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The Early Life of Johnny Unitas
John Constintine Unitas was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on May 7, 1933. Unitas' father died when John was just four years old and he was raised only by his mother. He attended St. Justins HS in Pittsburgh. -
College Career
Johnny played College Football at Louisville completing 245 passes for 3,139 yards and 27 touchdowns. Big name colleges like Notre Dame and Indiana passed on offering him an athletic scholarship. -
Unitas Gets Married
At the age of 21, Unitas married Dorothy Hoelle they had five children but got divorced less than twenty years later. -
NFL Draft
Unitas was drafted in the ninth round as a QB by the Pittsburgh Steelers. He failed to make the final roster and began to work in the contstruction business near his home. He also played for a Semi-pro Football team in the area called the Bloomfield Rams. -
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47 Consecutive games with a TD
Unitas had 47 straight games where he threw for at least one Touchdown. -
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Three MVP Awards
Johnny won his first MVP Award in 1958 after leading the Cotls to a championship victory. He won again in 1964 for his great #'s and again in 1967 for his great #'s and the winning of his second Championship. -
Second NFL Championship and First MVP Award
Unitas led the NFL in passing yards (2,899), touchdown passes (32) and completions (193). He also led the Colts to a 31-16 repeat Super Bowl win. -
Unitas' second marriage
Unitas's second wife was Sandra Lemon, they had three children and remained married until Unitas's death on September 11, 2002. -
Traded to San Diego Chargers
In 1973, Johnny was traded from the Baltimore Colts and was considered the best QB the Colts had ever had. He went to the Chargers and started there for one season. -
Johnny Retires from the NFL
He retired from the NFL after a storied career from 1956 - 1973. He was the first quarterback to throw for more than 40,000 yards, His 32 touchdown passes in 1959 were a record at the time, His 47-game touchdown streak between 1956 and 1960 is a record that still stands. -
Colts retire Unitas' number
His number 19 was retired and will never be worn again in the Colts Franchise, -
Elected into the NFL Hall of Fame
He was a first ballot HOF and will forever be remembered in Canton. -
Johnny dies at the age of 69 due to a heart attack
He was working out at a physical therapy center when he suffered the 2nd heart attack of his lifetime. Near the end of his life, Unitas spoke out and hoped for improved protection of NFL players. Due to his playing career, he lost almost total use of his right hand. His middle finger and thumb were permanently damaged as they had been broken numerous times during games.
