Donald Joseph Strock (born November 27, 1950) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

player and coach. He played professionally as a

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Am ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the majo ...

(NFL) with the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team p ...

(1973–1987),

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conferenc ...

(1988), and

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...

(1989). Strock served as the head football coach at

Florida International University Florida International University (FIU) is a public research university with its main campus in Miami-Dade County. Founded in 1965, the school opened its doors to students in 1972. FIU has grown to become the third-largest university in Florid ...

from 2002 to 2006, compiling a record of 15–41.

Playing career

College

Strock played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football in the United States, American football rules first gained populari ...

Virginia Tech Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also has educational facilities in six re ...

. In his senior season in 1972, Strock led the nation in total passing and total offense, yet finished only ninth in voting for the

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and har ...

. He was voted third-team All-America. The college game was then dominated by running backs; the 1972 Heisman went to wingback

Johnny Rodgers Johnny Steven Rodgers (born July 5, 1951) is an American former football player. He played college football for the Nebraska Cornhuskers and won the Heisman Trophy in 1972. Rodgers played professionally in the Canadian Football League (CFL) ...

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the sout ...

. To date, Strock still holds many collegiate football passing records at his alma mater and was inducted into the Virginia Tech Sports Hall of Fame in 1985.

Professional

Strock played in the

as a

. A 5th round selection (111th overall pick) of the 1973 NFL Draft, he spent the majority of his professional career with the

(1973–1987), and was mostly known for his role as a back-up to Hall-of Famers

Bob Griese Robert Allen Griese (pronounced ; born February 3, 1945) is a former American football quarterback who earned All-American honors with the Purdue Boilermakers before being drafted in 1967 by the American Football League's Miami Dolphins. Gri ...

in his first years with the team and

Dan Marino Daniel Constantine Marino Jr. (born September 15, 1961) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons with the Miami Dolphins. After a successful college career at Pittsburgh and b ...

as he finished his career with the club. He also played one season with the

(1988) and part of a season on the roster of the

(1989) before retiring as a player. Strock was a member of the "taxi squad" during the 1973 season when the Dolphins won their second straight

Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (NFL) to determine the league champion. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966, replacing the NFL Championship Game. Since 2022, the gam ...

following the undefeated 1972–73 season. He was also a member of the Dolphin teams who played and lost in the

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C ...

and

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

Super Bowls. Strock is well-remembered for coming off the bench on January 2, 1982, for the

in an AFC Divisional Playoff Game against the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...

at the

Miami Orange Bowl The Miami Orange Bowl was an outdoor athletic stadium in Miami, Florida from 1937 until 2008. The stadium was located in the Little Havana neighborhood west of Greater Downtown Miami, Downtown Miami. The Miami Orange Bowl was considered a landm ...

. Strock led Miami from a 24–0 deficit to tie the score in the 3rd quarter. Ultimately, Miami lost the game to San Diego, 41–38, in overtime. The game is also remembered for the image of San Diego

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Lik ...

Kellen Winslow Kellen Boswell Winslow Sr. (born November 5, 1957) is an American former professional football player in the National Football League (NFL). A member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame (1995), he is widely recognized as one of the greatest tight ...

being helped off the field by his teammates after the game while suffering from exhaustion. Strock finished the game with 29 of 43 completions for 403 yards and four touchdowns, with one interception. The game later became known as The Epic in Miami and has entered NFL lore as one of the greatest games ever in NFL history. On September 13th, 1987, Dolphins punter Reggie Roby was injured and Strock was called upon to punt. Strock also was called into duty to quarterback in the game with 2:22 remaining nearly leading a comeback drive.

Coaching career

Arena Football League, the World League and the NFL

Strock began his coaching career as the head coach of the

Miami Hooters Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at th ...

of the

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...

for one season in 1993. The following season, he moved on to be the head coach of the

Massachusetts Marauders The Massachusetts Marauders were a professional arena football team that was based in Worcester, Massachusetts. They were a member of the Arena Football League (AFL) from 1988 to 1994. The team was established in Detroit in 1988, as the Detroit ...

and again only stayed for one season. He then moved on to be an assistant coach of the Rhein Fire in the World League during 1995 season. Between 1996–1998 seasons, he was the quarterbacks coach of the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays its ...

in the NFL.

Florida International University

On September 13, 2000, Strock was named the first head football coach in FIU's history. He was named to the position just shy of two years before the university's inaugural football game. Prior to being named head coach he was the director of football operations, a job he had obtained the year before. His overall record through the 2006 football season was 15–41. On November 15, 2006 Strock resigned as head coach of the FIU Golden Panthers. Of his 15 career victories, none came during the 2006 campaign and only three of them came against

NCAA Division I-A The NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), formerly known as Division I-A, is the highest level of college football in the United States. The FBS consists of the largest schools in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). As ...

opponents. His resignation came after an 0–9 start and a much-publicized brawl against the University of Miami Hurricanes caused 16 players from FIU to be suspended. His resignation became effective following FIU's last game against

Troy University Troy University is a public university in Troy, Alabama. It was founded in 1887 as Troy State Normal School within the Alabama State University System, and is now the flagship university of the Troy University System. Troy University is accredi ...

on December 2, 2006.

Head coaching record

College

References

External links

FIU profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Strock, Don 1950 births Living people American football quarterbacks Massachusetts Marauders coaches Baltimore Ravens coaches Cleveland Browns players FIU Panthers football coaches Indianapolis Colts players Miami Dolphins players Rhein Fire coaches Virginia Tech Hokies football players People from Pottstown, Pennsylvania Players of American football from Pennsylvania Florida Bobcats coaches

Playing career

College

Professional

Coaching career

Arena Football League, the World League and the NFL

Florida International University

Head coaching record

College

See also

References

External links