Sherman Plunkett
| No. 79, 70 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Offensive tackle | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Date of birth: | April 17, 1933 | ||||||||
| Place of birth: | Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | ||||||||
| Date of death: | November 18, 1989 (aged 56) | ||||||||
| Place of death: | Baltimore, Maryland | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| College: | Maryland Eastern Shore | ||||||||
| NFL draft: |
1956 / Round: 6 / Pick: 71 (By the Cleveland Browns) | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
| |||||||||
Sherman Eugene Plunkett (April 17, 1933 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma – November 18, 1989) was an American football offensive tackle who played in the National Football League from (1958–1960) and in the American Football League from (1961–1967), for the San Diego Chargers and the New York Jets. He was an American Football League All-Star in 1964 and 1966 and a 1st Team All-Pro All-AFL in 1966. He was involved in what is dubbed as "The Greatest Game Ever Played", the 1958 NFL Championship Game. It was his and the Colts' first ever title win. He had been drafted by the Cleveland Browns two years prior to joining the Colts, but his admission into the Army months after joining delayed his playing career and he joined the Colts after his service instead.
In his later playing years, he was most notable for his massive size. While the typical lineman in the 1960s weighed in at around 250-260 lb, Plunkett was almost 100 lb (45 kg) heavier.
He played college football at Maryland State College (now the University of Maryland Eastern Shore).
According to Joe Namath, it was Plunkett who coined the star New York Jets quarterback's nickname Broadway Joe, following Namath's appearance on the cover of Sports Illustrated magazine.
Plunkett died of cancer at the age of 56, at Sinai Hospital in Baltimore.
See also
External links
- Plunkett's 1965 Topps football card
- "Sherman Plunkett, Former Jets Tackle, 56". The New York Times. November 21, 1989. Retrieved 27 July 2009.
| ||||||
| ||||||