Dan Fike

Dan Clement Fike, Jr. (born June 16, 1961) is an American former college and professional football player who was an offensive lineman in the National Football League (NFL) for eleven seasons during the 1980s and 1990s. He played college football for the University of Florida, and thereafter, he played professionally for the New York Jets, the Cleveland Browns and the Pittsburgh Steelers of the NFL.

Early life

Fike was born in Mobile, Alabama. He attended Pine Forest High School in Pensacola, Florida, and played high school football for the Pine Forest Eagles.

College career

Fike accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where he played for coach Charley Pell's Florida Gators football from 1979 to 1982. While he was an undergraduate, he was a member of Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity (Alpha Epsilon Chapter). As a freshman, he lived through the worst season in the history of the Florida football program in 1979, when the Gators posted an 0–10–1 record. The following season, Fike was part of the biggest one-year turn-around in Division I football history, when the 1980 Gators finished 8–4 after defeating the Maryland Terrapins in the Tangerine Bowl. He was a second-team All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) selection following his senior season in 1982.

Professional career

The New York Jets selected Fike in the tenth round (274th pick overall) of the 1983 NFL Draft, but he spent two years on the Jets' practice squad without being activated for a regular season game. He signed with the Cleveland Browns in 1985, and earned a position as a regular starter, playing at different times at offensive guard and offensive tackle, from 1985 to 1992. Fike arrived in Cleveland at an opportune time when the team was experiencing a competitive revival, and was a starter for five consecutive Browns playoff teams (1985–1989), including appearances in the three AFC Championship Games (1987, 1988, 1990).

Fike played his final NFL season for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1993, seeing only limited action in three games. In his nine-season professional football career, he appeared in 115 games and started 102 of them.

See also

• Florida Gators football, 1980–89
• List of Florida Gators football players in the NFL
• List of New York Jets players
• List of Pi Kappa Phi alumni
• List of Pittsburgh Steelers players
• List of University of Florida alumni

Bibliography

• Carlson, Norm, University of Florida Football Vault: The History of the Florida Gators, Whitman Publishing, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia (2007). ISBN 0-7948-2298-3.
• Golenbock, Peter, Go Gators! An Oral History of Florida's Pursuit of Gridiron Glory, Legends Publishing, LLC, St. Petersburg, Florida (2002). ISBN 0-9650782-1-3.
• Hairston, Jack, Tales from the Gator Swamp: A Collection of the Greatest Gator Stories Ever Told, Sports Publishing, LLC, Champaign, Illinois (2002). ISBN 1-58261-514-4.
• McCarthy, Kevin M., Fightin' Gators: A History of University of Florida Football, Arcadia Publishing, Mount Pleasant, South Carolina (2000). ISBN 978-0-7385-0559-6.
• Nash, Noel, ed., The Gainesville Sun Presents The Greatest Moments in Florida Gators Football, Sports Publishing, Inc., Champaign, Illinois (1998). ISBN 1-57167-196-X.

• Pro-Football-Reference.com, Players, Dan Fike. Retrieved March 23, 2010.
• databaseFootball.com, Players, Dan Fike. Retrieved March 23, 2011.
• 2011 Florida Gators Football Media Guide, University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 96 & 181 (2011). Retrieved August 28, 2011.
• Norm Carlson, University of Florida Football Vault: The History of the Florida Gators, Whitman Publishing, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia, pp. 95–97 (2007).
• College Football Data Warehouse, Charley Pell Records by Year, 1979. Retrieved June 1, 2010.
• College Football Data Warehouse, Charley Pell Records by Year, 1980. Retrieved June 1, 2010.
• National Football League, Draft History, 1983. Retrieved June 1, 2010.
• National Football League, Historical Players, Dan Fike. Retrieved March 23, 2011.