Tony Hill ( American football ) Leroy Anthony Hill , Jr . ( born June 23 , 1956 in San Diego , California ) is a former professional American football wide receiver who played ten seasons in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys from 1977 to 1986 . Before his NFL career , he played collegiately at Stanford University . Early years . Hill was a high school quarterback at Long Beach Polytechnic High School , where he followed in the footsteps of an earlier - day record passer , Gene Washington . Hill broke most of Washington ' s high school passing records , and then followed him to Stanford University , where he became a wide receiver , and then broke most of Washington ' s receiving records . Hill ranks eleventh on Stanford ' s all - time list with 2 , 225 receiving yards . He also had 140 receptions . Graduated from Stanford University with a 3 . 3 GPA in Political Science at the age of 20 . He was inducted into the Stanford Athletic Hall of Fame . Professional career . Dallas Cowboys . He was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the third round of the 1977 NFL Draft . He started his career as a punt retuner and backup wide receiver , winning a championship ring with the Cowboys when they defeated the Denver Broncos 27 - 10 in Super Bowl XII . The following season , his performance during the 1978 preseason was so outstanding , that he became a starting wide receiver , over the experienced players Golden Richards and Butch Johnson . At the end of the season he made the Pro Bowl , after catching 46 passes for 823 yards and 6 touchdown s , while helping the team to their second consecutive Super Bowl appearance . In Dallas ' 35 - 31 Super Bowl XIII loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers , he caught 2 passes for 49 yards and a touchdown . Known for his quick speed and big play ability , Coach Tom Landry called him “ Our Home Run Hitter . I ’ ve never seen a guy who could adjust to a ball in mid - air like Tony . He is a very explosive player ; the type who can turn a short play into a big play in a hurry , because he has excellent running ability and speed . ” In 1979 , he and Drew Pearson — along with Tony Dorsett — helped the Cowboys become the first team in NFL history to have two 1 , 000 - yards wide receiver s and a 1 , 000 - yard running back , when he recorded 60 receptions , 1 , 062 yards and 10 touchdowns . Pearson and Hill also became the first wide receiver tandem in Cowboys history , to record 1 , 000 - yard receiving seasons in the same year . Hill became the number one receiver when Pearson retired after the 1983 season . His best season statistically came in 1985 , where he caught 74 passes for 1100 receiving yards and 7 touchdown s . He eventually became one of the top wide receiver in the NFL from 1978 to 1985 , and was dubbed the " Thrill " and " Dial 80 " , because of his explosiveness and ability to make big plays . A three - time Pro Bowl selection , during his ten year career with the Cowboys , Hill led the team in both receptions and yardage for nine straight years . He never played in a Super Bowl again , but played in 10 more postseason games . One of the better performances in his career was in a against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers , when he caught 7 passes for 142 yards in the Cowboys ' 38 - 0 win . He was waived by the Cowboys in 1987 at the start of training camp . 。 His 8 , 072 total yards ( rushing and receiving ) , ranks him fourth in the Cowboys All - Time list in that category , behind Hall of Fame rs Tony Dorsett , Emmitt Smith and Michael Irvin . He also ranks second in receiving yards , third in receiving touchdown s and fourth in catches in Dallas Cowboys history . San Francisco 49ers . After his release , the San Francisco 49ers outbidded the Los Angeles Rams for his services , but he never played another game , after the 49ers released him before the season started . Hill finished his 10 NFL seasons with 479 receptions for 7 , 988 yards and 51 touchdown s in 142 games . He also had 26 100 - yard receiving games , rushed for 84 yards , returned 27 punts for 268 yards , and gained 96 yards on 4 kickoff return s . For his career , he averaged 16 . 1 yards per touch and 16 . 7 yards per reception . Television appearances . In 2000 , Hill appeared as a contestant on the short - lived game show " Greed " . He did not win any money after he got sacked on his $ 500 , 000 question as the team ' s captain . The question was : Which four and their affiliates have the highest global market share ? The 7 choices were General Motors , Ford , Honda , Volkswagen , Hyundai , Toyota , and BMW . Honda , BMW and Hyundai were the incorrect answers . On June 23 , 2011 ( his birthday ) , Tony appeared on Good Morning Texas to promote the Market Street Allen USA Celebration , a Fourth of July celebration held annually the last weekend of June in Allen . In honor of headline entertainer , Lou Gramm , Tony showcased his singing voice by performing a small portion of one of Foreigner ' s hit songs , " Hot Blooded . " Broadcasting . Hill was the color commentator for ArenaBowl V on Prime Network and was the color commentator for America One ' s Canadian Football League broadcasts during the Canadian Media Guild strike . He also serves as a color commentator on the Compass Media Networks for NFL and college football . Personal . Hill is the CEO of Legends Sports Promotions , Inc . , a company that raises funds for charitable organizations through celebrity basketball , softball , and football games as well as golf tournaments . Legends Sports Promotions also manages athletes for motivational and promotional events . Tony is also currently employed by the City of Allen Texas Parks & Recreation Department as a Recreation Services Manager . Tony and his wife Millie , have four children : Cassidy , Kelli , Leslie and Anthony . Cassidy attended Texas State University . Kelli played basketball at Southwestern University . Leslie played Soccer at Iowa St and was named offensive player of the year her senior year . Anthony received a basketball scholarship to Colgate University but then transferred to Houston Baptist University after his sophomore year . He was eligible to play basketball in the fall of 2011 .