Tony Dorsett Biography, Age, Illness, and 10 Things about Tony Dorsett

Tony Dorsett Biography

Tony Dorsett born as Anthony Drew “Tony” Dorsett is a former American football running back who played professionally in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys and Denver Broncos.

From Western Pennsylvania, Dorsett attended the nearby University of Pittsburgh, where Tony Dorsett led the Panthers to the national title as a senior in 1976 and won the Heisman Trophy. He was the first-round draft choice of the Cowboys in 1977, the second overall selection (from Seattle).

Dorsett was the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and played for the team for eleven seasons, through 1987. He played for Denver the following year, then retired because of injuries. Tony Dorsett is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame (1994) and the College Football Hall of Fame (1994).

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10 Quick Facts About Tony Dorsett

1. Name: Tony Dorsett
2. Age: 68 years
3. Birthday: April 7
4. Zodiac Sign: Aries
5. Height: 5 feet 9 inches
6. Nationality: American
7. Occupation: Former Footballer
8. Marital Status: Married
9. Salary: Under Review
10. Net worth: $5 Million

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Tony Dorsett Age

Tony Dorsett was born on April 7, 1954, in Rochester, Pennsylvania. He is 68 years old as of 2022.

Tony Dorsett Height

Tony Dorsett measures 1.80 meters tall. Tony Dorsett weighs 87 kilograms.

Tony Dorsett Family

Tony Dorsett was born to Myrtle Dorsett and Wes Dorsett. Tony Dorsett was first married to Julie Simon but now he is married to Janet Harmon Dorset. He has a brother named Keith Dorsett and sister named Juanita Dorsett.

Tony Dorsett Wife

Tony Dorsett has four children from a previous relationship, Anthony, Jazmyn, Madison, and Mia with current wife Janet. His son, Anthony, also played football at the University of Pittsburgh and 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).

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Tony Dorsett Son

Tony Dorsett has a son named Anthony, also played football at the University of Pittsburgh and 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).

Is Phillip Dorsett Related To Tony Dorsett

Though many people tend to believe that both Tony and Phillip Dorsett, known NFL players are a family as they share both names and passion but all this is yet to be proven. According to the announcement made by Tony, the two players, though Tony is retired are in no way related to each other. They just happen to share names and passion. This information will soon be updated.

Tony Dorsett College

Tony Dorsett went to the University of Pittsburgh, where he became the first freshman in 29 years to be named All-American (Doc Blanchard of Army was the previous one in 1944). Tony Dorsett finished second in the nation in rushing with 1,586 yards in 11 games and led the Pittsburgh Panthers to its first winning season in 10 years.

Tony Dorsett was Pittsburgh’s first All-American selection since the 1963 season when both Paul Martha and Ernie Borghetti were named to the first team. His 1,586 rushing yards at the time was the most ever recorded by a freshman, breaking the record set by New Mexico State’s Ron “Po” James record in 1968.

By coincidence, James, like Dorsett, hailed from Beaver County, Pennsylvania, specifically New Brighton. Although Tony Dorsett was known as Anthony, the school’s athletic department convinced him to go by Tony, to use the marketable initials TD as in touchdown. At the beginning of Dorsett’s freshman year at Pitt, his son Anthony Dorsett was born on September 14, 1973.

Later in the 1973 season, Dorsett faced some criticism when it became known that his son was born out of wedlock, with some observers contending that Tony Dorsett should drop out of school and marry his son’s mother and financially support his family. Dorsett believed that the best way to care for his son was to continue to pursue his football career, a tactic that succeeded due to his successful professional career.

Tony Dorsett Jersey

Tony Dorsett Highlights

Tony Dorsett 99 Yard Run

Rushing yards: 12,739
Yards per carrying: 4.3
Rushing touchdowns: 77
Receptions: 398
Receiving yards: 3,554
Receiving touchdowns: 13

Tony Dorsett Hall Of Fame

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. He is the first of only two players in history (along with former running back Marcus Allen) who has won the Heisman Trophy, won the Super Bowl, won the College National Championship, been enshrined in the College Hall of Fame, and been enshrined in the Pro Football Hall Of Fame. The football stadium at Hopewell High School in Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, is named after Dorsett and a street near Heinz Field, the home stadium of the University of Pittsburgh, is named after him.

Tony Dorsett Health

In November 2013, Tony Dorsett announced that he had signs of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a brain disease found in many former football players, boxers, and hockey players. Specifically, Dorsett referred to memory loss as the major symptom affecting him in retirement.

Tony Dorsett Facts

10 things to know about legendary Cowboys RB Tony Dorsett: from Family Feud to feuding with Tom Landry

Here are 10 things you might not know about Cowboys Hall of Fame running back Anthony “Tony” Drew Dorsett, who was born April 7, 1954, in Rochester, Pa., won the Heisman Trophy at the University of Pittsburgh and was selected in the first round (second overall) of the 1977 NFL draft by the Cowboys.

1. Too small to play running back?
Dorsett grew up in Aliquippa, Pa., near Pittsburgh. He played football and basketball at Hopewell High School. As a sophomore in 1970, Dorsett started at cornerback because, at 147 pounds, his coaches felt he wasn’t big enough to play running back. In 1971, he played running back, rushed for 1,034 yards and was named all-state (he also played cornerback). In 1972, he set a single-game rushing record with 247 yards and also played linebacker. His high school retired his No. 33 in 2001 and renamed its stadium Tony Dorsett Stadium.

2. Tough on the Irish
As a junior at Pittsburgh, Dorsett rushed for 303 yards against Notre Dame to break his own school single-game rushing record. Tony Dorsett had 290 total yards against Notre Dame as a senior. Dorsett helped lead the Panthers to the national title in 1976.

Tony Dorsett won the Heisman Trophy, the Maxwell Award, the Walter Camp Award as Player of the Year and the UPI Player of the Year award. Tony Dorsett led the nation in rushing with 2,150 yards. Dorsett finished his college career with an NCAA-record 6,082 rushing yards, a mark which stood until it was surpassed by Texas’ Ricky Williams in 1998. Dorsett was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1994 and ranked No. 7 among ESPN’s Top 25 Players in College Football History list in 2007.

3. Herschel Walker trade — The Prequel
The Cowboys’ deal that sent Herschel Walker to the Minnesota Vikings is remembered as one of Dallas’ best trades ever. But the deal that allowed the Cowboys to move up to the No. 2 spot in the first round of the 1977 draft to select Dorsett is another. Dallas traded its first-
round pick (24th overall) and three second-round choices to Seattle
for the Seahawks’ No. 2 pick. Dallas got Dorsett and signed him to a five-year, $1.1 million deal. He rushed for 1,007 yards and won Rookie of the Year honors. With its picks from Dallas, the Seahawks
selected Steve August, Tom Lynch, Pete Cronan, and Terry Beeson. Wonder who got the better of that deal?

4. The 99-yarder

On Dorsett’s record-setting 99-yard touchdown run against Minnesota in 1983, the Cowboys only had 10 players on the field. Fullback Ron Springs, who was supposed to be on the field, wasn’t. Dorsett led the NFC in rushing just once, carrying for 745 yards in the strike-shortened, nine-game season in 1982. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the College Football Hall of Fame in 1994 and joined the Cowboys Ring of Honor the same year.

5. The Aliquippa (Pa.) Termites
Dorsett’s introduction to football was not as smooth as one might expect for a future Hall of Famer. He recounted some youth-football moments — playing for the Aliquippa (Pa.) Termites — to The Dallas Morning News’ Ed Werder for a story in July of 1994.

“Sometimes I wouldn’t play, and then I’d drag my uniform home down the hill, so it would be dirty and look like I played,” Dorsett said. “I’ll never forget me and my buddy putting rocks in our pockets to make weight. I remember the first time I played football, and I really didn’t want to. I had to because I had four brothers, and wanted to be like them. I was in the sixth grade. I was afraid to play. Then, when I played, the first kickoff I caught, because of the fear I had — I didn’t want to be hurt — I took it 75 yards for a touchdown. From that point on, it got better and better.”

6. Feuding with Landry
Despite his success, Dorsett still contends Tom Landry’s reluctance to provide more than his average of 17.5 carries per game prevented him from more career rushing yards than Walter Payton’s 16,726 (the NFL’s all-time rushing mark before it was surpassed by Emmitt Smith). The topic was a frequent point of contention between Dorsett and Landry.

“With 25 carries per game, I would have retired as the all-time leading rusher,” Dorsett said. “There’s no question in my mind. I think Walter Payton carried the football a thousand more times. But Coach Landry thought that because of my physical size, my career would have been shortlived if that had happened. Maybe he was right. I understand the logic. But it’s hard for me to accept.”

Payton played one more season than Dorsett and carried the football 902 more times. Dorsett would have had a comparable 16,617 yards — 109 fewer than Payton — if he had maintained his career 4.3-yard average and carried as often as Payton.

7. End of the Dream Backfield
If Dorsett had problems accepting that Payton was more productive, he was more disturbed when Herschel Walker was provided his position. That development — the demise of the so-called Dream Backfield — led to the trade in which Dorsett went to the Broncos and was reunited with former Cowboys assistant Dan Reeves.

“Under the circumstances, I was not about to be content to sit around here and be their insurance policy for Herschel Walker,” Dorsett said. “I didn’t think that was fair since I had given them so much of my blood, sweat, and tears for 11 seasons. I think I commanded that much respect.”

8. CTE
In November of 2013, Dorsett announced he had signs of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a concussion-related brain disease found in many former football players. He joined the class-action lawsuit filed by more than 4,500 former players against the NFL. When a tentative settlement was reached, Dorsett voiced a strong objection, saying the terms were inadequate. A federal judge later granted preliminary approval of a revised settlement agreement, in which the NFL agreed to remove a $675 million cap it could potentially pay in damages.

“My brain is priceless,” Dorsett said. “There isn’t enough money that they can give me to make me want to look the other way.”

9. Family Feud
Dorsett once appeared on Family Feud. He played for a Cowboys team made up of quarterback Danny White, defensive linemen Harvey Martin and Larry Cole and defensive back Charlie Waters. The quintet faced five Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders in a week’s worth of episodes. The players played for the Boys Clubs of America and the cheerleaders for the Girls Clubs of America. Though the players prevailed, Dorsett didn’t fare too well. His answers to Richard Dawson usually resulted in a big, red X.

10. Respect from a rapper

Images of and lyrics pertaining to Dorsett were featured in a rap video by X-CON, a Liberty City, Florida artist.

Tony Dorsett Net Worth

The American legendary NFL player has earned quite a good fortune from his field career. He has also been able to buy a good car and live in a beautiful house all thanks to his sports career. He has an estimated net worth of $5 million. Tony Dorsett earned his net worth as a running back for Dallas Cowboys and Denver Broncos before retiring from the game in 1989. This information will soon be updated.

Tony Dorsett News

Penn State-Pittsburgh video: Tony Dorsett interrupts PSU quarterback Trace McSorley’s 2016 postgame interview

Pittsburgh great Tony Dorsett has been named the Panthers’ honorary captain for Saturday’s Penn State-Pitt game at Beaver Stadium.

Dorsett, the 1976 Heisman Trophy winner, clearly enjoyed himself a few years back when the Panthers held off Penn State 42-39 at Heinz Field. Listen closely as the Lions’ media corps attempts to talk with Penn State quarterback Trace McSorley following the difficult loss. You can hear an excited Dorsett, a Dallas Cowboys star who made the NFL Hall of Fame, yelling “Hail to Pitt” in the background.

At one point you can see McSorley, who had just made his second career start, pause and gather himself to continue the interview.

McSorley and the Lions won the next two games against Pittsburgh by a combined score of 84-20, including a 51-6 victory at Pittsburgh last season.

McSorley would later say his 2016 post-game experience with Dorsett was a motivating factor when Penn State faced the Panthers after that.

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