Welcome back to The Landry Hat's series on the best Dallas Cowboys players to wear every jersey number from No. 0 to No. 99.
Coming off an entry at No. 34 in which we featured a player who was drafted into the NBA but not the NFL and went on to have a fantastic career, we've got another connection to basketball here at No. 35. But this one is a bit different, as the player himself didn't play basketball, at least not at the highest level, but his son certainly did.
Before we break things down, though, let's first have a look at everyone who's sported No. 35 for America's Team over the years.
- Tra Battle, DB
- Robert Chancey, RB
- Wendell Davis, DB
- Kavon Frazier, DB
- Pete Gent, WR
- Troy Hambrick, RB
- Calvin Hill, RB
- Damontae Kazee, DB
- Walt Kowalczyk, FB
- Scott Laidlaw, RB
- Marist Liufau, LB
- J.W. Lockett, FB
- Jason McKie, FB
- Chuck McSwain, RB
- Lonyae Miller, RB
- Jacques Reeves, DB
- Kevin Scott, RB
While the winner here is quite clear, a couple of other players on this list deserve to be mentioned, as wideout Pete Gent had a few solid seasons for the Cowboys in the 1960s, while running back Scott Laidlaw did the same for Dallas in the 1970s.
But let's not waste any more time and get to our choice here, that being running back Calvin Hill, whose son is Duke basketball legend Grant Hill, who won back-to-back titles with the Blue Devils and then went on to a Hall of Fame NBA career during which he earned seven All-Star selections and five All-NBA nods.
But let's back to Dad.
Calvin Hill earned four trips to the Pro Bowl in six seasons with the Dallas Cowboys
A two-time All-Ivy League at Yale in 1967 and 1968, Hill was taken by Dallas in the first round of the 1969 NFL/AFL Draft with the 24th overall selection.
While not an overly popular pick, as many believed great NFL players couldn't come from the Ivy League, Hill quickly proved that theory wrong by rushing for 942 yards and eight touchdowns and adding another 232 yards on 20 receptions en route to earning Offensive Rookie of the Year honors, also earning a trip to the Pro Bowl, a First-Team All-Pro nod, and a fourth-place finish in the NFL MVP voting.
And that was with missing a game due to a broken toe and fighting through the injury in the last couple of contests, receiving injections before taking the field.
The next two years didn't go quite as smoothly, as the Cowboys had drafted another running back, Duane Thomas, in the first round in 1970, as they weren't confident that Hill was fully healthy. And while that toe injury didn't prove to be a problem, he did end up having other issues, missing a lot of time between the '70 and '71 campaigns with an infection, a back injury, and a torn ACL.
But it's not that he didn't contribute at all during those two years, the second of which resulted in the Cowboys' first Super Bowl victory, as he tallied 1,384 total yards from scrimmage and 15 total touchdowns, and that doesn't include his TD in the 1971 NFC Championship Game.
Thomas was a good player, but not a good teammate, and after Dallas traded him ahead of the 1972 season, a healthy Hill jumped back into the spotlight and promptly had the first 1,000-yard season of any back in Cowboys history, rushing for 1,036 yards and six touchdowns, and then followed up with another in 1973, going for a career-high 1,142 yards and another six scores.
He earned a Pro Bowl nod for both of those seasons and added another in 1974, which ultimately proved to be his final season in Dallas, as he opted to take his talents to the World Football League in 1975, which didn't last long, as he suffered a torn MCL after appearing in just three games for The Hawaiians.
The WFL folded in 1975, of course, and Hill returned to the NFL to play two seasons with the team now known as the Washington Commanders and four with the Cleveland Browns before retiring following the 1981 season.
In his six seasons with the Cowboys, Hill rushed for 5,009 yards and 39 touchdowns, which remain good for fifth and sixth, respectively, in franchise history, and added another 1,359 yards and six scores on 139 receptions.
Other Dallas Cowboys jersey honorees
- No. 0: Well, there's literally only one option here
- No. 1: Quietly one of Dallas' better special teams weapons
- No. 2: He once stood alone in the record books
- No. 3: This player needed just one season to make his mark
- No. 4: This is a no-brainer
- No. 5: This player has the third-most points in Cowboys history
- No. 6: The winner here just edged out a Pro Bowl history maker
- No. 7: Fizzled fast after his big payday
- No. 8: Member of an elite Super Bowl club
- No. 9: Doesn't get the credit he deserves
- No. 10: Also played professional basketball
- No. 11: No, it's not Micah Parsons
- No. 12: Didn't begin his Hall of Fame career until age 27
- No. 13: Was a solid WR2 (until he wasn't)
- No. 14: Led the Cowboys to their first Super Bowl appearance
- No. 15: Won multiple titles in another sport
- No. 16: Helped a legend score his first NFL TD
- No. 17: The Cowboys' first true franchise QB
- No. 18: Still holds a team record after 30-plus years
- No. 19: Might surprise some people
- No. 20: The Cowboys' all-time interceptions leader
- No. 21: This player was always 'Prime Time' entertainment
- No. 22: The only NFL MVP in Cowboys history
- No. 23: Was a key role player for Tom Landry
- No. 24: It's not the one who won Super Bowl MVP
- No. 25: Holds a unique place in Cowboys history
- No. 26: Didn't play one down of college football
- No. 27: Held a Cowboys record for nearly 50 years
- No. 28: Holds an odd team record
- No. 29: Was allowed to walk after a historic season
- No. 30: Holds a sad NFL record as a head coach
- No. 31: Got a play banned from the NFL
- No. 32: Was also an actual cowboy
- No. 33: Holds an NFL record that can't be broken
- No. 34: Was drafted into the NBA (but not the NFL)
This list will be updated daily until all 100 entries are complete, so please be sure to check back in with The Landry Hat for updates.
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