Roger Staubach facts for kids
.jpg)
Staubach in 2018
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 12 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Quarterback | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born: | February 5, 1942 Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S. |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight: | 197 lb (89 kg) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| High school: | Purcell Marian (Cincinnati, Ohio) |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| College: | NMMI (1960) Navy (1961–1964) |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| NFL Draft: | 1964 / Round: 10 / Pick: 129 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| AFL draft: | 1964 / Round: 16 / Pick: 122 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Player stats at PFR | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Pro Football Hall of Fame
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
College Football Hall of Fame
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Roger Thomas Staubach (born February 5, 1942) is a famous American former professional football quarterback. He played for 11 seasons with the Dallas Cowboys in the National Football League (NFL). People called him "Roger the Dodger", "Captain America", and "Captain Comeback" because of his amazing plays.
Roger went to the U.S. Naval Academy and played college football for the Navy Midshipmen. He won the important 1963 Heisman Trophy. After college, he served in the U.S. Navy, even in the Vietnam War.
Staubach joined the Dallas Cowboys in 1969. He became one of their best quarterbacks ever. He led the Cowboys to the Super Bowl five times and won two of them: Super Bowl VI and Super Bowl XII. He was even named the MVP of Super Bowl VI. Roger is one of only four players to win both the Heisman Trophy and the Super Bowl MVP. He was chosen for the Pro Bowl six times. Many people think he is one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time.
After he stopped playing football, Roger started a successful real estate company called The Staubach Group. He later sold it for a lot of money. In 2018, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, a very high honor.
Contents
Early Life and School Days
Roger Staubach was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. He was the only child of Elizabeth and Robert Staubach. His dad sold shoes and leather, and his mom worked as a secretary. Roger grew up in Silverton, a suburb of Cincinnati.
As a kid, he was a Boy Scout. He went to St. John the Evangelist Catholic School and then graduated from Purcell High School (now Purcell Marian High School) in 1960.
To get ready for his Navy career, Roger spent a year at New Mexico Military Institute. There, he set a school record for passing yards and scored 18 touchdowns. In 1961, Staubach entered the U.S. Naval Academy. He played quarterback for the Midshipmen.
In 1962, during his second year, he got his first chance to play. A week later, against Cornell University, he led Navy to six touchdowns! He threw for 99 yards and two touchdowns, and ran for 88 yards and another score. Navy won 41–0.
Later that year, Staubach started in the famous Army–Navy Game. President John F. Kennedy was there for the coin toss. Roger led his team to a big 34–14 win over Army. He threw two touchdowns and ran for another.
In 1963, his third year, he won the Heisman Trophy, a huge award for college football players. He also won the Maxwell Award and the Walter Camp Memorial Trophy. He led the Midshipmen to a great 9–1 record and they were ranked No. 2 in the country. He even appeared on the cover of Time magazine.
On New Year's Day, Navy played the No. 1 team, the University of Texas, in the 1964 Cotton Bowl. Navy lost this national championship game. Earlier that season, Staubach led Navy to a 35–14 win against Notre Dame. Navy didn't beat Notre Dame again for 43 years!
Over three seasons at Navy, Staubach threw for 18 touchdowns and gained a school-record 4,253 yards. He is the last player from a military academy to win the Heisman Trophy. In his senior year (1964), he got hurt and missed four games.
The Naval Academy retired Staubach's jersey number (12) when he graduated. In 1981, he was put into the College Football Hall of Fame. In 2007, ESPN ranked him No. 9 on their list of the Top 25 Players in College Football History.
College Football Stats
| Year | Comp | Att | Comp % | Passing | TD | Int |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1962 | 67 | 98 | 68.4 | 966 | 7 | 3 |
| 1963 | 107 | 161 | 66.5 | 1,474 | 7 | 7 |
| 1964 | 119 | 204 | 58.3 | 1,131 | 4 | 10 |
| Total | 293 | 463 | 63.3 | 3,571 | 18 | 20 |
After football, Staubach was also captain of Navy's 1965 baseball team and played for the school's basketball team.
During his time at the Naval Academy, doctors found that Staubach was color-blind. Because of this, he joined the Supply Corps. This job didn't require him to tell the difference between certain colors, which was important for other Navy roles.
After graduating in 1965, Staubach chose to serve one year in South Vietnam. He was a Supply Corps officer at the Chu Lai Base Area until 1967. He was in charge of 41 enlisted men.
Roger came back from Vietnam in September 1967. He spent the rest of his Navy career in the United States. He played football on different service teams to get ready for his future in the National Football League. He even had access to the Dallas Cowboys' playbook!
Professional Football Career
The Dallas Cowboys picked Staubach in the tenth round of the 1964 NFL draft. They could draft him early because he was four years out of high school. However, he couldn't play professionally until 1969 because of his four-year military service. He was also drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs in the 1964 American Football League draft.
In 1969, Staubach left the Navy and joined the Cowboys' training camp. The Cowboys won their first NFC title in 1970 but lost Super Bowl V.
In 1971, Staubach became the main starting quarterback. He led the Cowboys to 10 wins in a row, including their first Super Bowl victory! They beat the Miami Dolphins 24–3 in Super Bowl VI in January 1972. Roger was named the game's MVP. He completed 12 of 19 passes for 119 yards and two touchdowns.
In 1972, Staubach missed most of the season because of a shoulder injury. But in a playoff game against the San Francisco 49ers, he came in and led an amazing comeback. He threw two touchdown passes in the last 90 seconds to turn a 15-point deficit into a 30–28 victory! After that, he got his starting job back and kept it for the rest of his career.
Staubach led the Cowboys to another Super Bowl win in the 1977 season. They beat the Denver Broncos 27–10 in Super Bowl XII. He also led the Cowboys to Super Bowl X and Super Bowl XIII, but they lost both times to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Roger played with many great teammates like Drew Pearson and Tony Dorsett. Many of them are now in the Hall of Fame.
In his last NFL season in 1979, Staubach had his best year for passing yards (3,586) and touchdown passes (27). He decided to retire after that season to protect his health. He had suffered 20 concussions during his career. Doctors told him another concussion could be very serious. He chose to retire, and Danny White took over as the Cowboys' quarterback.
Overall, Staubach played 11 NFL seasons. He completed 1,685 passes for 22,700 yards and 153 touchdowns. He also ran for 2,264 yards and 21 touchdowns. He won 75% of his regular-season games as a starter. He led the NFL in passer rating four times and was chosen for six Pro Bowls.
Roger Staubach's Legacy
When Staubach retired in 1980, he had the highest career passer rating in NFL history. He was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985. In 1999, The Sporting News ranked him No. 29 on their list of the 100 Greatest Football Players.
Staubach was one of the most famous NFL players of the 1970s. His nicknames "Roger The Dodger" (for his scrambling) and "Captain Comeback" (for his amazing fourth-quarter wins) show how exciting he was to watch. He led the Cowboys to 23 game-winning drives in the fourth quarter.
His most famous play was the "Hail Mary pass" in a 1975 playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings. With only seconds left, Staubach threw a 50-yard pass to Drew Pearson. Pearson caught it and scored the winning touchdown! After the game, Staubach said he just threw the ball and said a "Hail Mary" prayer. Since then, any last-second, long pass to win a game is called a "Hail Mary" pass.
In 2007, Staubach helped Dallas win the bid to host Super Bowl XLV in 2011. In 2010, the Dallas Morning News named him the No. 1 Dallas Cowboy of all time.
In November 2018, Roger Staubach received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Donald Trump. This is one of the highest honors a civilian can receive in the U.S. He was the first football player to get this award.
In 2023, his old high school, Purcell Marian High School, named its new athletic complex Staubach Stadium in his honor.
NFL Career Statistics
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Super Bowl MVP | |
| Won the Super Bowl | |
| Led the league | |
| Bold | Career high |
Regular Season Stats
| Year | Team | Games | Passing | Rushing | Sacked | Fum | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Record | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Y/A | Lng | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Y/A | Lng | TD | Sck | SckY | |||
| 1969 | DAL | 6 | 1 | 1–0 | 23 | 47 | 48.9 | 421 | 9.0 | 75 | 1 | 2 | 69.5 | 15 | 60 | 4.0 | 19 | 1 | 12 | 106 | 2 |
| 1970 | DAL | 8 | 3 | 2–1 | 44 | 82 | 53.7 | 542 | 6.6 | 43 | 2 | 8 | 42.9 | 27 | 221 | 8.2 | 25 | 0 | 19 | 130 | 4 |
| 1971 | DAL | 13 | 10 | 10–0 | 126 | 211 | 59.7 | 1,882 | 8.9 | 85 | 15 | 4 | 104.8 | 41 | 343 | 8.4 | 31 | 2 | 23 | 175 | 6 |
| 1972 | DAL | 4 | 0 | — | 9 | 20 | 45.0 | 98 | 4.9 | 21 | 0 | 2 | 20.4 | 6 | 45 | 7.5 | 20 | 0 | 8 | 59 | 1 |
| 1973 | DAL | 14 | 14 | 10–4 | 179 | 286 | 62.6 | 2,428 | 8.5 | 53 | 23 | 15 | 94.6 | 46 | 250 | 5.4 | 18 | 3 | 43 | 269 | 5 |
| 1974 | DAL | 14 | 14 | 8–6 | 190 | 360 | 52.8 | 2,552 | 7.1 | 58 | 11 | 15 | 68.4 | 47 | 320 | 6.8 | 29 | 3 | 45 | 309 | 7 |
| 1975 | DAL | 13 | 13 | 9–4 | 198 | 348 | 56.9 | 2,666 | 7.7 | 62 | 17 | 16 | 78.5 | 55 | 316 | 5.7 | 17 | 4 | 36 | 213 | 5 |
| 1976 | DAL | 14 | 14 | 11–3 | 208 | 369 | 56.4 | 2,715 | 7.4 | 53 | 14 | 11 | 79.9 | 43 | 184 | 4.3 | 18 | 3 | 29 | 215 | 4 |
| 1977 | DAL | 14 | 14 | 12–2 | 210 | 361 | 58.2 | 2,720 | 7.3 | 67 | 18 | 9 | 87.0 | 51 | 171 | 3.4 | 33 | 3 | 30 | 219 | 8 |
| 1978 | DAL | 15 | 15 | 11–4 | 231 | 413 | 55.9 | 3,190 | 7.7 | 91 | 25 | 16 | 84.9 | 42 | 182 | 4.3 | 23 | 1 | 32 | 219 | 5 |
| 1979 | DAL | 16 | 16 | 11–5 | 267 | 461 | 57.9 | 3,586 | 7.8 | 75 | 27 | 11 | 92.3 | 37 | 172 | 4.6 | 20 | 0 | 36 | 240 | 8 |
| Career | 131 | 114 | 85–29 | 1,685 | 2,958 | 57.0 | 22,700 | 7.7 | 91 | 153 | 109 | 83.4 | 410 | 2,264 | 5.5 | 33 | 20 | 313 | 2,154 | 55 | |
Playoff Stats
| Year | Team | Games | Passing | Rushing | Sacked | Fum | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Record | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Y/A | Lng | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Y/A | Lng | TD | Sck | SckY | |||
| 1969 | DAL | 1 | 0 | — | 4 | 5 | 80.0 | 44 | 8.8 | 22 | 1 | 0 | 142.9 | 3 | 22 | 7.3 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1970 | DAL | 1 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1971 | DAL | 3 | 3 | 3–0 | 31 | 51 | 60.8 | 321 | 6.3 | 30 | 3 | 0 | 98.6 | 15 | 75 | 5.0 | 12 | 0 | 10 | 64 | 1 |
| 1972 | DAL | 2 | 1 | 0–1 | 21 | 40 | 52.5 | 272 | 6.8 | 27 | 2 | 0 | 90.8 | 8 | 82 | 10.3 | 29 | 0 | 7 | 56 | 1 |
| 1973 | DAL | 2 | 2 | 1–1 | 18 | 37 | 48.6 | 269 | 7.3 | 83 | 2 | 6 | 51.4 | 9 | 60 | 6.7 | 12 | 0 | 10 | 70 | 1 |
| 1975 | DAL | 3 | 3 | 2–1 | 48 | 79 | 60.8 | 670 | 8.5 | 50 | 7 | 4 | 96.5 | 19 | 100 | 5.3 | 15 | 0 | 12 | 63 | 5 |
| 1976 | DAL | 1 | 1 | 0–1 | 15 | 37 | 40.5 | 150 | 4.1 | 22 | 0 | 3 | 19.0 | 2 | 8 | 4.0 | 9 | 0 | 4 | 24 | 0 |
| 1977 | DAL | 3 | 3 | 3–0 | 37 | 61 | 60.7 | 482 | 7.9 | 45 | 3 | 2 | 88.3 | 11 | 35 | 3.2 | 11 | 0 | 9 | 44 | 1 |
| 1978 | DAL | 3 | 3 | 2–1 | 37 | 72 | 51.4 | 459 | 6.4 | 39 | 5 | 3 | 77.3 | 8 | 47 | 5.9 | 18 | 0 | 8 | 69 | 1 |
| 1979 | DAL | 1 | 1 | 0–1 | 12 | 28 | 42.9 | 124 | 4.4 | 29 | 1 | 1 | 53.3 | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 20 | 17 | 11–6 | 223 | 410 | 54.4 | 2,791 | 6.8 | 83 | 24 | 19 | 76.0 | 76 | 432 | 5.7 | 29 | 0 | 61 | 390 | 10 | |
Super Bowl Stats
| Year | SB | Team | Opp. | Passing | Result | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Y/A | TD | Int | Rtg | |||||
| 1971 | VI | DAL | MIA | 12 | 19 | 63.2 | 119 | 6.3 | 2 | 0 | 115.9 | W 24−3 |
| 1975 | X | DAL | PIT | 15 | 24 | 62.5 | 204 | 8.5 | 2 | 3 | 77.8 | L 21−17 |
| 1977 | XII | DAL | DEN | 17 | 25 | 68.0 | 183 | 7.3 | 1 | 0 | 102.6 | W 27−10 |
| 1978 | XIII | DAL | PIT | 17 | 30 | 56.7 | 228 | 7.6 | 3 | 1 | 100.4 | L 35−31 |
| Career | 61 | 98 | 62.2 | 734 | 7.5 | 8 | 4 | 95.4 | W−L 2−2 | |||
Personal Life and Business
Roger Staubach married Marianne on September 4, 1965. They have five children. Today, Roger and Marianne live in Dallas, Texas. As of 2017, they have 15 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Starting a Real Estate Company
In 1977, Roger started his own business, The Staubach Company. It was a commercial real estate firm. He had learned about real estate by working during his football off-seasons from 1970 to 1977. Roger said he started the business because "I couldn't have retired at my age and just played golf." He also mentioned that football players didn't earn as much money back then.
His company first built office buildings. Later, it focused on helping other companies find places to rent or buy. This was a smart move because Dallas had a lot of empty office space at the time. The company worked with big businesses like AT&T and McDonald's.
Roger was the chairman and CEO of his company until 2007. In 2008, The Staubach Company was sold to Jones Lang LaSalle for $613 million. Roger became an executive chairman for Jones Lang LaSalle in the Americas region until he retired in 2018.
Other Activities
In the 1970s and early 1980s, Roger was a spokesperson for a men's clothing store called Anderson-Little. He also appeared in TV ads for Rolaids.
Staubach was the president of a charity called No Greater Love in 1981. For a short time in the early 1980s, he worked as a TV commentator for NFL games on CBS Sports.
Roger also co-owned Hall of Fame Racing, a NASCAR team, with another former Cowboys player, Troy Aikman.
In 2009, Staubach received the "Lombardi Award of Excellence." This award honors individuals who show the same spirit as legendary coach Vince Lombardi.
Images for kids
-
Staubach tossing a pass against Maryland during his time with Navy
See also
In Spanish: Roger Staubach para niños
