yards and 9 touchdowns. The Cowboys once again traveled to the Super Bowl, and lost 35-31 to thePittsburgh Steelers inSuper Bowl XIII .Dorsett's most productive season was in 1981, when he recorded 1,646 yards. Dorsett had a career total of 12,033 yards in Dallas before being traded to the
Denver Broncos in 1988. Dorsett led the Broncos with 703 yards that year, but injuries led to his retirement.Dorsett recorded 12,733 yards and 77 touchdowns in his 12-year career. Dorsett also had 13 receiving scores and even a fumble recovery for a touchdown. On
January 3 ,1983 , Dorsett broke a 99-yard touchdown run against theMinnesota Vikings , which is the longest run from scrimmage in NFL history (even though the Cowboys had only 10 men on the field, not the required 11).Dorsett made the
Pro Bowl 4 times during his career (1978, 1981-1983) and rushed for over 1,000 yards in 8 of his first 9 seasons. The only season that he didn't reach the 1,000 rushing yards milestone was the strike shortened season of 1982(which had only 9 games), where he led the NFC in rushing with 745 yards.Dorsett was elected to both the
Pro Football Hall of Fame and theCollege Football Hall of Fame in 1994 and was enshrined in theTexas Stadium Ring of Honor the same year. In 1999, he was ranked number 53 on "The Sporting News "' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players.Trivia
Tony Dorsett is the only player in the history of football with the following five career achievements: A national college championship, a Heisman Trophy, a place in the Collegiate Hall of Fame, a Super Bowl championship, and enshrinement in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. It has been said that
Marcus Allen did the same, but Allen did not play in the 1978 season, even though USC was ranked number one in the UPI poll.His son,
Anthony Dorsett , playeddefensive back in theNFL from 1996 to 2003, making Super Bowl appearances with theTennessee Titans (Super Bowl XXXIV ) andOakland Raiders (Super Bowl XXXVII ).The football stadium at Hopewell High School in Aliquippa, PA, is named after Dorsett.
Tony also holds the NFL record for longest run from scrim
References
External links
*profootballhof|id=59|name=Tony Dorsett
*pro-football-reference|id=DorsTo00|name=Tony Dorsett
* [http://www.dallascowboys.com/history_roh_player.cfm?art=1 Dallas Cowboys Ring of Honor: Tony Dorsett]
*College Football Hall of Fame bio [http://collegefootball.org/famersearch.php?id=70019]
* [http://www.pafootballnews.com/AllCenturyTeams.htm The Pennsylvania Football News All-Century Team]
* [http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/football/college/heisman/2000/dorsett_0825/ "T.D. Scores the Trophy" (Suzuki Heisman Heroes article)]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.