Dallas Cowboys run onto the field before the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 17, 2021, in Foxborough, Mass. (AP Photo/Stephen Sene)
Don Smelek, a standout football player at Basic High who went on to have a productive career with the Dallas Cowboys, died of cancer on March 16th. He was 66 years old.
Smelek was born in Waterford, Michigan, and his family moved to Henderson when he was young. He was an All-State lineman at Basic and played at UNR under coach Chris Ault in the late 1970s, earning All-Big Sky honors as a senior.
Smelek signed with the Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 1980 and spent his entire career with the team. The 6-foot-7 defensive lineman was known as a pass rush specialist with an outsized personality.
Smelek missed his rookie season due to a broken rib during training camp, and was placed on injured reserve with a knee injury early in the 1981 season. Four weeks later, Smelek was shot in the chest in a Dallas restaurant parking lot. The shooting was related to a traffic-related altercation, according to an Associated Press article.
Smerek made a full recovery and continued his eight-year career. He had 14 and a half sacks in 69 regular season games, primarily serving as a backup to Cowboys Hall of Fame defensive linemen Randy White and Harvey Martin.
In 1987, Smelek crossed the picket line and played through an NFL Players Association strike. He retired at the end of the season.
Smelek also appeared in five games in the playoffs, recording one sack.
“He was a great teammate and a great human being,” White told the Dallas Morning News. “He's been really solid as a football player and I can always trust him. He'll come in on third down and rush the passer and Don as a football player was 100 percent.”
Smelek's family plans to hold a private memorial service to honor his life in Henderson this month. He is survived by his wife Tandy, three brothers and sister Debbie, and several nieces and nephews.
Contact David Schoen at dschoen@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5203.to follow @DavidSchoenLVRJ With X.
