Cornell Green

For the current offensive tackle, see Cornell Green.

Cornell Green

Date of birth:	February 10, 1940 (1940-02-10) (age 69)
Place of birth:	Oklahoma City, OK
Career information
Position(s):	Cornerback / Safety
College:	Utah State University
Organizations
As player:
1962-1974	Dallas Cowboys
Career highlights and awards
Pro Bowls:	5
Awards:	Utah State University Hall of Fame
Honors:	Dallas Cowboys 25th Anniversary Team
Playing stats at DatabaseFootball.com

Cornell Green (born February 10, 1940 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma), 6'3", 205, is a former American football cornerback and safety who played for the Dallas Cowboys in the National Football League. He went to the Utah State University where he didn't play football but was a three-time All-Skyline Conference basketball player. The Cowboys signed him as a free agent in 1962.

College career

He attended El Cerrito High School located in the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area, California.

Green is one of Utah State's most decorated basketball players having earned All-America honors in 1960 and 1961 as well as all-Skyline honors in each of his three years (1960-62). Green, a 6-4 forward, set the Aggie career rebounding record with 1,067 which still stands today. He is also the fifth leading scorer in Utah State history with 1,890 points.

Green also produced some of the best individual seasons in school history as his 745 points in 1962 are still in second place, while his 403 rebounds in 1960 remain a school record for a season.

Green was the Skyline's MVP as a sophomore.

In Green's three seasons with the Aggies, Utah State went to the 1960 National Invitation Tournament and to the 1962 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament.

The 1959-1960 team finished eighth in The Associated Press poll and seventh in the coaches' poll, which remains the highest year-end basketball ranking in school history.

In 1993, he was inducted into the Utah State University Intercollegiate Athletics Hall Of Fame.

Playing career

Cornell Green was a college basketball star, that the Dallas Cowboys converted into a defensive back. This was one of the innovative personnel decisions the Cowboys were renowned for.

Green was a Utah State basketball player who never played a down of college football.

On a tip from Utah State basketball coach LaDell Anderson, the Cowboys discovered and signed the multi-talented younger brother of then Red Sox infielder Pumpsie Green for $1,000 dollars.

But Green was leaning toward the NBA. He had been drafted by the Chicago Bulls in the fifth round of the 1962 NBA Draft."I never planned on playing for the Cowboys," Green recalled. Even when he reported to training camp in Marquette, Michigan, in 1962, he just thought of it as a $1,000 gift from the Dallas Cowboys. "I figured I’d go there for a week ... and they’d cut me," Green said.

Green, eventually made the 1962 Cowboys team as an undrafted free agent, and learned fast enough to start 3 games in his rookie year. The next season saw Green set career bests with 7 interceptions. He also returned a fumble recovery for a touchdown.

He became a big-time contributor to Tom Landry’s intricate defensive schemes. Green was a feared defender during his career in Dallas. All he was missing were the gaudy stats. Said Gil Brandt: "I mean, if Cornell had any kind of hands, he would’ve had three times as many interceptions as he got ... and the guy played basketball in college."

He made five Pro Bowls at two different positions — cornerback and strong safety.

Green never missed a game in 13 seasons with the Cowboys (1962-74), he played 168 games, including 145 consecutive starts for the Cowboys between 1962-1974.

His teammates nicknamed him "Sweet Lips".

He played corner during his first eight seasons, led the team in interceptions four times, went to four Pro Bowls and was named NFL All-Pro 4 times. Cowboys Coach Tom Landry said of Green, "He had the athletic skills from basketball to become a fine defensive back. His only transition was playing a sport where you could tackle someone with the ball, and Cornell never had a problem dealing with that."

In 1970 when Mike Gaechter ended his football career, and with a cornerback spot needing an upgrade, Tom Landry moved Mel Renfro to play corner. Given that Renfro was an All-Pro in 1969 at safety, the move may have seemed to be an odd one, but Renfro was matched with Herb Adderley. The duo of Renfro and Adderley was much better than Green and Phil Clark. Green moved from corner to the strong safety position, and the battle for the free safety position came down to third-round pick Charlie Waters over rookie free agent Cliff Harris.

After the switch, the Cowboys went to two consecutive Super Bowls. In 1971 he went back to the Pro Bowl at safety.

Green is tied for fifth in career interceptions (34) in Cowboys history.

In 1985, Cornell Green was named to the Dallas Cowboys 25th Anniversary Team^[1]

Post-playing career

Green began scouting for the Dallas Cowboys in 1970 while still an active player and continued scouting through 1979, at which time he entered private business until coming to the Denver Broncos in 1987.

He has over 29 years scouting in the NFL, and over 22 seasons doing it with the Broncos.

Personal

He is the brother of Pumpsie Green, the first black player to play for the Boston Red Sox, who were the last team to integrate.

External links

• Cowboys Top 50 Players of All-Time
• NFL.com player page
• How a Basketball Star Bounced the Dallas Cowboys' Way
• From meager beginnings to America's Team
• Cornell Green Scouting Consultant

References

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