Christian A. Sonny Jurgensen was one of the best kept secrets in college football during the 1950s. His best days at Duke University, believe it or not, came not as a quarterback but as a defensive back.

The quarterback, who had an illustrious 18-year professional football career with the Philadelphia Eagles and the Washington Redskins, is back to celebrate the Duke football tradition as Duke University takes on East Carolina University on Sonny Jurgensen Day.

We wanted Sonny to be a part of the tradition that we are trying to bring back to Duke University. He is a warm and sincere guy who cares about Duke football, said Joe Alleva, current Duke University Director of Athletics. Sonny is probably the best player ever to go on to the NFL from Duke.

Jurgensen, who is a 1957 graduate of Duke, is excited about his opportunity to come back to Duke.

I am really looking forward to coming back to Duke, Jurgensen said. It will be a fun weekend, seeing the game and seeing the guys.

Jurgensen attended New Hanover High School in Wilmington, N.C., where he was a three-sport star in football, basketball and baseball. During his senior year, he scored three touchdowns and kicked nine extra points while earning All-State honors. He started at quarterback for the North Carolina team in the annual North Carolina-South Carolina Shrine game held in Charlotte, N.C. He also averaged 12.0 points a game as a guard on the basketball team and batted .339 as a pitcher and infielder on the baseball squad. After declining offers to play all three sports in college, Jurgensen accepted a scholarship to attend Duke.

Duke was a great experience, Jurgensen said. Most of my friends at Duke were players I played against in high school. We all decided that we were going to Duke. Duke impressed me the most and that is why I chose to go there. I have never regretted it to this day.

Jurgensen became teammates at Duke with many of his rivals in high school, including Leonard Black, who starred at Fayetteville High School in Fayetteville, N.C.

I met Sonny at the Shrine Bowl during our senior year, said Black, who played offensive and defensive end at Duke, and later played with the Toronto Argonauts in the Canadian Football League. We became friends and ended up at the same university.

The one thing I will always remember about Sonny was that he had great composure, said Black. He was very competent in his play calling and although he was very laid back, he excelled with confidence.

Jurgensen spent his rookie year in 1953 on the freshman team and joined the varsity team during his sophomore season in 1954. That year, Jurgensen had an interception in four consecutive games, a mark that still stands in the Duke record books. He also helped lead the Blue Devils to a 34-7 victory over Nebraska in the 1955 Orange Bowl.

Despite playing few minutes at quarterback during his sophomore year, Jurgensen took over the reins as the starter in 1955 during his junior season.

That year, Jurgensen led the Blue Devils to a share of the ACC title with Maryland, but ended up unranked in the final AP poll. The Blue Devils finished the regular season 7-2-1 and had quality wins over Tennessee, Ohio State and North Carolina. For the season, Jurgensen completed 37 of 69 passes for 536 yards and three touchdowns.

The win at Ohio State in 1954 was big because we were playing in front of 82,000 people, Jurgensen said. The win in the Orange Bowl against Nebraska was also special, but just to be in a bowl game was a great experience.

Heading into his senior campaign, Jurgensen was looking to have a big one, but Duke had to face four of the top 20 teams in the country and finished with a 5-4-1 record. Jurgensen spent almost the entire season playing in pain after injuring his knee against Virginia in the second game of the year. He completed 28 of 59 passes for 371 yards and two touchdowns during his senior year.

For his career at Duke, Jurgensen was 77 of 156 for 1,119 yards and six touchdowns. He also managed to rush for 243 yards on 99 carries and intercept 10 passes as a defensive back. His knee injury his senior year ended any chance of All-America honors, but the pro scouts still knew what kind of athlete he was.

Sonny had such a strong and accurate arm and was a great all-around athlete, said Jerry Barger, who played quarterback at Duke from 1951-54. He was equivalent to someone like Troy Aikman. He had great ability to throw the football and he also had a lot of natural ability.

Jurgensen never expected to be drafted by the NFL because he did not have the opportunity to throw the ball in college. Head coach Bill Murray ran the ground-it-out-style of offense, which limited Jurgensen the opportunity to showcase his passing talent.

One coach who saw the potential was Ace Parker, Duke's quarterback from 1934-36 and then Jurgensen's backfield coach. He invited a scout from the Philadelphia Eagles to attend practice to see what most NFL scouts were missing. It was that visit that led to the Eagles' selection of Jurgensen in the fourth round of the National Football League draft in 1957.

I did not expect to be drafted because I did not throw the ball in college. I only threw the ball 59 times my senior year, Jurgensen said. I have to credit a lot to Ace Parker. He is the one who called the offensive coordinator at Philadelphia and told him that I could throw the football. But the funny thing is, Coach Murray recommended me to play safety in the NFL.

Jurgensen backed up Hall of Famer Norm Van Brocklin for a few years before taking over for the retired great. In 1960, Jurgensen led the Philadelphia Eagles to a NFC championship after a 17-13 victory over the Green Bay Packers.

Jurgensen then had his breakout year in 1961 when he passed for 32 touchdowns and 3,700 yards. He led the Eagles to a 10-4 record but missed winning the Eastern Conference title by a half-game. Philadelphia then traded Jurgensen to the Washington Redskins after the 1963 season.

He played for the Redskins for eleven years, breaking many records along the way. He set team records in 1967 for most attempts in a season (508), completions in a season (288), yards passing in a season (3,747) and touchdowns in a season (31).

When he retired in 1975, he departed as the league's all-time leading passer with 32,224 yards in 18 NFL seasons. Four years after retiring from the NFL, Jurgensen was inducted into the Duke Sports Hall of Fame in 1979 and then was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1983.

To be inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame was a tremendous honor, Jurgensen said. The ceremony was an ultimate experience and it really topped everything off.

Jurgensen has served as the color radio announcer for the Washington Redskins for the past 20 years. He is teamed with Sam Huff, a former middle linebacker for the Redskins.

We really have fun during the games, Jurgensen said. I enjoy it because it keeps me around the game of football. I have a good relationship with Norv Turner, so I still get to go over films and help out the team.

As Duke football looks into the new millennium, Jurgensen is very excited about his part in bringing back the Duke football tradition.

I think Carl (Franks) and Joe (Alleva) are going in the right direction, said Jurgensen. I like what they are both trying to do. I want to help bring this program back up and move this thing on the right track. Let's make it an all-sport school!

Duke University would like to solute Sonny Jurgensen for all his gridiron accomplishments and appreciation for all the exciting and enjoyable moments he has given us. Thanks, Sonny.