Harvey Martin

Lore & Background

Martin transferred to South Oak Cliff High School in his junior year (1967), which had become the first integrated high school in Dallas. He overheard his father express shame that his son did not play football, so Martin decided to suit up for the first time. He was a backup offensive tackle on a 9–1 team. In his senior year, he moved to defensive tackle, became a starter by the third game, and helped the team win the Dallas City championship and reach the State quarterfinals.

Only East Texas State University offered him a scholarship. In college, he evolved into the best defensive end in school history, leading the school to a national title in 1972 and earning NAIA All-American, All-Texas, and All-LSC honors. He was inducted into Texas A&M University–Commerce's Hall of Fame in 1987. The school started hosting the Harvey Martin Classic in 2008.

In 2007, he was selected to the Lone Star Conference’s 75th Anniversary football team and named LSC defensive player of the decade for the 1970s. In 2010, he was inducted into the Lone Star Conference Hall Of Fame. Martin was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the third round of the 1973 NFL draft. He developed into an emotional player nicknamed 'Too Mean'.

By his third year in 1975, he was a full-time starter. He is unofficially credited with 114 sacks, leading the Cowboys in sacks seven times in a nine-year period, with a high of 23 sacks in 1977. He still holds the team record for most sacks for a rookie (9 in 1973) and in a season (23 in 1977). His unofficial career franchise sack record lasted 30 years, broken by DeMarcus Ware in 2013.

In 1977, he totaled 85 tackles and a league-leading 23 sacks, was named NFL Defensive Player of the Year, a consensus All-Pro, key in the Cowboys winning Super Bowl XII, and co-MVP of the game with Randy White. He went to the Pro Bowl four times. Martin retired in 1983 after refusing a Cowboys-ordered drug test and during a feud with the team. He later admitted in a 1986 autobiography that he had a cocaine addiction.

In 2009, he was inducted into the Texas Sports Hall of Fame. He is also a member of the Texas Black Sports Hall of Fame. The Professional Football Researchers Association named him to the PFRA Hall of Very Good Class of 2016.

Reader's Guide

Harvey Martin is a legendary defensive end for the Dallas Cowboys, known for his dominant pass rushing and co-MVP performance in Super Bowl XII. He played his entire career with the Cowboys from 1973 to 1983, earning four Pro Bowl selections and the NFL Defensive Player of the Year award in 1977. His 23 sacks in 1977 remain a team record. Off the field, he struggled with addiction and legal issues but later became a speaker against drug abuse. He died of pancreatic cancer in 2001.

Did You Know?

• He never played a home game, at any level, outside of North Texas.
• He was the first Super Bowl Most Valuable Player to die.