Tony Dorsett’s name should always be included in conversations regarding the greatest running backs in football history. Dorsett, after all, won a Heisman Trophy, a national title and a Super Bowl title over a two-year span. He is a member of both the College and Pro Football Hall of Fame.
The No. 2 overall pick in the 1977 NFL Draft, Dorsett spent 11 of his 12 NFL seasons with the Cowboys. He retired with 12,739 rushing yards and 77 touchdowns. Dorsett also caught 398 passes for 3,554 yards and 13 touchdowns in 173 regular season games. In 17 playoff games, Dorsett ran for 1,383 yards and nine touchdowns and caught 46 passes for 403 yards an an additional touchdown. He is one of just 91 Hall of Famers who were inducted in their first year of eligibility.
In honor of Dorsett’s 69th birthday (he was born on April 7, 1954), here are five fast facts about the speedy halfback.
Member of 6,000/6,000 club
Dorsett is one of just three players who ran for over 6,000 yards in both college and in the NFL. The other two: Ricky Williams and DeAngelo Williams.
A standout at the University of Pittsburgh, Dorsett ran for a then-NCAA Division 1 record 6,526 yards. He won the Heisman Trophy in 1976 after rushing for 2,150 yards (which was at the time the NCAA”s single season record) and 22 touchdowns while leading the Panthers to a national title.
Rookie of the Year
Dorsett quickly proved to be the missing piece to the Cowboys’ championship puzzle. Despite playing behind veteran Preston Pearson for most of the 1977 season, Dorsett still won NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year honors after rushing for 1,007 yards and 12 touchdowns in 14 games. He authored the NFL’s longest run of the season when he scampered 84 yards in a late-season win over the Eagles.
History-making backfield
Dorsett’s rookie season was capped off by a 27-10 win over the Broncos in Super Bowl XII. Dorsett, who scored a touchdown in that game, made history along with quarterback Roger Staubach. They became the first backfield duo to win the Super Bowl after winning Heisman Trophies. Staubach had won his Heisman Trophy 14 years earlier at Navy. He remains the last player from a military academy to win the Heisman Trophy.
The duo helped the Cowboys make it back to the Super Bowl one year later. But despite three touchdown passes from Staubach and 140 total yards from Dorsett, the Cowboys fell by four…
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