JIM BURT

Orchard Park & NFL Pro-Bowl Defensive Tackle

The pride of Orchard Park, NY, defensive tackle Jim Burt celebrated a highly decorated NFL career respected by his peers for a toughness and determination that earned him two Super Bowl championships and a Pro Bowl honor during his 11 year football career.

After participating in various south towns youth sports organizations, Burt attended Orchard Park High School playing both hockey and football. In his senior year, Burt was named All Western New York and played on the same line with future Steelers and Viking great Craig Wolfley and Larry Pfohl who later found fame as professional wrestler Lex Luger.
Earning a scholarship to the University of Miami, Burt still holds many Hurricane records including 177 tackles – 86 assists by a nose guard and four fumbles recovered in a single game. A force on the Hurricanes defensive line, Burt served as co-captain in his senior year and was voted defensive MVP in the 1981 Peach Bowl.

Burt joined the New York Giants as an undrafted free agent in 1981 and soon earned the respect of his peers as a tough competitor on the defensive side of the ball. In 11 NFL seasons, eight with the Giants (1981-88) and three with the San Francisco 49ers (1989-91), Burt played in 118 NFL games recording 615 career tackles, 10 fumble recoveries, and 20 career sacks. Burt was a member of the Super Bowl XXI Champion New York Giants and the San Francisco 49ers team that won Super Bowl XXIV.

Although many people often credit former Giants Harry Carson and Lawrence Taylor with inventing the coaches Gatorade Shower after wins, Burt was actually the innovator of this ritual in 1985. Harry Carson outlined this fact in his 1987 book entitled Point of Attack: The Defense Strikes Back. In it, Carson states that then Giants head coach Bill Parcells was especially hard on Burt in practice often making him repeatedly raise a 50 lb. dumbbell off the ground to simulate raising his arm powerfully out of his stance at the snap of the ball. Burt used a 1985 Giants win to enact his revenge on Parcells by dousing him with a cooler of Gatorade, a ritual which is still hugely popular today.

Burt, who resides in Saddle River, NJ, retired from the NFL in 1991 and was inducted into the University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame in 1998.

The pride of Orchard Park, NY, defensive tackle Jim Burt celebrated a highly decorated NFL career respected by his peers for a toughness and determination that earned him two Super Bowl championships and a Pro Bowl honor during his 11 year football career.

After participating in various south towns youth sports organizations, Burt attended Orchard Park High School playing both hockey and football. In his senior year, Burt was named All Western New York and played on the same line with future Steelers and Viking great Craig Wolfley and Larry Pfohl who later found fame as professional wrestler Lex Luger.
Earning a scholarship to the University of Miami, Burt still holds many Hurricane records including 177 tackles – 86 assists by a nose guard and four fumbles recovered in a single game. A force on the Hurricanes defensive line, Burt served as co-captain in his senior year and was voted defensive MVP in the 1981 Peach Bowl.

Burt joined the New York Giants as an undrafted free agent in 1981 and soon earned the respect of his peers as a tough competitor on the defensive side of the ball. In 11 NFL seasons, eight with the Giants (1981-88) and three with the San Francisco 49ers (1989-91), Burt played in 118 NFL games recording 615 career tackles, 10 fumble recoveries, and 20 career sacks. Burt was a member of the Super Bowl XXI Champion New York Giants and the San Francisco 49ers team that won Super Bowl XXIV.

Although many people often credit former Giants Harry Carson and Lawrence Taylor with inventing the coaches Gatorade Shower after wins, Burt was actually the innovator of this ritual in 1985. Harry Carson outlined this fact in his 1987 book entitled Point of Attack: The Defense Strikes Back. In it, Carson states that then Giants head coach Bill Parcells was especially hard on Burt in practice often making him repeatedly raise a 50 lb. dumbbell off the ground to simulate raising his arm powerfully out of his stance at the snap of the ball. Burt used a 1985 Giants win to enact his revenge on Parcells by dousing him with a cooler of Gatorade, a ritual which is still hugely popular today.

Burt, who resides in Saddle River, NJ, retired from the NFL in 1991 and was inducted into the University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame in 1998.