Sonny Utz

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Sonny Utz
No. 28
PositionFullback
Personal information
Born(1942-05-21)May 21, 1942
Annandale, Virginia, U.S.
DiedDecember 31, 1991(1991-12-31) (aged 49)
Height6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight208 lb (94 kg)
Career information
High schoolAnnandale (VA)
CollegeVirginia Tech
NFL draft1965: 6th round, 75th overall pick
AFL draft1965: 13th round, 100th overall pick
Career history
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Awards and highlights
  • All-SoCon (1964)
  • SoCon rushing leader, 1964; 3rd place, 1963 [1]
  • 2× SoCon scoring leader (1963, 1964) [1]
Coaching profile at Pro Football ReferenceLua error in Module:EditAtWikidata at line 29: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).
Stats at Pro Football ReferenceLua error in Module:EditAtWikidata at line 29: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).

Silas Alexander "Sonny" Utz, III (May 21, 1942 - December 31, 1991) was an American professional football fullback in the Canadian Football League (CFL) for the Winnipeg Blue bombers. He also was a member of the Dallas Cowboys in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Virginia Tech.

Early life

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Utz attended Annandale High School, where he practiced football and baseball. He contributed to the school winning four consecutive county football championships. As a senior, he received All-Met and All Northern Region honors.[2]

College career

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Utz accepted a football scholarship from Virginia Tech. He was referred to as "Mr. Inside" as a fullback in the Tech offense that featured star quarterback Bob Schweickert, who was called "Mr. Outside."[3] He also played as a linebacker.

1962 season

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Utz was one of four backs who ran for over 250 yards for the Gobblers, racking up 261 yards on 66 carries.[4] He scored one touchdown for the 5-5 Techmen.

1963 season

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Utz led the conference in scoring for the only Virginia Tech team to ever win the Southern Conference title.[1] He scored 10 touchdowns in 10 games for the Hokies who finished the year 8-2 and with a perfect 5-0 conference mark.[4] He also was second to Sweickert on the team in rushing with 567 yards.[4] That was good enough for third place in the Southern Conference.[1]

1964 season

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In the 1964 season, Utz led the Southern in both rushing and scoring.[1] However, the Hokies lost to West Virginia to spoil their bid for back-to-back Southern Conference championships. Utz scored 10 times on the ground in 10 games for the second straight year, but also caught a pass for a touchdown to tally a total of 66 points.[1]

His accomplishments led to his induction into the Virginia Tech Sports Hall of Fame in 1987.

Professional career

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Utz was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the 6th round (75th overall) of the 1965 NFL draft.[5] He also was selected by the New York Jets in the 13th round (100th overall) of the 1965 AFL draft.[6] He opted to sign with the Cowboys, but missed all of training camp due to ankle injury he suffered in a motorcycle accident the previous spring. On August 24, 1966, he was waived to be placed on the injured reserve list.[7]

On April 11, 1967, he signed as a free agents with the Atlanta Falcons.[8] He was released on July 21.[9]

In August 1967, he was signed as a free agent by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League.[10] He registered 12 carries for 16 yards, 15 receptions for 145 yards and 12 kickoff returns for 272 yards.[11] He was released in October.

References

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  • Sonny Utz at Find a GraveLua error in Module:WikidataCheck at line 29: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).
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