Tony McGee
| No. 71, 78 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Defensive end | ||
| Personal information | |||
| Date of birth: | January 18, 1949 | ||
| Place of birth: | Battle Creek, Michigan | ||
| Height: | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||
| Weight: | 250 lb (113 kg) | ||
| Career information | |||
| College: | Bishop College | ||
| NFL Draft: | 1971 / Round: 3 / Pick: 64 | ||
| Career history | |||
| |||
| Career highlights and awards | |||
| |||
| Career NFL statistics | |||
| |||
| Player stats at PFR | |||
Anthony Eugene McGee (born January 18, 1949) is a former professional American football player who played fourteen seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played in two Super Bowls for the Washington Redskins. After being dismissed from the University of Wyoming football team as part of the Black 14 in 1969, McGee continued his college football career at Bishop College and was drafted in the third round of the 1971 NFL Draft.
College career
Tony McGee began his career at the University of Wyoming. In 1969, the team was off to a 4-0 start, ranked #10 in the nation and appeared headed for a fourth straight WAC Conference title. But on October 17, 1969, the day before the game against the BYU Cougars, Tony and 13 other African American players went to coach Lloyd Eaton's office to discuss how they might participate in a protest called by the UW Black Students Alliance of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints tenet which prohibited black men from becoming priests. As soon as Eaton saw them wearing black arm bands he took them into the Memorial Fieldhouse bleachers and immediately informed them they were all off the team because they violated the coach's rule against participating in demonstrations. The rule, obviously unconstitutional, was withdrawn the next week, but the players were not reinstated. After this, Wyoming was not the same. Although the suddenly all-white Cowboys defeated BYU and San Jose State in their last two home games, they lost their last four on the road. In 1970 the Cowboys went 1-9 and Eaton "retired" from coaching. The Cowboys posted only one winning season in the 1970s.[1] Tony then went on to finish his college career out at Bishop College in Dallas, Texas. He was supposed to be a first round pick in the 1971 NFL Draft, however, he fell to the third round because word passed around that he was a trouble maker due to his dismissal from Wyoming and his involvement in the Black 14.
Pro career
McGee played 14 years as a defensive lineman in the National Football League. He was with the Chicago Bears (1971-73), the New England Patriots (1974-81), and the Washington Redskins (1982-85). Known as "Mac the Sack" because of his ability to get to the quarterback, McGee had a career total of 106 sacks. A durable defensive lineman, McGee played in 203 games missing only one game during his entire NFL career. Tony was a nominee for the National Football League Hall of Fame in 1994. While with the Redskins, McGee played in Super Bowls XVII (1983) and XVIII (1984), winning in 1983.
TV career
McGee is the founder and host of the longest running minority-owned sports talk show in the Washington, D.C. region. His "Pro Football Plus" television show is celebrating twenty-nine seasons of broadcasting excellence.