Post by prossman on Apr 4, 2009 16:54:17 GMT -7
Former Dallas Cowboys QB Danny White to visit El Paso
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Bill Knight / El Paso Times
Posted: 04/03/2009 11:59:59 PM MDT
EL PASO -- He went to Arizona State with big dreams, dreams of following Reggie Jackson and Rick Monday into the world of Major League Baseball. Instead, he wound up in football -- with one of the most high-profile jobs in all of sports.
Danny White will be at Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino on Sunday for KROD's annual Sports Expo, signing autographs and sharing memories of the days when he was the quarterback for America's Team.
There is the heavyweight champion of the world, the center fielder for the New York Yankees and maybe just a few other jobs that hold the pressure, the expectations and prestige of playing quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys.
White also has some memories of El Paso from his playing days at Arizona State.
"I had the longest run from scrimmage in my life in the Sun Bowl (against UTEP)," he said. "In fact, that might be the longest I've ever run in my life. I went 80 yards. I was primarily a pocket passer. We ran an option, and back in those days, the field had a huge crown in the middle. I was running downhill to begin with, and then I cut back and I was going uphill and it was like a big old bear jumped on my back. That was a long run for a pocket passer."
Chuckling, White added, "That was the longest 80-yard run in history -- not only in distance but in time. I was accused by (Arizona State coach) Frank Kush of trying to run out the clock."
White had a sensational college career and a long and distinguished professional run. He set seven
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Advertisement
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NCAA passing records and was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1997. SportsIllustrated once named him the second-best college quarterback of all time, behind only Brigham Young's Steve Young. White completed almost 60 percent of his passes in the NFL, passing for almost 22,000 yards from 1976 to 1988 with Dallas. He was second-team All-NFL on a number of occasions and a Pro Bowl quarterback.
White not only had the pressure of being America's Team quarterback. He also had the challenge of following Cowboy legend Roger Staubach.
The late Tom Landry, Dallas' legendary coach, once said of White, "I don't think anybody could have followed Roger and done as well as Danny. Danny was a solid winner."
White led Dallas to a 62-32 record as a starter, got the Cowboys to three NFC title games. But, again, he went from his hometown of Mesa, Ariz., to Arizona State hoping to be a baseball player.
"It was kind of weird the way it happened," White said. "I went to Arizona State when Bobby Winkles offered me a baseball scholarship. That was right after Reggie Jackson and Rick Monday were there, and it was a big deal. I was just one of six freshman quarterbacks in football. I played a little defensive back and was the punter my first year.
"My sophomore year, I came back and all the other five quarterbacks left," he said. "I was it. My dad was an All-American at Arizona State, and my goal was just to make the team, wear the uniform and sit on the bench. All of a sudden, I was the starting quarterback for the first game against the University of Houston. Once I got a taste of that, baseball was never the same."
And there was one more strike against baseball.
Laughing again, White said, "I struck out for the final out against USC in the championship game at the College World Series," he said. "That wasn't good. I was drafted by four major league teams. But in football, we led the nation in scoring and total offense and won three Fiesta Bowls ... so my baseball career was kind of in the dumper."
White said he had a great time playing for the Dallas Cowboys, being Staubach's backup on Super Bowl teams and then stepping into Staubach's cleats.
"It was a great experience, because I was surrounded by greatness," White said.
The pressure never diminishes in that job. White can certainly understand the pressures facing Tony Romo, the current version of the Dallas Cowboy quarterback.
"I can relate," he said. "As much pressure as I was under, it is many, many times more for Tony. Really, the pressure he is under today I can't imagine. The kind of pressure I was under, I think only someone who has played quarterback in the NFL and in Dallas, Texas, can understand. I think it will make it easier on Tony getting rid of Terrell Owens. The chemistry will be better."
White coached for several years in the Arena Football League. He currently has a successful web site in iLearningGlobal.TV and he has a ranch in Eastern Arizona, which is his favorite place to go. But the memories of those football days, those days of glory in the NFL, still abound.
"Sure, you miss it," he said. "But it's not the records or anything like that. It is the lessons I learned, lessons I still carry with me today. And, like most guys will tell you, it's the locker room and all the camaraderie, the clowning around, the practical jokes, the practice field. It's like a tidal wave with everybody dedicated to a common goal. Everybody should feel what that's like at least once in their lives."
White, now 57, still is busy and active and still sharing something so many special moments that came through his life in football -- a life he never really planned.
Bill Knight may be reached at bknight@elpasotimes.com; 546-6171.
www.elpasotimes.com/sports/ci_12070036
__________________
"Screw yesterday; it's hard to say goodbye today."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Bill Knight / El Paso Times
Posted: 04/03/2009 11:59:59 PM MDT
EL PASO -- He went to Arizona State with big dreams, dreams of following Reggie Jackson and Rick Monday into the world of Major League Baseball. Instead, he wound up in football -- with one of the most high-profile jobs in all of sports.
Danny White will be at Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino on Sunday for KROD's annual Sports Expo, signing autographs and sharing memories of the days when he was the quarterback for America's Team.
There is the heavyweight champion of the world, the center fielder for the New York Yankees and maybe just a few other jobs that hold the pressure, the expectations and prestige of playing quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys.
White also has some memories of El Paso from his playing days at Arizona State.
"I had the longest run from scrimmage in my life in the Sun Bowl (against UTEP)," he said. "In fact, that might be the longest I've ever run in my life. I went 80 yards. I was primarily a pocket passer. We ran an option, and back in those days, the field had a huge crown in the middle. I was running downhill to begin with, and then I cut back and I was going uphill and it was like a big old bear jumped on my back. That was a long run for a pocket passer."
Chuckling, White added, "That was the longest 80-yard run in history -- not only in distance but in time. I was accused by (Arizona State coach) Frank Kush of trying to run out the clock."
White had a sensational college career and a long and distinguished professional run. He set seven
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Advertisement
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NCAA passing records and was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1997. SportsIllustrated once named him the second-best college quarterback of all time, behind only Brigham Young's Steve Young. White completed almost 60 percent of his passes in the NFL, passing for almost 22,000 yards from 1976 to 1988 with Dallas. He was second-team All-NFL on a number of occasions and a Pro Bowl quarterback.
White not only had the pressure of being America's Team quarterback. He also had the challenge of following Cowboy legend Roger Staubach.
The late Tom Landry, Dallas' legendary coach, once said of White, "I don't think anybody could have followed Roger and done as well as Danny. Danny was a solid winner."
White led Dallas to a 62-32 record as a starter, got the Cowboys to three NFC title games. But, again, he went from his hometown of Mesa, Ariz., to Arizona State hoping to be a baseball player.
"It was kind of weird the way it happened," White said. "I went to Arizona State when Bobby Winkles offered me a baseball scholarship. That was right after Reggie Jackson and Rick Monday were there, and it was a big deal. I was just one of six freshman quarterbacks in football. I played a little defensive back and was the punter my first year.
"My sophomore year, I came back and all the other five quarterbacks left," he said. "I was it. My dad was an All-American at Arizona State, and my goal was just to make the team, wear the uniform and sit on the bench. All of a sudden, I was the starting quarterback for the first game against the University of Houston. Once I got a taste of that, baseball was never the same."
And there was one more strike against baseball.
Laughing again, White said, "I struck out for the final out against USC in the championship game at the College World Series," he said. "That wasn't good. I was drafted by four major league teams. But in football, we led the nation in scoring and total offense and won three Fiesta Bowls ... so my baseball career was kind of in the dumper."
White said he had a great time playing for the Dallas Cowboys, being Staubach's backup on Super Bowl teams and then stepping into Staubach's cleats.
"It was a great experience, because I was surrounded by greatness," White said.
The pressure never diminishes in that job. White can certainly understand the pressures facing Tony Romo, the current version of the Dallas Cowboy quarterback.
"I can relate," he said. "As much pressure as I was under, it is many, many times more for Tony. Really, the pressure he is under today I can't imagine. The kind of pressure I was under, I think only someone who has played quarterback in the NFL and in Dallas, Texas, can understand. I think it will make it easier on Tony getting rid of Terrell Owens. The chemistry will be better."
White coached for several years in the Arena Football League. He currently has a successful web site in iLearningGlobal.TV and he has a ranch in Eastern Arizona, which is his favorite place to go. But the memories of those football days, those days of glory in the NFL, still abound.
"Sure, you miss it," he said. "But it's not the records or anything like that. It is the lessons I learned, lessons I still carry with me today. And, like most guys will tell you, it's the locker room and all the camaraderie, the clowning around, the practical jokes, the practice field. It's like a tidal wave with everybody dedicated to a common goal. Everybody should feel what that's like at least once in their lives."
White, now 57, still is busy and active and still sharing something so many special moments that came through his life in football -- a life he never really planned.
Bill Knight may be reached at bknight@elpasotimes.com; 546-6171.
www.elpasotimes.com/sports/ci_12070036
__________________
"Screw yesterday; it's hard to say goodbye today."