Bernie Kosar

NFLretired


imagesize=
caption=
position=Quarterback
number= 20, 19, 18
birthdate=birth date and age|1963|11|25
suppdraftyear=1985
suppdraftround=1
debutyear=1985
finalyear=1996
college=University of Miami
teams=
* Cleveland Browns (1985-1993)
* Dallas Cowboys (1993)
* Miami Dolphins (1994-1996)
stat1label=TD-INT
stat1value=124-87
stat2label=Yards
stat2value=23,301
stat3label=QB Rating
stat3value=81.83
nfl=KOS075507
highlights=
* 1x Pro Bowl selection (1987)

Bernard Joseph Kosar, Jr. (born November 25, 1963 in Youngstown, Ohio) is a former American football quarterback in the National Football League who played for the Cleveland Browns from 1985 to 1993 and then finished his career with the Dallas Cowboys and the Miami Dolphins.

Boardman High School career

Born in Youngstown, Ohio, Kosar was raised in suburban Boardman. He attended Boardman High School, where he earned "Parade" All-American honors as a senior for the 1981 season. He also gained recognition as a baseball player, especially for his pitching skills.

University of Miami career

Kosar chose to play college football at the University of Miami, which ran a passing-oriented offense and was beginning to emerge as one of the top football programs in the nation.

After being redshirted in 1982, Kosar started all 12 games as a freshman in 1983. He completed 61.5 percent of his passes for 2,328 yards and 15 touchdowns, leading the Hurricanes to an 11–1 regular season and a berth in the Orange Bowl against top-ranked Nebraska, which had won 22 consecutive games. In the game, Kosar passed for 300 yards and two touchdowns, and the Hurricanes topped the Cornhuskers 31–30 for Miami’s first national championship.

In 1984, as a national celebrity, Kosar did not disappoint. He set Hurricane season records with 3,642 yards and 25 touchdowns, was a second-team All-American and finished fourth in Heisman Trophy voting. Kosar’s career completion percentage of 62.3 percent is still a Hurricanes record.

Yet, 1984 was not without its disappointments for Kosar. He threw for 447 yards and two touchdowns, completing 25 of 38 attempts, in the Hurricanes' November 23 1984, 47–45 loss to Doug Flutie's Boston College team when Flutie threw his famous "Hail Mary Pass." [ESPN College Football Encyclopedia, ESPN Books, (2005), ISBN 1-4013-3703-1. p. 160] Earlier in the same year, Kosar watched helplessly as replacement quarterback Frank Reich of the University of Maryland launched, what was then, the biggest comeback in college football history. Reich led the Maryland Terrapins back from a first-half deficit of 31–0 and won a 42–40 victory.

NFL Draft Controversy

Under National Football League rules at the time, only seniors and graduates could be drafted. Kosar, who was scheduled to graduate over the summer from the University of Miami's business school with a double major in finance and economics, had two years of college eligibility remaining.

At the time, underclassmen had until April 15, 1985, to notify the league about their eligibility for the April 30 regular draft. In January 1985, a Florida television report stated that Kosar had decided to forgo his two years of eligibility and declare for the NFL draft. Kosar denied the report at the time, but added that he would keep his options open. At a March 15 news conference, Kosar announced that he would make himself available for the 1985 NFL Draft and that he would like to play for the Cleveland Browns in his native Ohio. After the announcement, both NFL and United States Football League teams were interested and Kosar's agent, Dr. John Geletka even met with the USFL's commissioner, Harry Usher to confirm the USFL's interest level.

The Buffalo Bills held the first pick in the 1985 NFL Draft and signed defensive end Bruce Smith out of Virginia Tech weeks before the draft. On April 9, 1985, Mike Lynn, the general manager of the Minnesota Vikings traded two picks to the Houston Oilers to move up to the second spot in the draft in preparation of Kosar's announcement that he would enter the draft.

Later on the same day, Cleveland traded their first round picks in the 1985 NFL Draft (#7) and 1986 NFL Draft, their third round pick in 1985 (#63) and their sixth round pick in 1986 to the Buffalo Bills for their first round pick in the 1986 NFL Draft. Since the Bills had the worst record in the 1984 season, they held the first pick in both the regular NFL draft and the supplemental draft in 1985. When a selection is used in the supplemental draft, that team forfeits the pick in the next regular draft which meant that the Browns could use the Bills 1986 regular draft first round pick as the first pick in the 1985 supplemental draft.

On April 10, NFL spokesman Joe Browne said that if Kosar's paperwork was not received by the April 15 deadline then he would not be eligible for the regular draft on April 30. Browne added that if Kosar later decides to play in the 1985 season, then the league would hold a supplemental draft for Kosar and other eligible players.

Minnesota responded by stating that when Kosar announced he would turn pro, he was, in effect, declaring his intention to enter the draft. They also charge that the Browns and Kosar's agent orchestrated this scenario in order to subvert the NFL's orderly system of drafting players and claim Kosar for themselves. Mike Lynn also stated that since Kosar had hired an agent, he should have automatically lost his college eligibility and become eligible for the regular draft. The Oilers threatened to sue the NFL if Kosar was allowed to skip the regular draft in favor of the supplemental draft and Kosar's agent threatened to sue the NFL if Kosar was forced into the regular draft.

Due to the controversy, on April 12, commissioner Pete Rozelle extended the April 15 eligibility deadline for Kosar alone (who had not officially filed the paperwork for draft eligibility) and called a hearing that would take place on April 16. The four teams (Buffalo, Cleveland, Houston and Minnesota) involved in the two trades presented their case at the hearing.

On April 23, Rozelle announced that he would leave the decision up to Kosar, but permitted Minnesota to persuade Kosar to enter the regular draft with the condition that they could not negotiate a potential contract with him. This led to an April 25 news conference where Kosar announced that he wanted to go home to Ohio as a member of the Cleveland Browns and that he will forgo the regular NFL draft and make himself eligible for the supplemental draft. On May 10, Kosar officially announced his intentions for the supplemental draft in a letter to the commissioner. On June 25, Kosar became officially eligible for the supplemental draft when he took his exam finals and the university notified the NFL front office that he had graduated. On July 3, 1985, the Browns selected Kosar and signed him to a five-year contract that same day.

On a related note, Buffalo tied with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for the worst record in 1985 and would have had the first pick in the 1986. Since that pick was traded to Cleveland and it was used for the 1985 supplemental draft, the Bills essentially forfeited the first overall pick in the 1986 draft. The Bills however, still had the rights to Jim Kelly at the time and eventually signed him. The Buccaneers ended up selecting Bo Jackson with the first pick at that draft.

NFL career

Cleveland Browns

Kosar's choice of the Browns, who were coming off a 5–11 season, made him an immediate fan favorite. His friendliness with fans and on-field performance would make him one of the most popular players in team history.

Kosar was not the most athletic man to play quarterback. He was famously immobile and threw with an unwieldy half-sidearm motion. However, his accuracy was unmatched, and he rarely forced throws or made bad decisions. In 1990 and 1991, Kosar set a league record by throwing 308 consecutive passes without an interception.

The Browns intended Kosar to serve as Gary Danielson's backup in Kosar's rookie season, but Danielson injured his shoulder in the fifth week. Kosar completed only half of his passes in the team’s rushing-oriented offense that year. Nevertheless, the team snuck into the playoffs with an 8-8 record, losing to the Miami Dolphins in the divisional playoffs.

Danielson was injured again in the 1986 preseason, and by the time he healed, Kosar had established himself not only as the Browns' permanent starter but as one of the league's top QBs. In a new, passing-focused offense, Kosar threw for 3,854 yards and finished second in the league with 310 completions. The Browns took top seed in the American Football Conference with a 12–4 record. In the divisional playoffs against the New York Jets, Kosar threw for a playoff-record 489 yards in leading the Browns to a dramatic 23–20 comeback victory in double overtime. Only John Elway's famous 98-yard drive in the following week’s AFC championship kept the Browns out of the Super Bowl.

1987 was Kosar's finest year, statistically. In the strike-shortened season, he completed 62 percent of his passes for 3,033 yards and 22 touchdowns and led the AFC in quarterback rating. In an AFC championship rematch against Elway’s Denver Broncos, Kosar threw for 356 yards and three touchdowns in a 38–33 loss. Kosar also made his only Pro Bowl that season.

Kosar spent most of the 1988 season sidelined with injuries but came back to throw for 3,533 yards in 1989. That year, the Browns advanced to the AFC championship for the third time in four years, losing again to the Broncos in Denver.

Kosar's later years in Cleveland were dampened by injuries and dwindling support around him. In 1990, Kosar threw a career-high 15 interceptions as the Browns went 3–13. The following year, he came back to throw for 3,487 yards and 18 touchdowns. A broken ankle sidelined him for most of the year in 1992.

His career in Cleveland would now come to an end, but only after earning a place in the hearts and minds of the fans (and having the 1986 novelty song "Bernie, Bernie", to the tune of "Louie Louie"), recorded in his honor).

He was such a big star in the Cleveland area that on Draft day 2007, ESPN showed a picture of Browns draft pick Brady Quinn from Dublin, Ohio and Notre Dame, at age 3 wearing a child-sized Bernie Kosar jersey

In 1991, the Browns hired Bill Belichick as head coach. Not a big fan of Kosar, Belichick had signed quarterback Vinny Testaverde (Kosar's former college teammate) before the 1993 season. Early in the year, Belichick benched Kosar in favor of Testaverde. An injury to Testaverde later put Kosar back under center.

However, after a 29–14 loss to Denver in week 8, the Browns released Kosar. Belichick told a press conference Kosar was suffering from “diminishing skills.” The coach was not entirely incorrect; Kosar’s performance had trailed off in recent years. But the release of the popular player set off a wave of anger among Browns fans, some of whom came to the next home game in Kosar masks.

Dallas Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys then signed Kosar to a 1 year, $1 million contract to fill in for an injured Troy Aikman. Kosar performed well in four games for the Cowboys and earned his only championship ring as a backup in Super Bowl XXVIII. A week prior to the Super Bowl, Kosar relieved an injured Aikman in the second half of the NFC championship game against the San Francisco 49ers, completing five of nine pass attempts for 83 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions. He played one down in the Super Bowl: ending the game by taking a knee on the last play.

Miami Dolphins

Kosar spent the final three years of his career with the Miami Dolphins as a backup to Dan Marino. He is perhaps best remembered among Dolphins fans for designing a trick play that helped the Dolphins top the Jets in a crucial game late in 1994. With the clock winding down and the Dolphins down by 3, Marino pretended to spike the ball to stop the clock. He then threw the winning touchdown pass to Mark Ingram.

Kosar finished his 12-season career with 1,994 completions in 3,365 attempts for 23,301 yards and 124 touchdowns, with 87 interceptions. He also rushed for 265 yards and 5 touchdowns. He also holds an NFL record for most completed passes without an interception.

Retirement and After

Since retiring from football after the 1996 season, Kosar has been involved in several ventures. In 2001, he became part-owner of the Florida Panthers franchise of the National Hockey League. In 2004, he opened Bernie’s Steakhouse in South Miami, Florida. He was also publisher of "Bernie’s Insiders", a magazine that covered the Browns; his role ended when it became the "Orange and Brown Report" at the end of 2005. The Bernie J. Kosar Jr. Charitable Trust, established in 1991, funds programs for children and young adults. Kosar has turned down feelers to run for public office.

Kosar is recently divorced from his wife of 17 years, Babette. The couple have four children.

As part of a renewed hands-on involvement with his long-time team, Kosar joined the Cleveland Browns pre-season television broadcast team as a color commentator in 2006. He returned as color commentator for the 2007 pre-season.

There had been talk of Kosar taking the head coaching job at his alma mater, the University of Miami, and Kosar (who currently holds a seat on Miami's board of regents) acknowledged that he had considered taking the job before it was ultimately offered to Randy Shannon. [ [http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7005767950 Kosar considering Miami coaching job.] URL Accessed December 6, 2006] [ [http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=2688010 Kosar interested in returning to alma mater.] URL Accessed December 6, 2006]

On May 21, 2007, it was announced that Kosar would open a Bernie's Steakhouse in Cleveland's Flats East Bank Neighborhood, a $230 million mixed-use project.

Kosar also purchased a minority share in the Arena Football League's Las Vegas Gladiators in 2007 and announced that the team would move to Cleveland and play under the name Cleveland Gladiators. [ [http://diehardfansanonymous.blogspot.com/2007/10/arena-football-coming-to-cleveland.html Die Hard Fans Anonymous: ARENA FOOTBALL COMING TO CLEVELAND ] ] [ [http://www.cleveland.com/plaindealer/stories/index.ssf?/base/sports/1192351347316770.xml&coll=2 Story not found - Cleveland.com ] ] On October 16, 2007, Kosar was named team president and CEO of the franchise. [ [http://sports.yahoo.com/arena/news?slug=txarenacleveland&prov=st&type=lgns Las Vegas franchise relocates to Cleveland for 2008 AFL season - Arena Football - Yahoo! Sports ] ] [http://www.clevelandafl.com clevelandafl.com] The Gladiators finished the 2008 regular season 9-7, earning them a playoff berth.

Career Stats

NFL Regular season

* 3,365 passes attempted
* 1,994 passes completed
* 23,301 passing yards
* 124 passing touchdowns
* 87 passes intercepted
* 81.8 quarterback rating

NFL Post season

* 269 passes attempted
* 151 passes completed
* 1,917 passing yards
* 16 passing touchdowns
* 10 passes intercepted
* 85.8 quarterback rating

References

External links

* [http://www.bernie-kosar.com Bernie Fan Site] , Bernie Kosar Fan Site
* [http://www.berniessteakhouse.com Bernie’s Steakhouse] , Bernie Kosar-owned restaurant
*
* [http://www.databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=KOSARBER01 Bernie Kosar profile and career statistics at DatabaseFootball.com] .