Professional Football Player. He played for the New York football Giants from 1974 to 1981. He missed the entire 1980 season when he tore ligaments in the last exhibition game against the Jets. He had previously sat out the last nine games of the 1981 season when he suffered a shoulder separation. In April, 1982, when he attended the Giants minicamp, he found he could still not raise his right arm well enough to catch passes, and his knee still had not responded the way he had hoped. He had lost speed and resiliency. Once he could run 40 yards in 4.5 seconds, but those days were gone. Unfortunately he realized, his playing days had come to and end. What Doug Kotar left behind was the fact that in his 8 playing years with the Giants, he managed to rank himself in the Giants Top 10 in total rushing attempts. His 3,378 yards is 7th on the New York Giants all-time rushing list. Kotar's best season was 1976, where he racked up over 1,000 all-purpose yards (running, pass catching, and punt returns). His ranking as a rusher places him behind only Frank Gifford , Alex Webster, Ron Johnson, Rob Carpenter, Joe Morris, and Tiki Barber. Coach George Allen, legendary coach of the Washington Redskins, was so enthralled with Doug's gritty running ability that he offered the NY Giants two draft picks for the rights to his services, but the Giants wisely refused. He died in a hospital at age 32 in Pittsburgh in 1983, paralyzed on his entire left side after undergoing physical therapy and chemotherapy for an inoperable brain tumor.
Professional Football Player. He played for the New York football Giants from 1974 to 1981. He missed the entire 1980 season when he tore ligaments in the last exhibition game against the Jets. He had previously sat out the last nine games of the 1981 season when he suffered a shoulder separation. In April, 1982, when he attended the Giants minicamp, he found he could still not raise his right arm well enough to catch passes, and his knee still had not responded the way he had hoped. He had lost speed and resiliency. Once he could run 40 yards in 4.5 seconds, but those days were gone. Unfortunately he realized, his playing days had come to and end. What Doug Kotar left behind was the fact that in his 8 playing years with the Giants, he managed to rank himself in the Giants Top 10 in total rushing attempts. His 3,378 yards is 7th on the New York Giants all-time rushing list. Kotar's best season was 1976, where he racked up over 1,000 all-purpose yards (running, pass catching, and punt returns). His ranking as a rusher places him behind only Frank Gifford , Alex Webster, Ron Johnson, Rob Carpenter, Joe Morris, and Tiki Barber. Coach George Allen, legendary coach of the Washington Redskins, was so enthralled with Doug's gritty running ability that he offered the NY Giants two draft picks for the rights to his services, but the Giants wisely refused. He died in a hospital at age 32 in Pittsburgh in 1983, paralyzed on his entire left side after undergoing physical therapy and chemotherapy for an inoperable brain tumor.
Bio by: Sandman
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