Doug English
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Doug English | |
|---|---|
| Date of birth | August 25, 1953 |
| Place of birth | Dallas, Texas |
| Position(s) | Running Back |
| College | Texas |
| NFL Draft | 1975 / Round 2/ Pick 38 |
| Pro Bowls | 4 |
| Statistics | |
| Team(s) | |
| 1975-1985 |
Detroit Lions |
Doug English (born August 25, 1953 in Dallas, Texas) is a former American football Defensive Tackle for the Detroit Lions (1975-1985). He attended the University of Texas.
[edit] College Career
Helped Texas to three Southwest Conference titles. 1976 History Graduate.
[edit] Professional Career
Along with defensive end Al "Bubba" Baker, English was a cornerstone of the Lions’ feared "Silver Rush" defensive line of the late 70’s and early 80’s. The 6-foot-5, 255 pound English was Detroit’s second-round pick in 1975 out of the University of Texas. He became a starter in his third season, and with the arrival of Baker the following year the Lions defensive line soon became one of the NFL’s best. Because he was tired of the team’s chronic losing, English left football for a year after the Lions’ 2-14 debacle in 1979. However with the 1980 arrival of Billy Sims, and the team’s 9-7 finish that year, English was coaxed back to the Motor City for the start of the 1981 season.
Doug’s best season came in 1983, when he recorded 13 sacks. That year the Lions won the NFC Central Division title with a 9-7 mark, and came within a whisker of the NFC Championship game when they lost a heartbreaker to the San Francisco 49ers, 24-23, in the divisional round. Upon the arrival of new coach Darryl Rogers in 1985, English was moved to nose tackle in the team’s new 3-4 defensive alignment. His career ended after that season when he was forced into retirement due to a serious neck injury. He finished his career with 59 sacks, which still places him sixth on the Lions’ all-time list. He was named All-Pro three times (1981, 1983-84) and went to four Pro Bowls (1979, 1982-84). Took a season off in 1981 for a stint in the oil business…Voted defensive MVP in 1979 when he had 90 tackles and 6 * sacks.
[edit] Personal Life
(Courtesy University of Texas at Austin Department of History website)
Doug English, a former Longhorn All-American and NFL football player, started the Lone Star Paralysis Foundation (LSPF) after suffering a career-ending neck injury in 1986. LSPF has raised over a $1 million for spinal cord injury research.
The Doug English Endowment in Neuroscience will be primarily funded by LSPF and is the first to aid spinal cord injury research at the hospital. This endowment will help to fund a rehab center and purchase equipment such as rehabilitation bicycles.
English said Brackenridge will gather data from the use of the bikes to pass on to other hospitals for their research.
Twenty years ago anyone with a spinal injury had no chance of recovery but in the last two decades, research has greatly improved chances for recover, said Claire E. Hulsebosch, president of the National Neurotrauma Society and neuroscience professor at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston.
English is determined to “defeat this monster” in the next decade.
