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 the
Heisman Trophy , the
Maxwell Award and the
Walter Camp Award while setting NCAA college records. He was a four-time All-American, and he finished his college career with an 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 the first game of the 1976 season, the Panthers faced off against Notre Dame in South Bend, IN. "They even grew the grass high" said Carmen DeArdo, a diehard Pitt alumni, "and everyone knew Tony would get the ball."
Dorsett was drafted by the
NFL 's
Dallas Cowboys in the first round of the
1977 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 the
Denver Broncos 27-10 to win
Super 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, but lost 35-31 to the
Pittsburgh Steelers in
Super 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 12,739 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 run against the
Minnesota 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 the
College Football Hall Of Fame in
1994 and was enshrined in the
Texas 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.
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 a permanent place in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
His son,
Anthony Dorsett , played
Defensive Back in the
NFL from 1996 to 2003, making Super Bowl appearances with the
Tennessee Titans (
Super Bowl XXXIV ) and
Oakland Raiders (
Super Bowl XXXVII ).
The football stadium at Hopewell High School in Aliquippa, PA, is named after Dorsett.
