No. 69, 88 | |||||||
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Position: | Defensive end | ||||||
Personal information | |||||||
Born: | Bellaire, Ohio, U.S. | August 11, 1951||||||
Height: | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | ||||||
Weight: | 278 lb (126 kg) | ||||||
Career information | |||||||
High school: | Bellaire (Ohio) | ||||||
College: | New Mexico State | ||||||
NFL draft: | 1973 / round: 4 / pick: 93 | ||||||
Career history | |||||||
Career NFL statistics | |||||||
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Andy Dorris (born August 11, 1951) is an American former professional football player. He was born in Bellaire, Ohio and attended college at New Mexico State University. [1] Dorris played in the National Football League (NFL) for 10 seasons. [2] He spent most of his professional career with the New Orleans Saints and the Houston Oilers. [2] [1] Dorris is currently a sales representative for Forterra in Houston, Texas. [3] [2]
The Cleveland Browns drafted Andy Dorris with the 93rd pick in the 1973 NFL Draft. [4] [5] He initially signed a three-year contract with the team. [5] Before the season began, Cleveland traded Dorris to the St. Louis Cardinals. [6] He played in four games for St. Louis in his first season as a professional. [1] In October 1973, St. Louis traded Dorris to the New Orleans Saints in exchange for a draft choice. [7]
Dorris spent three full seasons with the Saints. [1] In a game against the Atlanta Falcons in 1976, Dorris sacked Falcons quarterback Steve Bartkowski. [8] Bartkowski left the game with a knee injury. [8]
At the beginning of the 1977 NFL season, the Seattle Seahawks acquired Dorris from New Orleans. [9] Dorris played four games for the Seahawks. [9] [10] [1] The Seahawks placed him on waivers in October 1977. [11] As a free agent, Dorris participated in tryouts for two teams, but he was rejected both times. [12]
In November 1977, the Houston Oilers' Elvin Bethea broke his arm during a game. Coach "Bum" Philips replaced him with Andy Dorris. [12] In Houston, Dorris was part of a team that came to be known as "Bum's boys." [12] [13] Under Bum's relaxed leadership style, Dorris bulked up and became a formidable defensive lineman. [12]
In 1979, Dorris was the starting left defensive end for the Oilers. [14] He recorded three sacks in a December matchup against the Denver Broncos. [15] Dorris signed a new contract with the Oilers in 1980. [16]
1979 and 1980 were two of the most successful seasons for the Houston Oilers franchise. In both seasons, the team finished the season with 11 wins and 5 losses but failed to make the Super Bowl. [17] [18]
Dorris was known as a locker-room prankster. He and a teammate once put blue dye in a shower head, turning a teammate's skin blue. [19]
Houston placed Dorris on the injured reserve list at the beginning of the 1982 season, but he had already played his last game as a professional. [20] [1]
In 1990, he attended a reunion luncheon of many former Oilers players at the Southern Plantation Restaurant. [21]
Dorris also had a pet lion cub.
Dorris works as a sales representative for Thompson Pipe Group in Dallas, TX. [3] The company produces pipes and precast concrete forms for a variety of commercial and industrial purposes. [22]
In his last year at New Mexico State, Dorris was named outstanding senior athlete. [5]
In 2006, the Missouri Valley Conference announced its football "All-Centennial Team." [23] Conference officials selected Andy Dorris as one of the 14 players representing the decade of the 1970s. [23] Dorris was all-MVC at New Mexico State in 1972. [23]
In 2007, Coach Philips and many of his former players, including Dorris, held a reunion during halftime of a Houston Texans game. [24]
Dorris attended a New Mexico State Aggies football reunion in April 2012. [25] [26] The event consisted of a gathering of former players on Friday, April 27. [25]
Dorris and his wife, Mary, have three children: Meredith, Sam, and Zach. [2] He has nine grandchildren. [2]
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