John Dutton (defensive lineman)
Encyclopedia
John Owen Dutton is a former professional football
player, a defensive lineman in the NFL
with the Baltimore Colts
and Dallas Cowboys
. He played 14 seasons, from 1974-87.
in Rapid City
in 1969, where led the Cobblers to the state Class A basketball title in his senior year.
He was all-state in basketball
and football two years and was a high school All-American in both sports.
offers for basketball than for football, he signed with Nebraska
to play college football
for head coach Bob Devaney
.
In 1971
, as an alternate starter, he was part of the 1971
national championship
team.
Dutton participated in the 1971 Nebraska-Oklahoma game
, also called the "Game of the Century"
, generally considered as one of the greatest college football games ever played.
As a senior in 1973
under new head coach Tom Osborne, he earned All-America
and All-Big 8
honors; he finished fourth on the team with 63 tackles.
In the 1974
Cotton Bowl in Dallas
against the University of Texas Longhorns
, Dutton and the Blackshirts
held the 'Horns to one field goal and 196 total yards. It was the Huskers' fifth bowl
victory in as many seasons.
In 1981, he was inducted into the Nebraska football Hall of Fame.
He was also inducted into the South Dakota Hall of Fame.
, the 5th overall pick. In 1974
, the 6-foot-7, 266-pound defensive end
was named to NFL
all-rookie team.
In 1975
, he led the Colts in sacks with a career-high 17 and was named to the first of three straight Pro Bowl
s from 1975-77, becoming one of the most dominant defensive lineman in the NFL.
In October 1979
, a contract dispute forced the Colts to trade him. Because of the retirement of Jethro Pugh
and the desire of Ed "Too Tall" Jones to become a professional boxer, the Dallas Cowboys
traded for him a #1 and a #2 pick in the 1980 NFL Draft
.
When Jones returned in 1980, Dutton moved to defensive tackle alongside Randy White
, forming a formidable defensive line that also included Harvey Martin
. He may have been the best Dallas defensive lineman to not win a Super Bowl ring.
During his 9 years in Dallas, he helped the Cowboys reach the NFC title game during the 1980
, 1981
, and 1982
seasons. He also recorded 18 official sacks (The NFL
didn't recognize quarterback sacks as an official statistic until 1982
).
Dutton retired in 1987
, after 14 seasons and 185 games in the NFL.
Dutton retired to Lincoln
, Nebraska
. He became involved in businesses and for a short time owned and operated Dutton's Den, an off-sale liquor store and restaurant.
John is married to Ginny Dutton, an American film and stage actress, and has three children.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
player, a defensive lineman in the NFL
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
with the Baltimore Colts
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League ....
and Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
. He played 14 seasons, from 1974-87.
Early years
Dutton graduated from Central High SchoolCentral High School (Rapid City)
Central High School is a high school in Rapid City, South Dakota. The principal is Mike Talley. The high school mascot is the Cobbler. The nickname was changed from "Tigers" to "Cobblers" to honor former coach Euclid Cobb....
in Rapid City
Rapid City, South Dakota
Rapid City is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of South Dakota, and the county seat of Pennington County. Named after Rapid Creek on which the city is established, it is set against the eastern slope of the Black Hills mountain range. The population was 67,956 as of the 2010 Census. Rapid...
in 1969, where led the Cobblers to the state Class A basketball title in his senior year.
He was all-state in basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
and football two years and was a high school All-American in both sports.
Nebraska Cornhuskers
Although he received more scholarshipAthletic scholarship
An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university awarded to an individual based predominantly on his or her ability to play in a sport...
offers for basketball than for football, he signed with Nebraska
Nebraska Cornhuskers football
The Nebraska Cornhuskers represent the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in college football. The program has established itself as a traditional powerhouse, and has the fourth-most all-time victories of any NCAA Division I-A team. Nebraska is one of only six football programs in NCAA Division I-A...
to play college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
for head coach Bob Devaney
Bob Devaney
Robert S. "Bob" Devaney was an American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at the University of Wyoming from 1957 to 1961 and at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln from 1962 to 1972, compiling a career college football record of 136–30–7...
.
In 1971
1971 college football season
The 1971 college football season saw Coach Bob Devaney's Nebraska Cornhuskers repeat as national champions. After being ranked 2nd in the preseason poll, Nebraska captured first place the following week and remained there for the rest of 1971 and won the Orange Bowl 38–6 in a #1 vs...
, as an alternate starter, he was part of the 1971
1971 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team
The 1971 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team represented the University of Nebraska in the 1971 college football season. Nebraska was coached by Bob Devaney and played their home games in Memorial Stadium in Lincoln...
national championship
NCAA Division I FBS National Football Championship
A college football national championship in the highest level of collegiate play in the United States, currently the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Football Bowl Subdivision , is a designation awarded annually by various third-party organizations to their selection of the best...
team.
Dutton participated in the 1971 Nebraska-Oklahoma game
1971 Nebraska vs. Oklahoma football game
On Thursday, November 25, 1971, the Nebraska Cornhuskers, defending national champions, ranked #1 with a 20-game winning streak played the Oklahoma Sooners, ranked #2. The Cornhuskers defeated the Sooners 35–31.-Background:...
, also called the "Game of the Century"
Game of the Century (college football)
The phrase "Game of the Century" is a superlative that has been applied to several college football contests played in the 20th century, the first full century of college football in the United States...
, generally considered as one of the greatest college football games ever played.
As a senior in 1973
1973 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team
The 1973 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team represented the University of Nebraska in the 1973 college football season. The team was coached by Tom Osborne and played their home games in Memorial Stadium in Lincoln.-Schedule:-Roster:...
under new head coach Tom Osborne, he earned All-America
All-America
An All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
and All-Big 8
Big Eight Conference
The Big Eight Conference, a former NCAA-affiliated Division I-A college athletic association that sponsored football, was formed in January 1907 as the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association by its charter member schools: the University of Kansas, University of Missouri, University...
honors; he finished fourth on the team with 63 tackles.
In the 1974
1973 college football season
The 1973 college football season was the first for the NCAA's current three-division structure. Effective with the 1973–74 academic year, schools formerly in the NCAA "University Division" were classified as Division I...
Cotton Bowl in Dallas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
against the University of Texas Longhorns
Texas Longhorns football
The Texas Longhorns football program is the intercollegiate football team representing The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas. The team currently competes in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision as a member of the Big 12 Conference which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National...
, Dutton and the Blackshirts
Blackshirts (football)
The Blackshirts are the first-string defensive unit players for the Nebraska Cornhuskers football team.-History:The term originally dates back to the early 1960s and refers to the black practice jerseys that Nebraska's first-string defenders began to wear during practice...
held the 'Horns to one field goal and 196 total yards. It was the Huskers' fifth bowl
Bowl game
In North America, a bowl game is commonly considered to refer to one of a number of post-season college football games. Prior to 2002, bowl game statistics were not included in players' career totals and the games were mostly considered to be exhibition games involving a payout to participating...
victory in as many seasons.
In 1981, he was inducted into the Nebraska football Hall of Fame.
He was also inducted into the South Dakota Hall of Fame.
Professional years
Dutton was selected by the Baltimore Colts in the first round of the 1974 NFL Draft1974 NFL Draft
The 1974 National Football League Draft took place at the Americana Hotel in New York City on January 29–30, 1974. Each of the 26 NFL teams was granted 17 selections for a total of 442 picks....
, the 5th overall pick. In 1974
1974 NFL season
The 1974 NFL season was the 55th regular season of the National Football League. The season ended with Super Bowl IX when the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Minnesota Vikings...
, the 6-foot-7, 266-pound defensive end
Defensive end
Defensive end is the name of a defensive position in the sport of American and Canadian football.This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations have substantially changed how the position is played over the years...
was named to NFL
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
all-rookie team.
In 1975
1975 NFL season
The 1975 NFL season was the 56th regular season of the National Football League. It was also the first time that featured an entire season with no games ending in a tie. The league made two significant changes to increase the appeal of the game:...
, he led the Colts in sacks with a career-high 17 and was named to the first of three straight Pro Bowl
Pro Bowl
In professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...
s from 1975-77, becoming one of the most dominant defensive lineman in the NFL.
In October 1979
1979 NFL season
The 1979 NFL season was the 60th regular season of the National Football League. The season ended with Super Bowl XIV when the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Los Angeles Rams...
, a contract dispute forced the Colts to trade him. Because of the retirement of Jethro Pugh
Jethro Pugh
Jethro Pugh, Jr. is a former American football defensive tackle in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys.-College career:...
and the desire of Ed "Too Tall" Jones to become a professional boxer, the Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
traded for him a #1 and a #2 pick in the 1980 NFL Draft
1980 NFL Draft
The 1980 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 29–30, 1980. The league also held a supplemental draft after the regular draft and...
.
When Jones returned in 1980, Dutton moved to defensive tackle alongside Randy White
Randy White
Randy White may refer to:*Randy White , American football player*Randy White , American basketball player*Randy White , Canadian politician and accountant...
, forming a formidable defensive line that also included Harvey Martin
Harvey Martin
Harvey Banks Martin was an American football defensive end in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys from 1973 until 1983. He started playing football in high school, only because he overheard his father tell his mother that he was ashamed that his son did not play like his friends'...
. He may have been the best Dallas defensive lineman to not win a Super Bowl ring.
During his 9 years in Dallas, he helped the Cowboys reach the NFC title game during the 1980
1980 NFL season
The 1980 NFL season was the 61st regular season of the National Football League.After the league declined to approve the proposed move by the Raiders from Oakland, California to Los Angeles, the team along with the Los Angeles Coliseum sued the NFL for violating antitrust laws...
, 1981
1981 NFL season
The 1981 NFL season was the 62nd regular season of the National Football League. The season ended with Super Bowl XVI when the San Francisco 49ers defeated the Cincinnati Bengals.-Major rule changes:...
, and 1982
1982 NFL season
The 1982 NFL season was the 63rd regular season of the National Football League. A 57-day long players' strike reduced the 1982 season from a 16-game schedule per team to an abbreviated nine game schedule...
seasons. He also recorded 18 official sacks (The NFL
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
didn't recognize quarterback sacks as an official statistic until 1982
1982 NFL season
The 1982 NFL season was the 63rd regular season of the National Football League. A 57-day long players' strike reduced the 1982 season from a 16-game schedule per team to an abbreviated nine game schedule...
).
Dutton retired in 1987
1987 NFL season
The 1987 NFL season was the 68th regular season of the National Football League. A 24-day players' strike reduced the 16-game season to 15. The games that were scheduled for the third week of the season were canceled, but the games for weeks 4–6 were played with replacement players...
, after 14 seasons and 185 games in the NFL.
Personal life
After his career in the NFL, former HuskerNebraska Cornhuskers football
The Nebraska Cornhuskers represent the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in college football. The program has established itself as a traditional powerhouse, and has the fourth-most all-time victories of any NCAA Division I-A team. Nebraska is one of only six football programs in NCAA Division I-A...
Dutton retired to Lincoln
Lincoln, Nebraska
The City of Lincoln is the capital and the second-most populous city of the US state of Nebraska. Lincoln is also the county seat of Lancaster County and the home of the University of Nebraska. Lincoln's 2010 Census population was 258,379....
, Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
. He became involved in businesses and for a short time owned and operated Dutton's Den, an off-sale liquor store and restaurant.
John is married to Ginny Dutton, an American film and stage actress, and has three children.