It proved to be one of the most astute decisions made by the Raiders oft-criticized owner. The Northern California native, who was born to blind parents, chose Stanford University to remain close to them. 1 pick in the 1971 draft had been all but branded an NFL washout, his promising rookie-of-the-year season with the New England Patriots notwithstanding. The year before, he was selected first overall in the draft, becoming the first Hispanic player to do so. Born to blind parents, he worked several part-time jobs in high school to help support the family. ''During those two years when I didn't play, it was tough for me,'' he said, ''but I was able to put it in perspective.'' He's a good guy.". In his senior year, 1970, he led Stanford to a conference championship and their first Rose Bowl appearance since 1952, a game that ended with a 2717 Stanford victory over the heavily favored Ohio State Buckeyes. Plunkett was born on Dec. 5, 1947, in San Jose, Calif., the youngest of three children. 1 pick in the 1971 draft. Life, it seems, has been a struggle for Plunkett. The 32-year-old Plunkett came off the bench to relieve Pastorini, throwing five interceptions in a 3117 loss. Two weeks before the Patriots defeated the Colts, Plunkett engineered a 3413 victory over the Dolphins. The First Deaf Player In The NHL: Jim Kyte. After having both knees replaced a few years ago, he says, Im in less pain. But he taught us a new meaning to the word temperament as we rode his success. The Raiders ignored his request and five weeks into the season, Plunkett's resurrection began. He was born to the parents of William Plunkett and Carmella Plunkett. Rust, now 82, remembers making that promise impulsively, confident that Stanford would back him up. When Jim was eight years old, his father died of a heart attack. Anyone can read what you share. UCLA coach Tommy Prothro had called Plunkett the "best pro quarterback prospect I've ever seen", echoing Sweeney's words from the year prior. [14] The Raiders, however, believing that Marc Wilson did not have the experience they wanted, called on Plunkett to start for the remainder of the year. At this time, Heisman voters are spread out across five regions. Jim Plunkett learned about perspective growing up as the only son, along with two older sisters, of blind parents. Prior to the 1976 NFL Draft, Plunkett was traded to the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for quarterback Tom Owen, two first-round picks in 1976, and a first and second-round pick in 1977. "When I found out I'd finished second to Jim," said Theismann in 1984, "I was genuinely crushed. Jim went to William C. Overfelt High School in the 9th and 10th grades and then transferred to and graduated from James Lick High School, both located in east San Jose, California. He also shined the light back on everybody else.". Its a stark contrast to 1980, when Plunkett longed to leave Oakland in hopes of reinvigorating a fading career. In spite of never being selected to a Pro Bowl or All-Pro team, and everything the Ravens have done pre-raid, his tenure has been worthwhile. Visitors, teachers, students, and MY HERO staff publish all kinds of stories, from inspirational essays about a close friend, to important global issues. He retired during the 1988 pre-season as the fourth-leading passer in Raiders history. His father died of a heart problem in 1969. The second title came after more struggles, after losing his starting job to Wilson and then regaining it after Wilson was injured. Click here to donate. The Raiders became the first team from the Wild Card era to win a Super Bowl. Five mostly difficult seasons in New England followed, preceding a trade to the 49ers and, in 1978, Plunketts outright release. Passing. Upon entering Stanford University, Plunkett endured a rough freshman campaign after being weakened by a thyroid operation. From 1984-86, Plunkett made only 17 starts, mostly because of injury. It seems to me that Jim has a lot of courage because he played even when he was injured or in pain. Plunkett was also selected first overall in the 1971 NFL draft by the New England Patriots. I asked to be traded, Plunkett says, and Mr. Davis said no.. His upbringing was difficult as both his parents, William and Carmen, were blind. In 1983, Marc Wilson was the Raiders starter who went down hurt, and Plunkett again came off the bench, and again spurred the team to a Super Bowl championship, a 38-9 trouncing of the Washington Redskins. New England also influenced the AFC East championship race, as Plunkett's 88-yard fourth-quarter touchdown pass to former Stanford teammate Randy Vataha on the final day of the season dropped the Baltimore Colts to a 1040 record and into second place in the division behind the 1031 Miami Dolphins. Plunkett didn't stop there. "Our daughter was very upset; she didn't want to feel she was letting Jimmy down," says Plunkett. As he grew up, Jim learned how to be his parent's "eyes" by helping them cross the street. Jim Plunkett (http://www.stanfordalumni.org/. Plunkett beat Notre Dame's Joe Theismann and Archie Manning of Ole Miss to win the award. Jim attended James Lick High School in East San Jose, California.He won the Heisman Trophy in 1970 as quarterback for Stanford University. . He would have been so proud to have been around all that. '', That's not always easy when the hucksters move in. Jim Plunkett was a football quarterback for Stanford University from 1968-1970. When the dog began to display some nervous aggression, Meghan despaired. He completed 571 of his 571 passes for a career-low 571 yards, three touchdown passes, and seven picks. His parents were poor and blind, but they were very proud. "I'm proud of that game," Plunkett said of Oakland's 27-10 victory over Philadelphia. ''She always wanted to know what the trees and the hills looked like. ''One parent always was taking care of the other. In addition, the American College Football Coaches Association designated him as their Offensive Player of the Year. Plunkett was born to William and Carmella Plunkett (his mother was Mexican, his father was also of Mexican descent) in San Jose Calif. His mother lost her sight when she was 20. As a sophomore, 1968, he passed for 2,156 yards, a record in what was then the Pac-8 Conference. Health Scare Nearly Ends Plunkett's College Career The biggest obstacle he faced was when he was 30 years old and played for the San Francisco 49ers. SAC 81. He was a good student and an excellent athlete. Plunkett, the most celebrated player in Stanford history, won his school's first Heisman after leading the Indians to an 8-3 record and a Rose Bowl berth. He retired after undergoing 18 surgical procedures during his playing days. Plunkett's father was a news vendor afflicted with progressive blindness, who had to support his blind wife along with their three children. Plunkett grew up in San Jose, California, the son of parents who were Native American and Hispanic. He responded by throwing for 2,156 yards and 14 touchdowns as a 1968 sophomore before adding 2,673 yards and 20 scores as a 1969 junior, helping him to finish eighth in that years Heisman vote. "In 1972 my confidence ran into a stone wall," he said. View winning films from the MY HERO International Film Festival! After all, the quarterback Jim Plunkett replaced early last season, Dan Pastorini, made nearly $360,000. His excellent arm strength and precision made him attractive to pro teams that relied much more heavily on the passing game than most college teams of the late 1960s. Had they insisted on it, the number of Heisman Trophy winners at Stanford would still be zero. Prior to retiring, he earned between $400,000 and $600,000 per year. ''Especially in the parks,'' he recalled. After surgery, Plunkett resumed playing too quickly and performed so poorly on the freshman team that then-Stanford coach John Ralston asked him to switch to defensive end. But sometimes she would get too nervous to enjoy it. That year he was named Most Valuable Player of Super Bowl XV, and was named the Comeback Player of the Year. [15], Plunkett is the subject of annual debate about whether he belongs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Moore, a tight end who went on to an eight-year NFL career, talked himself into a one-on-one foot race with Plunkett the summer before their senior season, when players gave up trips home and time off to continue training together. Number of electors: 1264 - Announced: November 24, 1970. It was very hard to swallow. They later moved to San Jose where William ran a newsstand, and where they were able to find low-cost housing. He was born to a blind mother and father.. Still, he remains active at Stanford, regularly attending events on campus and raising money for athletic scholarships through his annual charity golf tournament. He got his opportunity when starter Dan Pastorini suffered a broken leg against Kansas City. He also owns a beer distributorship. The most celebrated player in Stanford football history came from just down the road, and a world away. And then there's family. It's the trudge of 15 surgeries and back pain that makes it difficult for him to stand for more than an hour at a time. Nancy founded the Kelp Fest in 2009 in order to help local communities better understand and appreciate the kelp forest. The surgery required to remove a malignant tumor would end his football playing days. [21], Last edited on 22 February 2023, at 01:58, List of NCAA major college football yearly passing leaders, List of NCAA major college football yearly total offense leaders, "HOF Voter: Jim Plunkett Would Not Get My Vote", "Jim Plunkett and the Pro Football Hall of Fame", "Jim Plunkett's road to Super Bowl champion wasn't always smooth", "Greatest Cinderella stories in NFL history", "Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders Franchise Encyclopedia", "Oakland Raiders Quarterback Jim Plunkett vs. Denver Broncos Quarterback John Elway: Fan Take", "Why Raiders QB Jim Plunkett is not a Hall of Famer", "Barnwell: How the 'average' NFL QB has changed dramatically", "A Deeper Look at the Stabler Hall of Fame Debate", "Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement", "Former NFL quarterback Jim Plunkett opens up on health: 'My life sucks', https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jim_Plunkett&oldid=1140846577, Career statistics and player information from, This page was last edited on 22 February 2023, at 01:58. Stanford University. Harbaugh, who has a reverence for football tradition, is emphatic about Plunkett's identity now. "It was almost a miracle," says White, "that Jim Plunkett showed up at Stanford exactly as we were searching for a new football identity.". In his high school years, he worked during the summer.[11]. CAR 70. Plunkett, 63, is still involved with the Raiders, co-hosting a team-produced weekly television program, The Silver and Black Show, and sitting in Davis box during games. His reputation was severely hampered by his shadow, and he was ignored andunderappreciated. Ever since then, her doctor hasn't wanted her to fly. These days, Plunkett and wife Gerry still live in the Bay Area, in Atherton, about a five-minute drive from Stanford. Jim Plunkett was born in San Francisco, California on December 5th, 1947. They were from poor or middle-class families, and they wondered how they would ever fit in at a university swarming with well-heeled classmates. After returning to the backup role in 1983, Plunkett again assumed starting duties, this time after an injury to Marc Wilson. His junior year was even better when he set league records for touchdown passes (20), passing yards (2,673) and total offense (2,786), ranking third nationally in total offense and fifth in passing. Watch our short introduction video for more information. He sat out all of 1987 with a shoulder injury and his NFL career ended in the 1988 preseason when, at 40, the Raiders released him. the combining form for plasma minus the clotting proteins is jim plunkett parents blind In the spring, his daughter, Meghan Plunkett, graduated with a business and marketing degree from Manhattan College in New York, which she attended on a volleyball scholarship. ''My sisters would bring a radio so she could listen to what was happening. "I don't know where I would have gone," Plunkett says, "but I would have transferred. Jim Plunketts story is told in a film, and its a fascinating look at American football history. My father wouldn't let my mother cook. I was supposed to make my bed, but if I didn't, she'd walk in and feel the bed to see if I had. I still feel good when I think about it., Assistant coach Mike Whitewho later was head coach for Cal, the University of Illinois and the Oakland Raidersremembers vividly the doubts about whether Plunkett "could project enough" to motivate a team as a quarterback. Rust's mother had gone blind, and he related so strongly to the Plunkett family's closeness that he had moved beyond any concern about what Plunkett could contribute to Stanford. He didn't want her to get burned on the stove.''. In his first game as a starter, he completed eleven of fourteen passes with a touchdown and no interceptions. I love my daughter. His father was a police officer and his mother was a homemaker. His father, who was of Irish descent, passed away when Plunkett was just nine years old. But more than most athletes, he understands perspective. In 1983, Plunkett followed a similar script, this time taking the reins from Marc Wilson at midseason and helping the Raiders to their third and most recent NFL title. Plunkett, who did not take a salary but used his newspaper delivery job to supplement his income, played football for the majority of his life. In the 1984 Super Bowl, Plunkett passed for 172 yards and one touchdown in the Raiders' 38-9 rout of Washington, to that point the biggest Super Bowl victory margin. As the No. William Plunkett first worked in the Richmond shipyards. Plunkett was born to Mexican American parents with an Irish-German great-grandfather on his paternal side. They were too busy taking care of my sisters and me. It was a memorable year as he surpassed many of his league records, passing for 2,715 yards and 18 touchdowns as Stanford went 8-3 and won the Pac-8. That's where he was a leader. Jim Plunkett - Biography Biography Plunkett was born to Mexican American parents with an Irish-German great-grandfather on his paternal side. ''If they wanted to go somewhere, they went. My sisters Genevieve and Mary Ann don't like to tell me that my mother is coming to the game because they know I'll worry that she's all right.''. At Stanford, Plunkett set a school records for passing yards (2,156) and touchdowns (14) as a sophomore, and then broke those records in subsequent seasons finishing his NCAA career with 7,809 passing yards and 53 touchdowns. He spent the first seven seasons of his career with the New England Revolution and San Francisco 49ers before being released by both organizations in 1978. Hearing the story again, Jim Plunkett, the One and Only, smiles and rolls his eyes to his wife's amusement. Then he threw for 261 yards again in the Super Bowl. Tara VanDerveer took the Cardinal from doormat to dynamo and helped boost womens athletics. Plunkett received the Voit Trophy in both 1969 and 1970. But when I wanted to keep playing, she understood that, too. MAC 76. His mother, Carmen, had not seen the outside world since she was 19 years old due to typhoid. JIM PLUNKETT is on a roll. This display of offensive firepower led Washington State coach Jim Sweeney to call Plunkett "The best college football player I've ever seen." ''I tell people that one of the things that always annoyed my parents was having others thinking they were handicapped. Together they won Super Bowl XV, when Flores became the first minority . He was elected to the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame in 1990. Jim was born in San Jose, California, in 1948. After that, she was totally blind. For years he has opened the guesthouse at his Atherton home to Stanford athletes ex-quarterback Tavita Pritchard, '10, is the current resident. Was it that his parents were blind or they were deaf?, Jim threw a football 60 yards in his first ever competition. Jim was out of football for two years, before being signed by the Oakland Raiders in 1979. Jim made great contributions to professional football because he helped the Raiders beat the Washington Redskins in the Super Bowl. Jim also had two sisters. I do feel somewhat slighted, Plunkett says. This is a digitized version of an article from The Timess print archive, before the start of online publication in 1996. "I was extremely quiet when I got to Stanford," acknowledges Plunkett. Once he reaches the Hall of Fame, Eli Manning should be among the first group of players voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. (optional), What is a news vendor? I have taught linguistics and phonetics at multiple universities for the past 15 years.Technology has made exciting advances in phonetics, the science concerned with the structure and function of human speech, in recent years. Plunkett made his athletic debut when he was 14 years old, winning a throwing contest with a distance of over 60 yards and demonstrating his potential. He was a star quarterback in high school, and went on to play for Stanford University. Plunkett excelled in athletics from a young age and went on to attend Stanford University on a football scholarship. He was named the NFLs Comeback Player of the Year in 1981. However, the tumor turned out to be benign and Plunkett was given a clean bill of health. . 3 quarterback, Plunkett didn't play in 1978. He grew up in a poor family and his parent's financial condition was extremely weak, his father was a news vendor who had to support his blind wife along with his three children. The USC game fell halfway into that 1970 season. Voit Memorial Trophy, awarded each year to the outstanding football player on the Pacific Coast. After Jimmy's death, Meghan chose to keep the dog with her in part to honor what she believed would have been her brother's wish. He could have graduated the previous June, skipped his remaining year of The Northern California native, who was born to blind parents, chose Stanford University to remain close to them. He was a member of the National Football Leagues Atlanta Falcons for 16 seasons. Initially serving as a backup for the Raiders, Plunkett became the starting quarterback during the 1980 season and led them to win Super Bowl XV, where he was named MVP. Or if they wanted to clean the house, they cleaned the house. For that, he collected a black and silver Toyota automobile and a Seiko watch from Sport magazine at a luncheon at the Waldorf-Astoria last week. . It took a lot of courage to get there. Jim Plunkett (born James William Plunkett, Jr. on December 5, 1947) was a U.S. football player. Jim got cut after everyone called him washed up. Then, in 1980, he was picked up by the Oakland Raiders and led them to the Super Bowl. "They'd never faced a passing team such as ours," he said. Plunkett's father was a news vendor afflicted with progressive blindness, who had to support his blind wife along with their three children. And we've known that we're there for each other.". He did not like the area he lived in, often did not have money for dates, and avoided bringing friends to his house. It had been anything but a happy Bay Area homecoming for the rifle-armed quarterback who first gained widespread notice at San Jose James Lick High. The NFL's Comeback Player of the Year then '', His father died at age 56 after Jim Plunkett's sophomore year at Stanford. The nice thing now is that with the money I'm making, she has no financial problems. Plunkett, who had assumed the starting quarterback job as a sophomore, piled up three seasons of record-breaking numbers, all long ago eclipsed by other Stanford players. In addition, the American College Football Coaches Association designated him as their Offensive Player of the Year. Plunkett's arrival ushered in an era of wide-open passing, pro-style offenses in the Pac-8, a trend that has continued to the present. Playing for a traditionally mediocre program on the West Coast, Plunkett was a long-shot Heisman candidate compared to the other favorites: quarterbacks Archie Manning of Mississippi and Joe Theismann of Notre Dame. Our gallery features art in the theme of heroism. [13] The Patriots finished the season at 68 for fourth place in the AFC East. He played in two Super Bowls and was named Most Valuable Player in Super Bowl XV. But in a Stanford timeline, the ultimate demarcation is Before Plunkett and After Plunkett. Jim Plunkett arrived with other young playersJack Lasater, Bob Moore, Jack Schultzwho, like him, felt the pangs of being an outsider. At Stanford, Plunkett set a school records for passing yards (2,156) and touchdowns (14) as a sophomore, and then broke those records in subsequent seasons finishing his NCAA career with 7,809 passing yards and 53 touchdowns. His mother, Carmen, was sightless since . His father, William, was legally blind and worked as a news vendor. Forty years later, his impact on college football hasn't lost any luster, even though the sport has become far more freewheeling and ratcheted up the stats of quarterbacks everywhere. Playing for the Oakland Raiders, Pastorini broke his shinbone and cartilage in his knee. Throwing for 261 yards and three touchdowns, Plunkett was named the game's MVP; subsequently, Plunkett has the distinction of being the first minority to quarterback a team to a Super Bowl victory and the only Latino to be named Super Bowl MVP. With eighteen passing and three rushing touchdowns added to his 2,715 passing yards on the year (which broke his own conference record), Plunkett was awarded the 1970 Heisman Trophy. 1 Ohio State in the 1971 Rose Bowl. Jim Plunketts nomination to the Pro Football Hall of Fame is fraught with controversy. I took a tough road to get where I finally got.. Jim was born in 1946, and was their only child. Plunkett declined, threatened to transfer and, given a second chance, led Stanford to a Rose Bowl upset of Ohio State to cap his Heisman Trophy-winning senior season. The race was 440 yards, and Moore says he expected to beat Plunkett, "who never looked good as a runner," by 30 yards or more. LATE RALLY: After struggling early in his NFL career, Plunkett led the Raiders to two Super Bowl victories in the 1980s.
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