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Eldon Fortie

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Eldon Fortie
Born:(1941-05-21)May 21, 1941
Salt Lake City, Utah
Died:January 5, 2021(2021-01-05) (aged 79)
Mesa, Arizona
Career information
CFL statusAmerican
Position(s)HB, RB
Height6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight170 lb (77 kg)
CollegeBYU
High schoolGranite (South Salt Lake)
Career history
As player
1963Edmonton Eskimos

Eldon Fortie (May 21, 1941 – January 5, 2021) was an American professional football player for the Edmonton Eskimos in the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football for the BYU Cougars. Dubbed "The Phantom" while at BYU, he was the first BYU football player to be named to a first-team All-America squad.[1]

Fortie was born in Salt Lake City, Utah.[2][3] During his senior season at Brigham Young University, Fortie led the nation in total offense for eight weeks, and at the end of the season finished second behind Terry Baker with 1,963 total yards and 14 touchdowns. On September 29, 1962, Fortie ran for 272 yards in a single game in Provo against the George Washington University Colonials. That was the single best running game of any BYU player in school history, until 2016, when Jamaal Williams rushed for 286 yards against Toledo.[4] Fortie's No. 40 was retired after that season, the first BYU student to have that honor.[5] In 1962, he ran for 1,149 yards and 14 TDs but more impressively also threw for 814 yards with 7 TDs.[6] He finished 10th in the Heisman voting.

Eldon Fortie's football jersey and helmet

Although Fortie was a quarterback, BYU ran the single wing offense at the time; consequently, Fortie was primarily a running back. He was selected to play in several all-star games after the 1962 season, including the North-South Bowl in Miami, the Hula Bowl, the All-American Game in Tucson, and the Coaches All-American Bowl.

After graduation Fortie played one year in the CFL with the Edmonton Eskimos. He died in Mesa, Arizona on January 5, 2021 at the age of 79.[7]

References

  1. ^ Zawronty, B. Robert (December 1, 2004). "Gridiron Greats Honored". Retrieved January 12, 2021. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
  2. ^ Dickson, Darnell (January 6, 2021). "Former BYU All-American Eldon Fortie passes away at 79". The Daily Herald. Retrieved January 6, 2021.
  3. ^ "Eldon Fortie". profootballarchives.com. Retrieved January 6, 2021.
  4. ^ "Football History: Top Individual Marks". BYU Official Athletics Site. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
  5. ^ "BYU to Honor Fortie and Probert During Halftime Ceremony". September 25, 2003. Archived from the original on April 2, 2012. Retrieved April 2, 2012.
  6. ^ "Eldon Fortie College Stats". Archived from the original on February 1, 2014. Retrieved January 20, 2014.
  7. ^ Walker, Sean (January 6, 2021). "Eldon Fortie, BYU's original 1st-team All-American, dies at 79". KSL.com. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
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