Sonny Jurgensen
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Sonny Jurgensen | |
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| Position(s): Quarterback |
Jersey #(s): 9 |
| Born: August 23, 1934 Wilmington, North Carolina |
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| Career Information | |
| Year(s): 1957–1974 | |
| NFL Draft: 1957 / Round: 4 / Pick: 43 | |
| College: Duke | |
| Professional Teams | |
| Career Stats | |
| TD-INT | 255-189 |
| Yards | 32,224 |
| QB Rating | 82.6 |
| Stats at NFL.com | |
| Career Highlights and Awards | |
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| Pro Football Hall of Fame | |
Christian Adolph "Sonny" Jurgensen III (born August 23, 1934) is a former American football quarterback in the National Football League. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1983.
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[edit] Early life
Jurgensen grew up in Wilmington, North Carolina. As a youth, he was a standout baseball, basketball, and tennis player, in addition to football.[1] Jurgensen was tabbed for stardom as early as elementary school, when he led his Chestnutt Street team to the city grammar school titles in baseball and basketball.[1] He later captured the boys tennis championship of Wilmington and pitched his local Civitan club to the city baseball title.[1] His athletic career would really take off at New Hanover High School. Jurgensen played football and baseball all four years at New Hanover, and was a Wildcat basketball player for his last three years.[1] As a junior he was a backup quarterback on a state championship club.[1] He became the team's starting quarterback his senior year and scored three touchdowns and kicked nine extra points.[1]
After graduating from New Haven in 1953, Jurgensen attended Duke University. While at Duke, he was the team's starting quarterback in 1955 and 1956 and helped lead the Blue Devils to 2 ACC championships and a 34-7 victory over Nebraska in the 1955 Orange Bowl. Early on in his college career, he made his biggest impact not at the quarterback spot but as a defensive back, finishing the 1954 season with 5 interceptions, including 2 in the 1955 Orange Bowl. He was inducted into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in 1971[2] and the Duke Sports Hall of Fame in 1979.[3]
[edit] NFL career
[edit] Philadelphia Eagles
Jurgensen was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the fourth round of the 1957 NFL Draft. He apprenticed under Hall of Fame quarterback Norm Van Brocklin for 4 years, winning an NFL title in 1960. After Van Brocklin's retirement, Jurgensen took over as the Eagles' starting quarterback in 1961 and found immediate success, passing for 3,723 yards and 32 touchdown passes, both NFL records at the time. He was named All-Pro at season's end. Following an injury-plagued 1963 season, Jurgensen was traded to the Washington Redskins in exchange for quarterback Norm Snead.
[edit] Washington Redskins
Jurgensen was selected to play in the Pro Bowl following his first season in Washington and was also named 2nd Team All-Pro. In 1967, Jurgensen broke his own record by passing for 3,747 yards and also set NFL single-season records for attempts (508) and completions (288). Despite his individual success, as well as the presence of fellow future Hall of Famers' Bobby Mitchell and Charlie Taylor, the Redskins finished at or below .500 in each of Jurgensen's first 5 seasons with the franchise. In 1969, Vince Lombardi took over as the Redskins' head coach. Initially, there was some doubt as to whether the freewheeling Jurgensen and the strict disciplinarian Lombardi could exist but Lombardi quickly revealed a strong admiration for his quarterback, calling Sonny "a great quarterback" and even going as far as saying he was "the best I've ever seen." [4] Lombardi also got the usually round-bellied Jurgensen to get in the best physical condition that he could. After missing most of the previous season due to injuries, a rejuvenated Jurgensen led the NFL in attempts (442), completions (274), completion percentage (62%) and passing yards (3,102) for the 1969 season. The Redskins finished with a winning record (7-5-2) for the first time since 1955 but, sadly, Lombardi died of cancer shortly before the start of the 1970 season. Jurgensen would later say that, of the nine head coaches he played for during his NFL career, Lombardi was his favorite.[5] The Redskins enjoyed a resurgence in the early 1970s under coach George Allen and made it as far as Super Bowl VII, losing to the Miami Dolphins. However, Billy Kilmer started in place of Jurgensen, who was again bothered by injuries in 1971 and 1972. During this time period, a quarterback controversy developed between the two, complete with fans sporting "I Love Billy" or "I Love Sonny" bumper stickers on their vehicles. The defensive-minded Allen preferred Kilmer's conservative, ball-control style of play to Jurgensen's more high risk approach. The controversy was all in good fun for Jurgensen and Kilmer and the two were and are good friends.[6] At the age of 40 in his final season in 1974, Jurgensen won his third NFL passing crown even though he was still splitting time with Kilmer. In what would be the final game of his NFL career, Jurgensen made his first and only appearance in an NFL postseason game in the Redskins' 19-10 loss to the Los Angeles Rams in the first round of the 1974 NFC playoffs. He came off the bench in relief of Kilmer and completed 6 of 12 passes but also threw 3 interceptions.
[edit] Honors
In many circles, Jurgensen is recognized as the finest pure passer of his time. A five-time Pro Bowl selection, he earned three NFL individual passing titles. He exceeded 400 yards passing in a single game five times, and threw five touchdown passes in a game twice. With a career rating of 82.6, his stats include 2,433 completions for 32,224 yards and 255 touchdowns. His strong arm is particularly notable. On a 2006 NBC 4 broadcast with George Michael, Jurgensen said in his prime he was able to throw the ball 80 yards.[7]
Jurgensen wore jersey number 9. Although the Redskins do not have an official policy of retiring player numbers, no Redskin since him has worn that number in a regular season game.
After retiring from the Redskins' following the 1974 season, Jurgensen began another career as a color commentator, initially with CBS television. Later teaming with Hall of Fame linebacker Sam Huff, Jurgensen continues to cover the Washington Redskins on radio.
Jurgensen was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1983.
[edit] Trivia
Jurgensen is a member of The Kappa Alpha Order. (Alpha Phi Chapter, Duke University.)
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Pro Football Hall of Fame: Member profile
[edit] References
- Sumner, Jim. Sonny Jurgensen's College Career, College Football Historical Society Newsletter, Volume VI, Number I, November, 1992, accessed March 20, 2008.
| Preceded by Norm Van Brocklin |
Philadelphia Eagles Starting Quarterbacks 1961-1963 |
Succeeded by Norm Snead |
| Preceded by Norm Snead |
Washington Redskins Starting Quarterbacks 1964-1970 |
Succeeded by Billy Kilmer |
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