Background and career
Daniel Lee Dierdorf (born June 29, 1949) is an American sportscaster and former professional football player. He played 13 seasons (1971–1983) as an offensive tackle for the St. Louis Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). Dierdorf played college football for the Michigan Wolverines from 1968 to 1970 and was selected as a consensus All-America in 1970 and a first-team All-Big Ten Conference player in 1969 and 1970. He was inducted into the University of Michigan Athletic Hall of Honor in 1996 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 2000. Playing in the NFL for St. Louis, he was selected by the National Football League Players Association as the Offensive Lineman of the Year for three consecutive years from 1976 to 1978. Between 1974 and 1980, he played in the Pro Bowl six times and was chosen as a first-team All-Pro five times. He was named to the NFL 1970s All-Decade Team and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1996. Since his playing career ended, Dierdorf has worked as a broadcaster. He worked for the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) from 1987 to 1999, including 12 seasons as color analyst on Monday Night Football. He was then part of the NFL on CBS team as an announcer for 15 years from 1999 to 2013. For the 2014 through 2021 seasons, he was the color analyst for Michigan Wolverines football radio broadcasts. In 2008, Dierdorf received the Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award from the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Dierdorf was born in 1949 in Canton, Ohio, the son of John and Evelyn Dierdorf. He grew up near the site of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and watched as a boy as the museum was under construction. His father worked much of his life for the Hoover Vacuum Company, which was headquartered in North Canton. Dierdorf attended Glenwood High School (now known as GlenOak High School) in Canton. He played football and also competed in the discus throw and shot put while in high school. A lightly recruited prospect from Canton, Ohio, Dierdorf looked into a number of Midwestern schools with hopes of landing a football scholarship but did not receive offers from Notre Dame or Michigan State. Ohio State coach Woody Hayes spoke at Dierdorf's high school graduation but didn't think Dierdorf was talented enough to be a Buckeye.
Dierdorf enrolled at the University of Michigan in 1967, having been recruited by Michigan Wolverines football coach Bump Elliott. He played on both offense and defense for Michigan's all-freshman football team in 1967. As a freshman, he was also the training adversary for NCAA heavyweight wrestling champion Dave Porter.
As a sophomore, Dierdorf started nine of ten games at the right offensive tackle position for the 1968 Michigan football team that compiled an 8–2 record in Bump Elliott's final season as head coach. Elliott called Dierdorf "without a doubt" his "most active and talented offensive lineman". In Michigan's victory over Wisconsin, Dierdorf played a key role blocking for Ron Johnson as Johnson set an NCAA record with 347 rushing yards and a Big Ten record with five rushing touchdowns. Dierdorf was credited with opening gaping holes on three of Johnson's touchdown runs. Michigan assistant coach Tony Mason said, "He just blew people out of Johnson's way like they weren't even there." Dierdorf received second-team All-Big Ten honors from the Associated Press (AP) in 1968. Dierdorf sustained a knee injury on the first play of the 1968 Michigan–Ohio State game, and his ability to return to the team remained doubtful until the start of the 1969 season.
In 1969, Bo Schembechler took over as Michigan's coach and led the 1969 team to a Big Ten Conference championship and a No. 9 ranking in the final AP Poll. Dierdorf started seven games at right offensive tackle and one at left offensive tackle. At six feet, four inches, and 255 pounds, he was the team's strong tackle, switching from one side of the line to the other, so that he could lead the play no matter which way it went. Michigan's 1969 season culminated with a 24–12 upset victory over No. 1 Ohio State. For his performance in the Ohio State game, Dierdorf received the UPI's Lineman of the Week award. Dierdorf was selected by both the Associated Press (AP) and United Press International (UPI) as a first-team player on the 1969 All-Big Ten Conference football team. He also received second-team All-America honors from the Central Press.
As a senior, Dierdorf started nine games at right tackle and one at left tackle for the 1970 Michigan team that compiled a 9–1 record. At an October 1970 press luncheon, coach Schembechler opined that Dierdorf was "as good as any tackle in the country" with "good quickness, wonderful strength, smartness, and competitiveness, and he's a great leader." Asking if Dierdorf had any faults, Schembechler paused, then answered his own question: "Faults? Hummmm. He's got big feet and it's hard to fit him into shoes. That's all I can think of." Dierdorf was a consensus first-team pick on the 1970 College Football All-America Team, receiving first-team honors from the American Football Coaches Association, the AP, the Football Writers Association of America, the Newspaper Enterprise Association, and the UPI. He was also picked by both the AP and UPI as a first-team All-Big Ten player, and was picked to play in three post-season all-star games: the East–West Shrine Game, Hula Bowl, and College All-Star Game.
