Dallas' 10 Greatest Athletes

Troy Aikman and Roger Staubach

This weekend, the Yankees are hosting the Texas Rangers, the Major League Baseball team for the Dallas-Fort Worth "Metroplex."

Dallas' 10 Greatest Athletes

Honorable Mention to Texas Rangers in the Baseball Hall of Fame, each of whom would be a lot higher on this list if he'd been in Arlington longer than the following number of seasons: Bert Blyleven (2), Ferguson Jenkins (6), Gaylord Perry (4), Goose Gossage (1), Vladimir Guerrero (1), and, most notably, Nolan Ryan (5).

In those 5 seasons in Arlington, Ryan was 51-39, for a .567 winning percentage, which was better than he was in Flushing, Anaheim or the Astrodome. But though he led the American League in strikeouts twice and WHIP twice, and was 12-6 with a no-hitter as late as 1991 (age 44), let's be honest: The Rangers wouldn't even have acquired him if he hadn't been from Texas... and he was from the Houston side of Texas. Which didn't stop an earlier Ranger management team from acquiring David Clyde, with disastrous results.

Dishonorable Mention to Ivan Rodriguez, Juan Gonzalez and Rafael Palmeiro. All 3 of these Rangers could have made the Hall of Fame. The 1st did, the 2nd and 3rd didn't. None should have, and you know why.

Honorable Mention to Dallas Cowboys in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, who did not otherwise make this Top 10: Mel Renfro, Bob Hayes, Rayfield Wright, Mike Ditka, Michael Irvin, Larry Allen, Charles Haley and Deion Sanders. Ditka, Haley and Sanders would have made this Top 10 had they spent most or all of their careers with Dallas.

When The Sporting News named its 100 Greatest Football Players in 1999, Sanders was ranked 37th. When the NFL Network named its 100 Greatest Players in 2010, Sanders was ranked 34th, Irvin 92nd, and Allen 95th.

Honorable Mention to Jason Kidd and Steve Nash, both of whom would have made this Top 10 if they'd spent most of their careers, or even their best years, with the Dallas Mavericks. Newly elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame, they were the 1st 2 players to have played more than 1 season for the Mavs to make it.

Honorable Mention to Dallas Stars in the Hockey Hall of Fame, who did not otherwise make this Top 10: Ed Belfour, Brett Hull, Joe Nieuwendyk. Any of them would have made the Top 10 had they played all or most of their careers with the Stars.

Honorable Mention to John Best, Ilija Mitic, Kenny Cooper Sr. and Kyle Rote Jr., who starred for the Dallas Tornado in the old North American Soccer League in the 1970s.

Honorable Mention to Jason Kreis, still the all-time leading scorer for FC Dallas.

10. Adrian Beltre, 3rd base, Texas Rangers, 2011-18. As far as I know, he's been clean. He's had 3 of his 4 All-Star seasons with the Rangers, has won 3 of his 5 Gold Gloves for them, has batted .306 for them, has 190 of his 468 home runs for them, has 3 of his 5 100+ RBI seasons for them, and has 1,243 of his 3,132 hits for them. (All of these career stats are correct as of  last night's game between the Rangers and Yankees.)

He was with the Boston Red Sox when the Rangers won the 2010 American League Pennant, but he was with the Rangers when they won their 2011 Pennant, and has helped them reach the postseason again in 2012, '15 and '16.

9. Jere Lehtinen, right wing, Dallas Stars, 1995-2010. A 2-time All-Star, he was a 3-time winner of the Frank Selke Trophy as the NHL's best defensive forward. He was a member of the Stars' 1999 Stanley Cup winners and their 2000 finalists. The Stars retired his Number 26. He is eligible for the Hockey Hall of Fame, but is not yet in it.

8. Troy Aikman, quarterback, Dallas Cowboys, 1989-2000. 8th? When he quarterbacked 3 Super Bowl wins? Well, it does match his uniform number, and it can be argued that he was never the best player on his own team, or even the 2nd-best.

A 6-time Pro Bowler, he led the Dallas Cowboys to win Super Bowls XXVII (he was named the game's Most Valuable Player), XXVIII and XXX. UCLA retired his Number 8. The Cowboys don't retire numbers, but they haven't given his 8 out since he retired, and they named him to their Ring of Honor.

In 1999, The Sporting News ranked him 95th on their 100 Greatest Football Players. In 2010, the NFL Network ranked him 80th on their 100 Greatest Players.

7. Mike Modano, center, Dallas Stars, 1993-2010, plus 1988-93 with the team as the Minnesota North Stars. A 7-time All-Star, he is the North Stars/Stars all-time leader in games, goals, assists and points. No American-born player has more regular-season goals (561), regular-season points (1,374), or Playoff points (146), and no American-born forward has played more regular-season games (1,499).

He led the Stars to the 1999 Stanley Cup and the 2000 Finals. His Number 9 was retired. He was named to the Hockey Hall of Fame and the NHL's 100th Anniversary 100 Greatest Players.

6. Dirk Nowitzki, forward, Dallas Mavericks, 1998-present. More than any player on any Dallas team -- more than Nolan Ryan, Mike Modano, or even Roger Staubach -- he is the face of his franchise. He is a 13-time All-Star, led the Mavs to their 1st Western Conference title in 2006, and won the NBA's Most Valuable Player in 2007.

But the joke was that the Mavs always had a great offense, but were poor on defense. "No D," leading to jokes about "Allas" and "Irk." Finally, in 2011, Dirk led the Mavericks to the NBA Championship, defeating the Miami Heat of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. He was named Finals MVP, now known as the Bill Russell Award.

He is the greatest NBA player from Europe, and will no doubt be named to the NBA's 75th Anniversary 75 Greatest Players in 2021. He can look forward to the retirement of his Number 41 and election to the Basketball Hall of Fame -- if he ever retires. At 40, he shows neither inclination nor reason to do so.

5. Tony Dorsett, running back, Dallas Cowboys, 1977-87. The 1976 Heisman Trophy winner at the University of Pittsburgh followed up his National Championship season with a Rookie of the Year and Super Bowl winning-season. A 4-time Pro Bowler, he rushed for 12,739 yards, caught 398 passes for an additional 3,554 yards, and scored 90 touchdowns.

Pitt retired his Number 33. The Cowboys don't retire numbers, but they haven't given Number 33 back out since, and they named him to their Ring of Honor. He was elected to the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame. He and Marcus Allen are the only 2 players ever to win the Heisman, the National Championship and the Super Bowl, and to be elected to both the College and the Pro Football Halls of Fame.

When The Sporting News named its 100 Greatest Football Players in 1999, he was ranked 53rd. When the NFL Network named its 100 Greatest Players in 2010, he was ranked 77th.

His son Anthony Dorsett played 8 seasons as an NFL defensive back, appearing in 2 Super Bowls, but winning neither.

4. Randy White, linebacker, Dallas Cowboys, 1975-88. As a defensive tackle at the University of Maryland, he was nicknamed "Manster": Half-man, half-monster. A 9-time Pro Bowler, he and Harvey Martin were named Co-MVPs of the Cowboys' dominant victory over the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XII.

He was named to the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame, the NFL's 1980s All-Decade Team, and the Cowboys Ring of Honor. The team has, however, given his Number 54 back out. When The Sporting News named its 100 Greatest Football Players in 1999, White was ranked 51st. When the NFL Network named its 100 Greatest Players in 2010, he was ranked 62nd.

3. Roger Staubach, quarterback, Dallas Cowboys, 1969-79. To rank the man known, for quarterbacking "America's Team," as "Captain America" only 3rd seems like sacrilege. Well, it's kind of hard to put him ahead of the top 2 guys on this list.

After winning the Heisman Trophy at the U.S. Naval Academy in 1963, he fulfilled his military commitment, during the Vietnam War, and played on service teams until his commitment was complete. The Cowboys had drafted him, and he was able to join them in 1969. They won the NFC Championship in 1970, with Craig Morton as quarterback, but lost Super Bowl V. He was handed the starting job, and led them to win Super Bowl VI, being named the game's MVP.

A 6-time Pro Bowler, and the 1971 NFL MVP, he became known as Roger the Dodger -- due to his scrambling, as he certainly hadn't dodged the draft, military or NFL. He led the Cowboys to 3 more NFC Championships and victory in Super Bowl XII in the 1977 season.

The Academy retired his Number 12. The Cowboys don't retire numbers, but they haven't given 12 out since he retired after the 1979 season, and they named him to their Ring of Honor. He was named to the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame, and the NFL's 1970s All-Decade Team. When The Sporting News named its 100 Greatest Football Players in 1999, Staubach was ranked 29th. When the NFL Network named its 100 Greatest Players in 2010, he was ranked 46th.

2. Bob Lilly, defensive tackle, Dallas Cowboys, 1961-74. An All-American at Texas Christian University (TCU) in Fort Worth, he became the 1st Cowboys star, making 11 Pro Bowls. He put the Cowboys' original "Doomsday Defense" on his back, and got them into 6 NFL or NFL Championship Games, losing Super Bowl V and winning Super Bowl VI.

"Mr. Cowboy" was named to the Cowboys Ring of Honor, the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame, and the NFL's 1960s and 1970s All-Decade Team and its 75th Anniversary Team. The Cowboys do not retire numbers, but no other Cowboy has worn his Number 74.

In 1999, The Sporting News listed him 10th on their list of the 100 Greatest Football Players, the highest-ranking defensive lineman, and behind only Dick Butkus and Lawrence Taylor among all defensive players. In 2010, the NFL Network ranked him 26th on their list of the 100 Greatest Players.

1. Emmitt Smith, running back, Dallas Cowboys, 1990-2002. The University of Florida star was named NFL Rookie of the Year in 1990. He made 8 Pro Bowls. Before the 1992 season, no player had ever led the NFL in rushing and won the Super Bowl in the same season. With the Dallas Cowboys, Emmitt did it 3 times, winning Super Bowls XXVII, XXVIII and XXX, being named MVP in XXVIII. In the 1993 season, he became the 1st, and remains the only, player ever to win the rushing title, the Bert Bell Award as regular-season MVP, and the Super Bowl MVP in the same season.

He holds the NFL rushing records for most attempts, 4,409; yards, 18,355; and touchdowns, 164. He and Jerry Rice are the only non-kickers to have scored more than 1,000 career points. While still active, in 1999, The Sporting News listed him at 68th on their list of the 100 Greatest Football Players. In 2010, by which point he had already been named to the Florida Football and the Dallas Cowboys Rings of Honor, the NFL's 1990s All-Decade Team, and the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame, the NFL Network ranked him 28th on their 100 Greatest Players. It doesn't seem fair that the NFL's all-time leading rusher should only be 28th, but that's where they put him.

Neither UF nor the Cowboys officially retire numbers. While his Number 22 remains in circulation in Gainesville, the Cowboys have not given it out since he retired.

Top 10 Athletes From Oregon

February 14, 1859: Oregon is admitted to the Union as the 33rd State.

Top 10 Athletes From Oregon

Honorable Mention to these Yankee World Champions from Oregon: Joe Gordon of Portland, the 1942 American League Most Valuable Player, who won 3 World Series with the Yankees (1938, '39 and '41) and another with the Cleveland Indians (1948), eventually elected to the Hall of Fame; Bill Bevens of Hubbard, who came within 1 out of pitching the 1st no-hitter in World Series history only to lose Game 4 of the 1947 World Series, but came back to pitch scoreless relief in Game 7 and help the Yankees win the title; Scott Brosius of McMinnville, whose MVP performance in the 1998 World Series was the 1st of 4 straight Pennants and 3 straight Series he won as the Yankees' 3rd baseman; and Brian Bruney of Warrenton, a pitcher who helped win the 2009 World Series, and the 1st Yankee to wear Number 99, now held by Aaron Judge.

Honorable Mention to these other Baseball Players: Johnny Pesky of Portland, the shortstop known as Mr. Red Sox; Larry Jansen of Verboort, a 2-time All-Star whose pitching helped the New York Giants win the 1951 National League Pennant, including the clincher won by Bobby Thomson's home run, and the 1954 World Series; Mickey Lolich of Portland, the longtime Detroit Tigers lefthander whose 3 wins, including Game 7 on 2 days' rest, made him the 1968 World Series MVP, and whose 2,832 strikeouts made him the career leader among lefthanders when he retired; Dave Kingman, a one-dimensional player, but whose 442 career home runs made him Oregon's all-time leader, and some of them were of tremendous distance; and Wally Backman of Hillsboro and the 1986 Mets.

Honorable Mention to these Football Players: Arnie Weinmeister of Portland, a defensive tackle for the Giants; Dave Wilcox of Vale, a 7-time Pro Bowl linebacker for the San Francisco 49ers; Jerry Smith of Eugene, a 2-time Pro Bowl tight end who made the Washington Redskins' Ring of Fame, but was a closeted gay man who, in 1986, became the 1st professional athlete to die of AIDS; Ahmad Rashad of Portland, a 4-time Pro Bowl receiver named to the Minnesota Vikings Ring of Honor, now better known as a basketball announcer; and Todd Christensen of Eugene, a 5-time Pro Bowl tight end who won 2 Super Bowls with the Raiders, XV in Oakland and XVIII in Los Angeles.

Weinmeister and Wilcox are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and good cases can be made for each of the others.

Honorable Mention to Danny Ainge of Eugene. The most recent man to play in both Major League Baseball and the NBA, he was considerably better in the latter. A good-field-no-hit infielder, he played for the Toronto Blue Jays in the 1979, '80 and '81 seasons, and his lifetime batting average was .220.

He joined the Boston Celtics just after their 1981 NBA Championship season, and had a hard time under coach Bill Fitch. Fitch's replacement, K.C. Jones, got the most out of him, including 2 NBA titles in 1984 and 1986, and an All-Star season in 1988. He also reached the Finals with the Celtics in 1985 and 1987, the Portland Trail Blazers in 1992, and the Phoenix Suns in 1993 -- 6 Finals, 2 titles. He later coached the Suns, and since 2003 has been the Celtics' general manager, building the team that won the 2008 NBA Championship -- their only title since the retirement of Red Auerbach.

Brigham Young University has retired his Number 22, but the Celtics have not yet retired his Number 44. It is likely that he will be elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame as a "Contributor," as he wasn't quite good enough as a player and certainly not as a coach, but he'd have to retire from operating the Celtics first. About to turn 59 and having successfully rebuilt the team to contending status, that doesn't seem likely to happen anytime soon.

Honorable Mention to A.C. Green of Portland. The initials don't stand for anything: He was born A.C. Green Jr. He was the 1984 Pac-10 Conference basketball Player of the Year, and has been named to the Pac-12 Hall of Honor. Oregon State has retired his Number 45.

He also wore that number with the Los Angeles Lakers, whom he helped win NBA Championships in 1987 and 1988. He was a 1990 NBA All-Star. After moving on to Phoenix and Dallas, he returned to the Lakers and won another title in 2000.

He missed 3 games in his 1st season, 1986-87. He played for the Lakers on November 19, 1986, and closed out the regular season on April 18, 2001, for the Miami Heat. He never missed a game in between, an NBA record 1,192 straight games. He remains the only NBA player to play in 1,000 consecutive games.

Honorable Mention to Jere Gillis of Bend. He scored 78 goals, mostly with the Vancouver Canucks, from 1977 to 1987. The other 4 Oregon natives to make the NHL, combined? 5.

Dishonorable Mention to Steve Prefontaine of Coos Bay. One of the many track & field legends at the University of Oregon, he ran a few sub-4-minute miles, and on May 29, 1975, he held every American outdoor track record between 2,000 and 10,000 meters. But the closest he came to international success was a Gold Medal in the 5,000 meters at the 1971 Pan American Games. His best Olympic finish was 4th in that event in Munich in 1972.

So what's the big deal? Why were 2 movies (Prefontaine, starring Jared Leto, in 1997; and Without Limits, starring Billy Crudup, the next year) made about this guy who really didn't achieve all that much? Because he died young, in a drunken-driving crash, only 24 years old, 14 months before the 1976 Olympics in Montreal, where he would have challenged 1972 Gold Medalist Lasse Viren of Finland in the 5,000 and 10,000 meters. (Instead, Viren won both again.)

Along with Pelle Lindbergh, he is the best-known athlete to die from drunk driving in North America. His fame is helped, although his reputation is not, by the fact that he was the 1st athlete to endorse Nike sporting goods.

Now, the Top 10:

10. Bill Johnson of Brightwood. Born in Los Angeles (which isn't exactly a Winter sports center), grew up in Boise (which is), but learned to ski in Oregon, so this is where I've listed him. For all the fuss made over Phil and Steve, the Mahre twins, at the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia (now in Bosnia), it was Johnson who won the feature event of the Winter Games, the downhill race.

But life would not be kind to him. He battled depression, and became a disciplinary problem to the U.S. Ski Team. A son died, his marriage broke up, and he went bankrupt. He felt he had little choice but to make a comeback, but a race crash in 2001 left him with terrible injuries including brain damage. A stroke in 2010 made things worse, and he finally died in 2016, 55, but his life was effectively over at 41. He was the Tony Conigliaro of Winter sports.

9. Dick Fosbury of Portland. Most of the track & field legends from the Beaver State come from the University of Oregon, the Ducks. He came from Oregon State, the Beavers. He's not the greatest athlete on this list, but he is the most influential -- much more so than Prefontaine.

Up until the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, high-jumpers used what was known as the scissors kick, throwing a front leg over the bar, and then the rest of the body. This was the most advisable way to do it, as, like long-jumpers, they landed in a pit of sand. He couldn't clear 5 feet, the minimum standard in Oregon high school track at the time, using the scissors kick.

But the advent of foam-rubber landing surfaces made it possible for Dick to invent "the Fosbury Flop": Just before reaching the bar, he would turn his back to the bar, push up with both legs, go over, and land head and shoulders first, which would have been deadly with the sand pits. At the 1968 Olympics, he won the Gold Medal with a jump of 7 feet, 4 1/4 inches, an Olympic record.

He was just 21 1/2 years old, but he had changed the sports world: For half a century, everyone has done the Flop. He remains involved in track & field, and in 2014 ran for the Idaho State House as a Democrat, but lost.

8. Terry Baker of Portland. A 3-sport athlete, he led Jefferson High School to a City Championship in basketball, a State Championship in baseball, and a 23-0 record and 2 State Championships in football.

Lots of great athletes peak in high school. He didn't. A lefthander, rare for a quarterback in those days (and not especially common now), he led Oregon State to a 7-2 regular-season record. He was awarded the Heisman Trophy. In the 1962 Liberty Bowl, he became the 1st college football player known to have run 99 yards for a touchdown, a record that can be tied, but never broken.

Sports Illustrated named him Sportsman of the Year in 1962, making him still the only Heisman winner to also win that. Oregon State retired his Number 11, and he was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame.

He then led the Beavers' basketball team to the Semifinal of the 1963 NCAA Tournament, making him, to this day, the only man to both win the Heisman Trophy and play in the NCAA Final Four. He then quarterbacked the graduated collegians to a 20-17 victory over the Green Bay Packers in the Chicago College All-Star Game at Soldier Field. This turned out to be the last time the college side beat the defending NFL Champions. (The game was canceled after the 1976 edition.)

He was the top pick in the 1963 NFL Draft, by the Los Angeles Rams. But that made no sense, as the Rams already had the veteran Zeke Bratkowski and the young, exciting Roman Gabriel. He played 3 seasons with the Rams, throwing 4 interceptions and no touchdown passes. After another season with the Edmonton Eskimos, he quit, having gotten his law degree at USC while (not) playing for the Rams, and became one of the top lawyers in Oregon.

7. Tiffeny Milbrett of Hillsboro. A forward, she was a member of the U.S. women's soccer team that won the Gold Medal at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, and the 1999 Women's World Cup. Sports Illustrated awarded her and her teammates Sportswomen of the Year by  in 1999.

In the 1st season of the now-defunct Women's United Soccer Association (2001), she played for the Long Island-based New York Power and won the league's Most Valuable Player award.

6. Dale Murphy of Portland. He started out as a catcher, but he couldn't make it there, so he was moved to center field. Good move: He became a 7-time All-Star, and a 5-time Gold Glove winner. But it's his hitting that he's best known for. He led the National League in RBIs in 1982 and 1983, winning the Most Valuable Player both seasons. He led the NL in home runs in 1984 and 1985.

He was also known for his charitable image. In 1987, Sports Illustrated named him as 1 of 8 "Athletes Who Care" that shared their Sportspeople of the Year award. With the Philadelphia Phillies in 1991, he posed in a spotless uniform next to a dirt-spotted Lenny Dykstra in an ad for the Phillies' team charities, labeled, "Dr. Dirt and Mr. Clean."

He had bad luck as far as the postseason goes, though, only reaching it once, with the 1982 Atlanta Braves. The Braves just missed another NL Western Division title in 1983. In 1990, he was traded, and the Braves started winning in 1991. They had traded him to the Phillies, who lost him in the 1993 expansion draft -- and then won the Pennant without him. After a season as an original 1993 Colorado Rockie, he retired.

He hit 398 home runs, more than such renowned sluggers as Joe DiMaggio, Frank Howard, Jim Rice and Joe Carter, and 1 less than Al Kaline. His 1,266 RBIs are the most of any Oregon-born or -trained player. The Braves retired his Number 3. But he has not been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Maybe if the Phillies had hung onto him, he could have gone out a World Champion, or at least a Pennant winner, and that would have made the difference.

5. Mel Renfro of Portland. The University of Oregon star made 10 Pro Bowls as a cornerback for the Dallas Cowboys. He had 52 career interceptions, and led the NFL in 1969. He appeared in 8 NFL or NFC Championship Games, and won Super Bowls VI and XII, the latter, in 1978, his last game.

The Cowboys don't retire numbers, so his Number 20 remains in circulation. But they elected him to their Ring of Honor, and he is a member of the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame.

4. Don Schollander of Lake Oswego. The Oregon State University star won 4 Gold Medals, setting 3 world records, at the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo. That year he was awarded the Sullivan Award. He later went into coaching, writing books about swimming, and real estate.

3. Aaron Rodgers of Beaverton. Although born in California, and returning there for high school, Oregon was where his sports career began. The quarterback for the Green Bay Packers is a 6-time Pro Bowler, and was named NFL MVP in 2011 and 2014.

Although still active, so these records could be lost, he currently holds the records for highest passer rating in a career, 104.0; and highest touchdown-to-interception ratio in a career: 313 to 78, or 4.13 to 1. In 2011, he set the single-season record for passer rating: 122.5. More importantly, in the 2010 season, he led the Packers to win Super Bowl XLV, in which he was named MVP.

He's 34 years old, so he could have a few good seasons left. If he retired today, he would already be a lock for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. If he helps the Packers win another title, and I do these lists again in 5 years, he would be Number 1 for Oregon.

2. Ashton Eaton of Bend. There are 3 men who've won the Olympic decathlon twice: Bob Mathias of the U.S. in 1948 and 1952, Daley Thompson of Britain in 1980 and 1984, and Eaton. He won the event in London in 2012, and in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. He remains the world recordholder in the event.

But the man at Number 1 is so identified with Texas, having been born there, and having played there both collegiately and professionally, that it's hard to imagine him coming from any other State:

1. Bob Lilly of Pendleton. The family had to leave Texas due to a severe drought, and Oregon was where he learned how to play football. He went back to Texas to play at Texas Christian University (TCU) in Fort Worth, where he was an All-American defensive tackle in 1960.

The new Dallas Cowboys drafted him, and he made 11 Pro Bowls. He put the Cowboys' original "Doomsday Defense" on his back, and got them into 6 NFL or NFL Championship Games, losing Super Bowl V and winning Super Bowl VI.

Like the aforementioned Mel Renfro, "Mr. Cowboy" was named to the Cowboys Ring of Honor, the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame, and the NFL's 1960s and 1970s All-Decade Team and its 75th Anniversary Team. The Cowboys do not retire numbers, but no other Cowboy has worn his Number 74.

In 1999, The Sporting News listed him 10th on their list of the 100 Greatest Football Players, the highest-ranking defensive lineman, and behind only Dick Butkus and Lawrence Taylor among all defensive players. In 2010, the NFL Network ranked him 26th on their list of the 100 Greatest Players.