Dan Pastorini
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| Dan Pastorini | |
|---|---|
| Date of birth | May 26, 1949 (age 57) |
| Place of birth |  Sonora, California |
| Position(s) | Quarterback |
| College | Santa Clara |
| NFL Draft | 1971 / Round 1/ Pick 3 |
| Pro Bowls | 1975 |
| Stats | |
| Statistics | |
| Team(s) | |
| 1971-1979 1980 1981 1983 |
Houston Oilers Oakland Raiders Los Angeles Rams Philadelphia Eagles |
Dante "Dan" Pastorini (born May 26, 1949 in Sonora, California) was a quarterback who played for 12 seasons from 1971-1981, and 1983. He played for the Houston Oilers, Oakland Raiders, Los Angeles Rams, Philadelphia Eagles, all of the National Football League.
[edit] NFL career
Dan Pastorini was drafted by the Houston Oilers in the 1st Round (3rd Overall) of the 1971 NFL Draft out of Santa Clara University. He was part of a prized trio of college quarterbacks taken with the top 3 picks that year, Jim Plunkett (1st) and Archie Manning (2nd) being the others.
Pastorini was known as a tough quarterback throughout his career. From 1971 through 1979, Pastorini missed only 5 regular season games, playing through the pain of broken ribs and even a punctured lung at times. He did not play behind what would be considered a quality offensive line until 1977 when they hired Joe Bugel, who later became famous for coaching the Washington Redskins' offensive line in the 1980's, which were known as "The Hogs."
In the 1978 playoffs, Pastorini fared very well, helping lead the Oilers to wins over the Bob Griese-led Miami Dolphins and AFC East division champion New England Patriots.
Pastorni's last game as a Houston Oiler was the 1979 AFC championship game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, a game which many Oilers fans contended was decided when, in their opinion, the officials blew a call on a Mike Renfro TD reception. Instant replay rules, in any form, were not in effect at the time, so the play could not be reviewed, as it would be in the present day. The best replay angles NBC could provide of the play show Renfro juggling the ball as he went to the ground. It was not clear if he had complete control of the ball when he hit the ground or, if he did, if he was inbounds if he had possession. The play was a major turning point in the momentum of the game, which resulted in a Steeler triumph.
Later in 1980, Oilers owner, Bud Adams, traded Pastorini to the Oakland Raiders, in exchange for an aging Ken Stabler, who was 3 years Pastorini's senior.
A few games into the 1980 season with Oakland, Pastorini broke his leg. Jim Plunkett, who had been a backup in his NFL career despite winning the Heisman Trophy in 1970 as Stanford's quarterback, took over and lead the Raiders to a Super Bowl victory over Ron Jaworski's Philadelphia Eagles.
Pastorini's best season came in 1978 when he threw for a career high 2,473 yards and 16 touchdowns, leading the Oilers to the AFC Championship game. Pastorini was also named to the 1975 AFC Pro Bowl Team.
[edit] Outside of football
Pastorini married Playboy Playmate June Wilkinson...then divorced her (she was British and 10 years older), raced boats, drag-raced cars, judged wet T-shirt contests, and starred in a 1974 B-movie called Weed: The Florida Connection and then co-starred in a 1979 Lee Majors movie called "Killer Fish." Pastorini appeared in a nude photospread in Playgirl magazine's December 1980 issue. On May 22, 1977, Pastorini was involved in a drag boat accident during a race on Lake Mizell in Liberty County. Texas. The boat veered onto the shore and hit a crowd of spectators after its engine failed, causing its automatic steering mechanism to fail. 3 people were injured and 2 people were killed including Sherry Machell Gaskins, 10 and Herean Dale Johnson, 33. A Liberty County Grand Jury absolved Pastorini of criminal responsibility. Subsequently, her parents, Hubert and Bobbie Gaskins filed a $1.5 million lawsuit against Pastorini.
[edit] After football
Pastorini works today as a pitchman and figure head for Dataworks Plus which he owns and is operated by his relative Todd Pastorini (tpastorini@dataworksplus.com). He still gets fan email and still personally answers email at dpastorini@dataworksplus.com and even answers the company phone line at 936-878-2777 or 925-240-9010 and enjoys talking football with fans.
