Cornell Green (defensive back)


 * For the current offensive tackle, see Cornell Green.

Cornell Green (born February 10, 1940 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma), 6'3", 205, is a former American football cornerback and safety who played for the Dallas Cowboys in the National Football League. He went to the Utah State University where he didn't play football but was a three-time All-Skyline Conference basketball player. The Cowboys signed him as a free agent in 1962.

Early years
He attended El Cerrito High School located in the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area, California.

Green is one of Utah State's most decorated basketball players having earned All-America honors in 1960 and 1961 as well as all-Skyline conference honors in each of his three years (1960–62). Green, a 6-4 forward, set the Aggie career rebounding record with 1,067 which still stands today. He is also the fifth leading scorer in Utah State University history with 1,890 points.

He produced some of the best individual seasons in school history as his 745 points in 1962 are still in second place, while his 403 rebounds in 1960 remain a school record for a season. He was the Skyline conference MVP as a sophomore.

In Green's three seasons with the Aggies, Utah State University went to the 1960 National Invitation Tournament and to the 1962 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament.

The 1959-1960 team finished eighth in the Associated Press Poll and seventh in the Coaches' Poll, which remains the highest year-end basketball ranking in school history.

In 1993, he was inducted into the Utah State University Intercollegiate Athletics Hall Of Fame.

Professional career
Cornell Green was a college basketball star who never played a down of college football, that the Dallas Cowboys converted into a defensive back. This was one of the innovative personnel decisions the Cowboys were renowned for.

On a tip from Utah State basketball coach LaDell Anderson, the Cowboys discovered and signed the multi-talented younger brother of then Red Sox infielder Pumpsie Green for $1,000 dollars.

At that time, Green was leaning towards playing in the NBA, after been drafted by the Chicago Zephyrs in the fifth round of the 1962 NBA Draft. "I never planned on playing for the Cowboys," Green recalled. Even when he reported to training camp in Marquette, Michigan, in 1962, he just thought of it as a $1,000 gift from the Dallas Cowboys. "I figured I’d go there for a week ... and they’d cut me," Green said.

His teammates nicknamed him "Sweet Lips" and eventually made the 1962 team roster as an undrafted free agent, learning fast enough to start 3 games and be selected to the NFL All-Rookie team. The next season he became a full time starter at left cornerback setting a career best with 7 interceptions.

Green became a big-time contributor to Tom Landry’s intricate defensive schemes and a feared defender during his career in Dallas. All he was missing were the gaudy stats. Said Gil Brandt: "I mean, if Cornell had any kind of hands, he would’ve had three times as many interceptions as he got ... and the guy played basketball in college."

He played cornerback during his first eight seasons, while leading the team in interceptions 4 times, being named to 5 Pro Bowls and 3 All-Pro teams. Cowboys coach Tom Landry said of Green, "He had the athletic skills from basketball to become a fine defensive back. His only transition was playing a sport where you could tackle someone with the ball, and Cornell never had a problem dealing with that".

In 1970 after Mike Gaechter suffered a career ending injury, and with the cornerback position needing an upgrade, Tom Landry moved Mel Renfro to play cornerback. Given that Renfro was an All-Pro in 1969 at safety, the move may have seemed to be an odd one, but Renfro was matched with Herb Adderley, and the duo was better than Green and Phil Clark. Green in turn, moved from cornerback to the strong safety position, while the free safety position was handled between third-round pick Charlie Waters and undrafted free agent Cliff Harris.

After the switch, the Cowboys went to two consecutive Super Bowls. In 1971 and 1972 he went back to the Pro Bowl at safety.

Green never missed a game in 13 seasons (1962-74), he played 168 games, including 145 consecutive starts for the Cowboys between 1962-1974. He made five Pro Bowls at two different positions — cornerback and strong safety. He is tied with Michael Downs for fifth in career interceptions (34) in Cowboys history.

In 1985, he was named to the Dallas Cowboys 25th Anniversary Team

Post-playing career
Green began scouting for the Dallas Cowboys in 1970 while still an active player and continued scouting through 1979, at which time he entered private business until coming to the Denver Broncos in 1987.

He has over 29 years scouting in the NFL, and over 22 seasons doing it with the Broncos.

Personal life
He is the brother of Pumpsie Green, the first black player to play for the Boston Red Sox, the last Major League Baseball team to integrate.