Tom Rafferty
Encyclopedia
Thomas Michael Rafferty (born August 2, 1954 in Syracuse, New York
) is a former American football
offensive lineman in the NFL
. He attended Fayetteville-Manlius High School
in Manlius, New York
, and went on to start four years for coach Joe Paterno
at Penn State University
earning All-America
n honors in 1975.
where he was an all-league athlete in football
and lacrosse
.
He continued his football
career as an interior lineman at Penn State University where he played for the legendary head coach
Joe Paterno
. The 6-foot-3, 256-pound Rafferty earned All-American honors in 1975.
He was inducted into the Greater Syracuse Sports Hall of Fame in 1998,
by the Dallas Cowboys
.
It took him one year to become the starting left guard
, after Blaine Nye
retired before the 1977 season
, performing also as a long snapper
for field goals and extra point
s. That team won Super Bowl XII
.
During this period, center
John Fitzgerald nicknamed the Cowboys offensive line as the "Four Irishmen and a Scott", when it was formed by him, Fitzgerald, Pat Donovan, Jim Cooper and Herb Scott
.
Known to his teammates as "Raff", he established himself as one of the better linemen in Cowboys history with an exemplary work ethic, durability and great attitude.
In 1981
he was moved to center
after Robert Shaw
went down with an injury, becoming the anchor of an offensive line that would enable the Cowboys to reach 2 NFC Championship Game
s.
He retired at the end of the 1989 season
after rookie Mark Stepnoski
became the Cowboys starting center
.
Rafferty played in 221 total games for the Cowboys, including 167 consecutive games, which at the time was more than any other Cowboy in history. He appeared in 18 post-season games and 2 Super Bowl
s (XII
and XIII
).
He was named to the Dallas Cowboys
All-Time Team in 2003. He is the only Cowboys offensive lineman to block for both Roger Staubach
and Troy Aikman
, and one of only two players (Ed "Too Tall" Jones
being the other) to be a teammate of both Hall of Fame
quarterback
s.
in physical education
from Penn State University in 1976, and later earned an MBA
from the University of Dallas
.
Rafferty lives with his wife Donna and their children Michael and Rachel in Keller, Texas
, where he is currently a regional sales manager at Sports Supply Group, a Dallas sports supply company. He was stricken with the neurological disorder, transverse myelitis
, suddenly in April 2008. The disorder has confined him to a walker
and wheelchair
while he undergoes physical therapy
to re-learn how to walk.
Syracuse, New York
Syracuse is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States, the largest U.S. city with the name "Syracuse", and the fifth most populous city in the state. At the 2010 census, the city population was 145,170, and its metropolitan area had a population of 742,603...
) is a former American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
offensive lineman in the NFL
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
. He attended Fayetteville-Manlius High School
Fayetteville-Manlius High School
Fayetteville-Manlius High School is a comprehensive New York public high school on East Seneca Turnpike in the Town of Manlius, serving grades 9-12 in the Fayetteville-Manlius Central School District. It is the only high school in the district, and is the successor to both Wellwood Middle School...
in Manlius, New York
Manlius (village), New York
Manlius is a village in Onondaga County, New York, USA. The population was 4,819 at the 2000 census. The village takes its name from its town.The Village of Manlius is near the south town line of the Town of Manlius and is southeast of the City of Syracuse of which it is a suburb.An area of about...
, and went on to start four years for coach Joe Paterno
Joe Paterno
Joseph Vincent "Joe" Paterno is a former college football coach who was the head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions for 46 years from 1966 through 2011. Paterno, nicknamed "JoePa," holds the record for the most victories by an NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision football coach with...
at Penn State University
Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State University, commonly referred to as Penn State or PSU, is a public research university with campuses and facilities throughout the state of Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1855, the university has a threefold mission of teaching, research, and public service...
earning All-America
All-America
An All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n honors in 1975.
Early years
Rafferty attended Fayetteville-Manlius High SchoolFayetteville-Manlius High School
Fayetteville-Manlius High School is a comprehensive New York public high school on East Seneca Turnpike in the Town of Manlius, serving grades 9-12 in the Fayetteville-Manlius Central School District. It is the only high school in the district, and is the successor to both Wellwood Middle School...
where he was an all-league athlete in football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
and lacrosse
Lacrosse
Lacrosse is a team sport of Native American origin played using a small rubber ball and a long-handled stick called a crosse or lacrosse stick, mainly played in the United States and Canada. It is a contact sport which requires padding. The head of the lacrosse stick is strung with loose mesh...
.
He continued his football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
career as an interior lineman at Penn State University where he played for the legendary head coach
Head coach
A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches...
Joe Paterno
Joe Paterno
Joseph Vincent "Joe" Paterno is a former college football coach who was the head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions for 46 years from 1966 through 2011. Paterno, nicknamed "JoePa," holds the record for the most victories by an NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision football coach with...
. The 6-foot-3, 256-pound Rafferty earned All-American honors in 1975.
He was inducted into the Greater Syracuse Sports Hall of Fame in 1998,
Professional career
Rafferty was drafted in the 4th round of the 1976 NFL Draft1976 NFL Draft
The 1976 National Football League Draft was an annual player selection meeting held on April 8–April 9, 1976. It lasted 17 rounds, with the expansion Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Seattle Seahawks making the first two selections. The expansion teams were also given a pair of extra picks at the end of...
by the Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
.
It took him one year to become the starting left guard
Guard (American football)
In American and Canadian football, a guard is a player that lines up between the center and the tackles on the offensive line of a football team....
, after Blaine Nye
Blaine Nye
Blaine Francis Nye is a former American football offensive lineman in the National Football League and founder and president of Stanford Consulting Group, Inc...
retired before the 1977 season
1977 NFL season
The 1977 NFL season was the 58th regular season of the National Football League. The Seattle Seahawks were placed in the AFC West while the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were slotted in the NFC Central....
, performing also as a long snapper
Long snapper
In American football and Canadian football, the term long snapper refers to a player who is a specialized center during punts, field goals, and extra point attempts. His job is to snap the ball as quickly and accurately as possible....
for field goals and extra point
Extra Point
Extra Point is a twice-daily, two-minute segment on ESPN Radio that covers generic sports-related topical news and opinion. The AM edition airs Monday through Saturday at various times between 6 a.m. and 10 a.m. ET, and the PM edition airs Monday through Friday between 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. ET...
s. That team won Super Bowl XII
Super Bowl XII
Super Bowl XII was an American football game played on January 15, 1978 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana to decide the National Football League champion following the 1977 regular season...
.
During this period, center
Center (American football)
Center is a position in American football and Canadian football . The center is the innermost lineman of the offensive line on a football team's offense...
John Fitzgerald nicknamed the Cowboys offensive line as the "Four Irishmen and a Scott", when it was formed by him, Fitzgerald, Pat Donovan, Jim Cooper and Herb Scott
Herbert Scott
Herbert Carnell Scott is a former American football offensive lineman in the National Football League...
.
Known to his teammates as "Raff", he established himself as one of the better linemen in Cowboys history with an exemplary work ethic, durability and great attitude.
In 1981
1981 NFL season
The 1981 NFL season was the 62nd regular season of the National Football League. The season ended with Super Bowl XVI when the San Francisco 49ers defeated the Cincinnati Bengals.-Major rule changes:...
he was moved to center
Center (American football)
Center is a position in American football and Canadian football . The center is the innermost lineman of the offensive line on a football team's offense...
after Robert Shaw
Robert Shaw (American football)
Robert Leslie Shaw is a retired American football center in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys from 1979 to 1981. He played college football at the University of Tennessee. Mr. Shaw suffered a knee injury and had to stop playing football...
went down with an injury, becoming the anchor of an offensive line that would enable the Cowboys to reach 2 NFC Championship Game
NFC Championship Game
The National Football Conference Championship Game is one of the two semi-final playoff matches of the National Football League, the largest professional American football league in the United States. The game is played on the penultimate Sunday in January and determines the champion of the...
s.
He retired at the end of the 1989 season
1989 NFL season
The 1989 NFL season was the 70th regular season of the National Football League. Before the season, NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle announced his retirement...
after rookie Mark Stepnoski
Mark Stepnoski
Mark Matthew Stepnoski is a former American football offensive lineman in the National Football League. He attended Cathedral Preparatory School in Erie, Pennsylvania, and went on to star at the University of Pittsburgh....
became the Cowboys starting center
Center (American football)
Center is a position in American football and Canadian football . The center is the innermost lineman of the offensive line on a football team's offense...
.
Rafferty played in 221 total games for the Cowboys, including 167 consecutive games, which at the time was more than any other Cowboy in history. He appeared in 18 post-season games and 2 Super Bowl
Super Bowl
The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League , the highest level of professional American football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather...
s (XII
Super Bowl XII
Super Bowl XII was an American football game played on January 15, 1978 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana to decide the National Football League champion following the 1977 regular season...
and XIII
Super Bowl XIII
Super Bowl XIII was an American football game played on January 21, 1979 at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida to decide the National Football League champion following the 1978 regular season...
).
He was named to the Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
All-Time Team in 2003. He is the only Cowboys offensive lineman to block for both Roger Staubach
Roger Staubach
Roger Thomas Staubach is a businessman, Heisman Trophy winner and legendary Hall of Fame former quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys from 1969 until 1979. Staubach was instrumental in developing the Cowboys into becoming one of the best teams of the 1970s and led the team to nine of the Cowboys'...
and Troy Aikman
Troy Aikman
Troy Kenneth Aikman is a former American football quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys in the National Football League. The number one overall draft pick in 1989, Aikman played twelve consecutive seasons as quarterback with the Cowboys...
, and one of only two players (Ed "Too Tall" Jones
Ed Jones (American football)
Ed Lee "Too Tall" Jones is a retired American football player in the NFL for the Dallas Cowboys. By the end of his 15 years with the Cowboys, he was officially credited with 57 quarterback sacks. Unofficially, his career sack total is 106...
being the other) to be a teammate of both Hall of Fame
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
s.
Personal
Rafferty earned his Bachelor of ScienceBachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
in physical education
Physical education
Physical education or gymnastics is a course taken during primary and secondary education that encourages psychomotor learning in a play or movement exploration setting....
from Penn State University in 1976, and later earned an MBA
Master of Business Administration
The Master of Business Administration is a :master's degree in business administration, which attracts people from a wide range of academic disciplines. The MBA designation originated in the United States, emerging from the late 19th century as the country industrialized and companies sought out...
from the University of Dallas
University of Dallas
The University of Dallas is a private, independent Catholic regional university located in Irving, Texas, established in 1956, which is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. According to U.S...
.
Rafferty lives with his wife Donna and their children Michael and Rachel in Keller, Texas
Keller, Texas
Keller is a city located in Tarrant County, Texas, in the United States. In 2011, it was ranked 93rd in Money Magazine's list of best cities to live in the United States. It is a northern suburb of the city of Fort Worth and is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex...
, where he is currently a regional sales manager at Sports Supply Group, a Dallas sports supply company. He was stricken with the neurological disorder, transverse myelitis
Transverse myelitis
Transverse myelitis is a neurological disorder caused by an inflammatory process of the spinal cord, and can cause axonal demyelination. The name is derived from Greek referring to the "spinal cord", and the suffix -itis, which denotes inflammation...
, suddenly in April 2008. The disorder has confined him to a walker
Walker (tool)
A walker or walking frame is a tool for disabled or elderly people who need additional support to maintain balance or stability while walking...
and wheelchair
Wheelchair
A wheelchair is a chair with wheels, designed to be a replacement for walking. The device comes in variations where it is propelled by motors or by the seated occupant turning the rear wheels by hand. Often there are handles behind the seat for someone else to do the pushing...
while he undergoes physical therapy
Physical therapy
Physical therapy , often abbreviated PT, is a health care profession. Physical therapy is concerned with identifying and maximizing quality of life and movement potential within the spheres of promotion, prevention, diagnosis, treatment/intervention,and rehabilitation...
to re-learn how to walk.