Dennis Henry Onkotz (born February 6, 1948) is a former

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

for

Penn State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a public state-related land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvania. Founded in 1855 as the Farmers' High School of Pennsylvania, Penn State became ...

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

. He suffered a career ending injury during his first and only season with the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...

Early life

Onkotz attended

Northampton Area High School Northampton Area High School is a public high school in the Northampton Area School District and located in Northampton, Pennsylvania in the Lehigh Valley metropolitan area of eastern Pennsylvania. As of the 2021–22 school year, the school had ...

Northampton, Pennsylvania Northampton is a borough in Northampton County, Pennsylvania. Its population was 10,395 as of the 2020 census. Northampton is located north of Allentown, northwest of Philadelphia, and west of New York City. The borough is part of the Lehigh ...

. He graduated in 1966.http://articles.mcall.com/2008-09-15/sports/4193395_1_penn-state-dennis-onkotz-nfl-future

College career

He was named a Consensus

n in 1968 and 1969. An all-around athlete, Onkotz helped earn Penn State the nickname "Linebacker U," but thanks to his speed he also held the unlikely position of punt returner, with an impressive average of over 13 yards per return. Onkotz still ranks first in school history for interceptions by a linebacker with 11. Onkotz amassed 287 tackles, which still ranks third on the Lions' career list. His 11 interceptions are tied for eighth in school history. His three interception returns for touchdowns are a career record (since tied).Onkotz made the 1969 Academic All-America team and was also selected to play in the 1970

Hula Bowl The Hula Bowl is a post-season college football all-star game held annually, usually in January. From inception through the 2021 playing, it was held in Hawaii; since the 2022 edition, it has been played in Orlando, Florida. The game was first st ...

. In three seasons, he helped the Lions to a 30-2-1 record and three bowl games, including two

Orange Bowl The Orange Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in the Miami metropolitan area. It has been played annually since January 1, 1935, making it, along with the Sugar Bowl and the Sun Bowl, the second-oldest bowl game in th ...

wins. In 1995, he was inducted into the

College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive attraction devoted to college football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players and coaches of college football that were vote ...

NFL career

Onkotz was drafted in the third round of the

1970 NFL Draft The 1970 National Football League Draft was the 35th National Football League Draft and the first of the league's modern era, following the merger of the National Football League with the American Football League. It was held on January 27–28, 1 ...

by the

. However, a severely broken leg ended his professional career after just nine games played.

Personal life

Onkotz is a financial planner and affiliated with the Pennsylvania Financial Group. He lives with his wife, Diane, in

Boalsburg, Pennsylvania Boalsburg is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Harris Township, Centre County, Pennsylvania, Harris Township, Centre County, Pennsylvania, Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of the State College, P ...

near Penn State. He has four daughters, Dana, Gretchen, Rachel, and Carly.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Onkotz, Dennis 1948 births Living people Players of American football from Pennsylvania All-American college football players American football linebackers College Football Hall of Fame inductees New York Jets players Penn State Nittany Lions football players Northampton Area High School alumni Sportspeople from Northampton County, Pennsylvania