Mark Donahue

Mark Joseph Donahue (born January 28, 1956) is a former American football player. He played college football as an offensive guard for the University of Michigan Wolverines from 1975 to 1977. He was a consensus All-American in both 1976 and 1977. Donahue also played two seasons of professional football in the National Football League (NFL) for the Cincinnati Bengals in 1978 and 1979.

Not to be confused with Mark Donohue, the American racecar driver.
Mark Donahue
Born: (1956-01-28) January 28, 1956
Evergreen Park, Illinois, U.S.
Career information
Position(s)Guard
CollegeMichigan
NFL draft1978 / Round: 11 / Pick 294
Career history
As player
1978–1979Cincinnati Bengals
Career stats

Early years

A native of Oak Lawn, Illinois, Donahue attended Brother Rice High School in the Chicago Catholic League, graduating in 1974.[1]

University of Michigan

Donahue accepted a football scholarship to the University of Michigan and played college football for the Michigan Wolverines football team from 1975 to 1977. He was a starter on Michigan's 1975 and 1976 offensive lines that produced two games in which Michigan had three running backs each accumulated 100 rushing yards.[2] Donahue was selected as a consensus first-team offensive guard on both the 1976 and 1977 College Football All-America Teams.[3] He was the 13th player in Michigan football history to be twice honored as a consensus All-American and was rated by Bo Schembechler as "one of his all-time best linemen."[1][4]

Professional football

Donahue was selected in the 11th round of the 1978 NFL Draft by the Cincinnati Bengals. He played offensive guard for the Bengals in 1978 and 1979.[5] Donahue later recalled: "It was fun playing a couple of years with the Bengals. It was a great experience lining up against legends like Randy White of the Dallas Cowboys and Joe Greene and the Pittsburgh Steelers. The first time you're in a stance against them, you're almost too excited to hit them. You get over that real quick when you realize there is no hesitancy at all on their part on hitting you hard."[1]

Later years and honors

In May 2011, Donahue was inducted into the Chicago Catholic League Hall of Fame.[1] In September 2012, he was inducted into the Chicagoland Sports Hall of Fame.[6] In September 2016, Donahue was inducted into the University of Michigan Hall of Honor. [7] Donahue was named the president of his alma mater Brother Rice High School in 2018.

References
  1. "Donahue: Former Brother Rice Standout Starred for Michigan Legend Bo Schembechler". Oak Lawn Patch. May 25, 2011. Retrieved March 11, 2015.
  2. "Michigan Football Statistic Archive Query Page". University of Michigan. Archived from the original on 2013-05-24. (The two games are: October 18, 1975 vs. Northwestern - Huckleby [157], Lytle [105], Bell [100]; September 18, 1976 vs. Stanford - Huckleby [157], Davis [116], Lytle [100])
  3. "2014 NCAA Football Records: Consensus All-America Selections" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). 2014. p. 6. Retrieved February 10, 2015.
  4. "University of Michigan Football All-American: Mark Donahue". University of Michigan, Bentley Historical Library. Retrieved March 11, 2015.
  5. "Mark Donahue". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 11, 2015.
  6. "Bo Jackson, Coach Calipari, Paul Hornung, Otis Wilson To Lead Class of2012" (PDF). Chicagoland Sports Hall of Fame. July 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 2, 2015. Retrieved March 11, 2015.
  7. "U-M Athletics to Induct Four into Hall of Honor Sept. 30". September 7, 2016. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
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