By Mike Pearson
FightingIllini.com

Fifty years have passed since Doug Dieken last wore a Fighting Illini uniform, but time has not diminished the memories and honors he's garnered over the last half century.

"I enjoyed my time at Illinois," he said. "Though there were only seven from my recruiting class that finished the entire four years on scholarship, I stay in touch with nearly all of them."

A charter member of the Streator Bulldogs Hall of Fame, Dieken inherited his physical attributes from parents Charles (6-feet-6 inches tall) and Lorraine (6-feet tall). At 6-5, Doug figured he'd be a basketball player.

"Our coach was … well … dictator might be a little harsh," he remembered. "We'd shoot free throws at 6:30 in the morning, go home, shower, and come back for classes. Then, we had our regular practice after school. Our hair couldn't be any longer than half an inch."

The coach gave Dieken an ultimatum if he wanted to play basketball.

"He told me, 'If you want to go out for basketball, you either go out for cross country or football in the Fall, because I want you in shape when you get to basketball season.' I remember thinking, 'Well, that's an easy choice.'"

And while Dieken was an all-star forward who received some small-school offers and an outstanding baseball pitcher, his greatest acclaim came on the gridiron as a sure-handed receiver. Indiana, Purdue, Northwestern, Wisconsin & Michigan all pursued him, but it was Pete Elliott, the charming head football coach of the Fighting Illini, who talked him into attending Illinois. It certainly didn't hurt that his mom and dad were both UI graduates.

Though not swift afoot, Dieken became a reliable wide receiver for second-year Illini coach Jim Valek, catching 21 passes for 223 yards. In his self-deprecating style, he recalled a game in 1968 when Illinois played at sixth-ranked Notre Dame.

"So, the starting wide receivers were Jim Seymour and me," Dieken said. "We had to be the two slowest wide receivers to ever start an NCAA game. We got beat 58-8. I'm still trying to figure out why we went for two. I guess we were pretty optimistic."

Dieken earned team Most Valuable Player honors as a junior and senior, then exploded with 39 catches for 537 yards in his final season, earning first-team All-Big Ten acclaim.

He faced a particularly difficult personal challenge as the Illini captain in 1970 when Illini boosters called for his coach to resign in mid-season.

"We were getting ready to play (top-ranked and eventual National Champion) Ohio State," Dieken said. "It was a Friday night and we were out at Allerton. (Assistant coach) Ellis Rainsberger told me that Valek was going to be fired. 'After the game tomorrow, he's out of here.' I was the only player who knew what was going on. So, after the game, we went into the locker room and I just asked the coaches if they'd all leave. I said, 'Guys, if Coach isn't going to be here tomorrow, I'm not going to be here. Who's with me?' Everybody raised their hand. Afterwards, a few of us went over to the coach's house. We drew up a letter and sent it to the Athletic Board. We told them that we thought it was unfair and that if he wasn't allowed to stay for the remainder of the season, we weren't going to play. You might say, we had some leverage."

Dieken played in a pair of post-season all-star games and it was there where he'd see he first appearance as an offensive lineman.

"Bobby Bowden was our coach at the Blue-Gray Game," he remembered. "One of our linemen got hurt and he sent me in the game. On (NFL) Draft Day, I got a phone call from (Cleveland Browns head coach) Nick Skorich and he told me that they'd just drafted me as an offensive tackle in the sixth round. I said, 'Any chance that I can try out for tight end?' He said, 'We'll see when you get here.' Well, when I got to mini-camp, they gave me a 73 jersey, so I knew that #%&# wasn't going to work."

As a Browns rookie, Dieken initially played behind veteran Dick Schafrath.

"A few months before the season, an auto dealer told Dick that if he ran from Wooster—about 45-50 miles away—to Cleveland, he'd give him a car to use for the year," Dieken explained. "Dick had no legs by the time training camp came around."

The Browns actually waived Dieken near the end of camp, hoping he'd clear so that they could put him on their practice squad. He did eventually find a roster spot, playing on Cleveland's special teams.

"In the seventh game of the season, our right tackle got hurt," Dieken said. "We only had three tackles, so they sent me in. My first game as a pro I got (Atlanta Falcons Hall of Famer) Claude Humphrey. I did well enough that a couple of weeks they made me the starter."

From that point on—Nov. 21, 1971 through Dec. 16, 1984—Dieken was the Browns' starting left tackle for every regular season and playoff game. For 194 consecutive games—despite three knee operations, two broken thumbs, a broken hand, cracked ribs, and five concussions—the streak continued.

Dieken reluctantly retired following the 1984 campaign, but the team hired him as their radio network's color analyst the following season. Similar to his durability as a player, he's only missed broadcasting two Browns games, one in 1989 when his mother died (his father died 10 days later) and one when Cleveland played in London and Dieken was advised by a doctor not to make the lengthy flight because of a health issue.

Dieken has won numerous awards, including being named the NFL's Man of the Year in 1982. He's also been inducted into three Halls of Fame (Greater Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame, Browns Legends Program, and the Streator High School Hall of Fame).

In 1997, he began a Foundation to honor his mentally challenged younger brother, Paul.

"When I was playing for the Browns, they were starting the Special Olympics in LaSalle County and I was kind of like the honorary chairman," Dieken said. "One year, I had taken my brother who was participating in the Games. I was passing out medals, so I couldn't keep track of him for the most part. Afterwards, we went to a root beer stand and the owner came out to say hello. My brother opened up his jacket and showed her these four ribbons that he had won in the Special Olympics. It was probably the proudest day I've ever had in athletics. The good Lord gave me some talent, but unfortunately Paul didn't get the same."

With the Browns in playoff contention, Dieken is cautiously optimistic that the 2020 team can break a 31-year playoff-game drought. He was privileged to cover playoff teams during his first five seasons behind the microphone (1985 through '89), but none since then. Dieken has described the performance of numerous all-star type players, but says that Joe Thomas—his replacement and the player that inherited his jersey No. 73—is at the top of his personal list.

"Joe is a first-ballot Hall of Famer," Dieken said. "I happened to be out at his first practice. He walked over and said 'I hope you don't mind that I took your number.' I said, 'Don't worry, Joe. I don't mind, but I've got to tell you that I've used up all of the holding penalties.'"