USD Football 1997

BEi T he long and storied history of the Heisman Trophy is filled with tales of great athletes overcoming great odds. For courage, character and sheer determi– nation in the face of adversity, how– ever, perhaps no story can match that of 1970 winner Jim Plunkett. Plunkett's background could have come straight from a Horatio Alger story. His parents were poor and une– ducated, and blind as well. His father supported his wife and three children by running a newspaper stand at a post office in San Jose, Calif. Jim

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he want to come back in 1970 for one more crack at the Pacific-8 Conference championship and a Rose Bowl berth, but, he said at the time, he also wanted to set an example for other minority students (Plunkett is Mexican-American) by staying in school and earning his degree. By the time the 1970 season was over, Plunkett had accomplished all his goals. He completed 191 of 358 passes for 2,715 yards, and finished with 2,898 yards of total offense (breaking the Pac-8 record), including a 275-yard effort in Stanford's 24-14

delivered papers and worked as a gas Against all odds, Stanford's Jim Plunkett win over Southern Cal and a 22-of-36, station attendant and grocery clerk to put together a tremendous season, then 268-yard, four-TD performance in a supplement the family's meager capped it off by winning the Heisman. 29-22 win over Washington. income. Plunkett had plenty of Heisman Throwing a football would be Jim's ticket out of paver- competition. The 1970 college football class was full of star ty. He reached his full height of 6-foot-3 early on, and quarterbacks who would go on to NFL: Notre Dame's Joe

Theismann and Mississippi's Archie Manning were the prime competition, along with Lynn Dickey, Dan Pastorini and Ken Anderson. In the end, however, it was the humble and soft-spoken Plunkett who stepped up to the dais at New York's Downtown Athletic Club to accept the trophy. Soon after, as if to prove his Heisman worthiness, Plunkett took the field for his final collegiate game - the 1971 Rose Bowl against unbeaten and top-ranked Ohio State - and completed 20-of-30 passes for 265 yards in Stanford's 27-17 shocker over the Buckeyes, capping a col– lege career in which he tallied a then-NCAA-record 7,544 passing yards. Chosen first overall in the 1971 NFL Draft by the New England, Plunkett's Cinderella story continued. After suf– fering numerous injuries and setbacks, his career rebound– ed with the Oakland/L.A. Raiders, whom he led to Super Bowl victories in 1980 and '83, winning MVP honors in Super Bowl XV. Plunkett played 17 seasons before retiring - yet another testament to the unyielding will of one of the great underdog Heisman winners in history.

developed a throwing arm powerful and accurate enough to earn him a scholarship to Stanford. It took less than a year for another formidable obstacle to be thrown in his way, though, as a tumor was discovered on his thyroid gland. It proved to be benign, but the operation to remove it weakened him. He played three lackluster games at quarterback for Stanford as a freshman in 1966- so lack– luster that coach John Ralston thought Plunkett's 203- pound frame was better suited for defensive end. Plunkett resisted the move, and took a redshirt in 1967 to develop his quarterbacking skills. He returned in 1968 and quickly established himself as Stanford's starter. He threw for 2,156 yards and 14 touch– downs that season, then came back with even bigger numbers in 1969, rolling up 2,673 yards and 20 touch– downs through the air. Because of his redshirt season, Plunkett was eligible to enter the NFL Draft following the 1969 season. He was already a highly touted pro prospect and stood to cash in on a lucrative contract. But he opted to stay. Nrit only did

PRODUCED BY THE EDITORIAL PROJECTS DEPARTMENT OF TOUCHDOWN IUUSTRATED•. 1997 PSP INC. PHOTO BY PSP ARCHIVES.