Dan Fouts (born June 10, 1951) is one of the most memorable college football players ever in the state of Oregon, made even more so by his long and successful NFL career.
Fouts grew up in San Francisco, CA, the son of radio broadcaster Bob Fouts, who was the voice of the San Francisco 49ers. Dan was around sports and media from an early age which would serve him well later in life.
Dan was recruited to the University of Oregon by coach Jerry Frei, his only scholarship offer. He debuted with the varsity in 1970, his sophomore year after an injury to another future NFL player, Tom Blanchard.
Fouts blossomed into one of the nation’s top passers and set 19 school records, including career passing with 5,995 yards. He threw 24 touchdown passes in 1970 and 54 from 1970-72. Oregon went 15-17-1 in those years. He was one of the players committee who selected Dick Enright as the new Duck coach in 1972.
The San Diego Chargers selected Fouts in the third round of the 1973 NFL Draft. He became the starting quarterback almost immediately for a team that finished with just two wins in 14 games and scored 6 points or less five times. Fouts passed for 1,126 yards and six touchdowns with 13 interceptions.
The Chargers muddled through a few more seasons until 1978 with the hire of Don Coryell as head coach. Coryell unlocked Dan's greatness with an exciting pass-first offense. The numbers began to add up, 2,999 yards and 24 touchdowns in 1978. The next season, Fouts threw for 4,082 yards and 24 touchdowns as the Chargers went 12-4, won the AFC West and reached the NFL playoffs for the first time since the AFL and NFL merged. San Diego won the AFC West the next two seasons and reached the AFC championship game in ’80 and ’81, but lost both games. He is considered one of the best quarterbacks to never play in a Super Bowl.
Fouts was selected as the league Offensive Player of the Year in 1982 – a season shortened to six games by strike. The team struggled to win the next five years and Fouts retired in 1987 at age 36. At the time, he held 42 team and 7 NFL records.
In his 15 seasons, Fouts passed for 43,040 yards and 254 touchdowns. His #14 jersey was the first one ever retired by the Chargers and fans voted him the “Greatest Charger of All-Time” in 2009. Following his retirement, Fouts became a television broadcaster working NFL games as both a play-by-play and color commentator. He retired to Sisters where he could be close to the outdoors.
Dan Fouts was inducted to the University of Oregon Hall of Fame in 1992 and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1993. He is also a member of the Bay Area and University of Oregon Athletic halls of fame.