Anthony Drew Dorsett Sr. (born April 7, 1954) is an American former professional football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys and Denver Broncos.
Raised in western Pennsylvania, Dorsett played college football for the Pittsburgh Panthers, where he led the Panthers to the national championship as a senior in the 1976 season and won the Heisman Trophy. He was the first-round, second overall draft choice of the Dallas Cowboys in the 1977 NFL draft. Dorsett was the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and played for the team for 11 seasons until 1987. He won a Super Bowl in his rookie season over the Denver Broncos, with whom he spent his final season before retiring due to injuries. He is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame (1994) and College Football Hall of Fame (1994).
The son of Wes and Myrtle, Dorsett grew up in Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, northwest of Pittsburgh. He attended Hopewell High School, where he played football and basketball.
As a high school sophomore in 1970, Dorsett started at cornerback, as his coaches did not believe the 147-pound Dorsett was big enough to play running back, the position he played in junior high school. In 1971, a competition between Dorsett and sophomore Michael Kimbrough for the starting running back position ended after Dorsett took a screen pass 75 yards for a touchdown against Ambridge during the season opener.
Dorsett ended the year as an All-State selection after rushing for 1,034 yards and scoring 19 touchdowns, while leading the Vikings to a 9–1 season. He also remained a starting cornerback on the defensive side. In basketball, Dorsett helped his team reach the WPIAL quarterfinals.
In 1972, Dorsett was again an All-state Selection, after setting a single-game rushing record with 247 yards against Sharon, a single-season rushing record with 1,238 yards and the career rushing record with 2,272 yards, while leading the Vikings to a 9–1 season. Dorsett was also a key player on the defensive side as one of the starting linebackers.
For all the ability he had, Dorsett could never lead his team to the WPIAL Class AA playoffs, because in those days teams had to have an undefeated record. The team's only loss in 1971 came against Sharon after Dorsett experienced a concussion and played less than a quarter, and the only loss in 1972 came against Butler while playing on a muddy field.
At the end of his senior season, he played in the Big 33 Football Classic. This was the first time that his future coach Johnny Majors saw him play live.
Later, the school retired his 33 jersey. In 2001, Hopewell's Stadium was renamed Tony Dorsett Stadium.
The NCAA had granted freshmen permission to play varsity football in 1972, and in 1973 at the University of Pittsburgh, Dorsett became the first freshman in 29 years to be named All-American. Doc Blanchard of Army was the previous one in 1944, the freshmen restriction having been temporarily suspended during World War II. 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. He 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. James, like Dorsett, hailed from Beaver County, Pennsylvania, specifically New Brighton. Although 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 he 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.
Three games into his sophomore season, he became Pitt's all-time leader in career rushing yards, surpassing the old record of 1,957 yards set by Marshall Goldberg, who helped Pitt to a national championship in 1937.
Against Notre Dame in his junior year, Dorsett had 303 yards rushing to break his own school single-game rushing record. As a senior in 1976, he had a total of 290 yards against Notre Dame. 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.
As a senior in 1976, he helped lead his school to a national title, picking up the Heisman Trophy, the Maxwell Award, the Walter Camp Award for player of the year, and the United Press International (UPI) Player of the Year award along the way as he led the nation in rushing with 2,150 yards and 21 touchdowns (23 total). He was a three-time first-team All-American (1973, 1975, 1976) and a second-team All-American in 1974 by UPI and Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA). Dorsett 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 was the first Pitt player to have his jersey retired, after being a four-time 1,000-yard rusher and four-time All-American. He 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 1994, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
Ahead of the 1977 NFL draft, scouts were skeptical about Dorsett's potential at the professional level, citing his small size as his primary liability in his long-term durability. After being passed over by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with the first overall pick, the Dallas Cowboys selected him with the second overall pick, which they had acquired from the Seattle Seahawks in exchange for the 14th overall (Steve August), 30th overall (Tom Lynch), 41st overall (Terry Beeson), and 54th overall (Glenn Carano) picks; Dorsett had previously told the Seahawks that he would not play for them. Dorsett signed a five-year contract worth a reported $1.1 million, becoming the first contract in Cowboys history to exceed $1 million; it was the second-largest contract signed for a rookie that season, with first overall pick Ricky Bell beating Dorsett with a $1.2 million contract.
From the beginning, Dorsett and head coach Tom Landry had differing opinions on how he should run the ball. Landry initially designed precise running plays, but was eventually convinced that Dorsett was a different type of running back and instructed the offensive line to block and hold their man, while Dorsett chose the running lane with his gifted vision and instincts.
In 1977, Dorsett's rookie year, he provided an instant impact, rushing for 1,007 yards (including a 206-yard rushing effort against the Philadelphia Eagles), scoring 12 touchdowns, and earning rookie of the year honors. He set a new Cowboys rookie record and was also the only Cowboy to rush for more than 1,000 yards in his rookie season. He held the record for 39 years, until 2016, when Ezekiel Elliott surpassed 1,000 yards in his 9th game and broke Dorsett's record in game 10 with 1,102 yards.