Former Spartan All-American Dorne Dibble Passes Away

EAST LANSING, Mich. – Former Michigan State All-American Dorne Dibble passed away on Thursday, March 1. He was 88.

A two-year letterwinner (1949-50) under Hall of Fame Coach Clarence "Biggie" Munn, Dibble earned first-team All-America honors as a senior in 1950 by Look Magazine. The Adrian, Michigan, native was a two-way player for Munn, seeing time at receiver and defensive end. He helped the Spartans hold their opponents to just 97 yards a game on the ground in 1950 as Michigan State closed the season ranked No. 8 in the final Associated Press Poll with an 8-1 record, marking the program's first-ever AP Top 10 finish. MSU defeated No. 3 Michigan, 14-7, on Sept. 30 and closed the year on a six-game winning streak.

The Spartans also finished ranked No. 19 in 1949 with a 6-3 mark as Dibble ranked second on the team with 11 catches for 274 yards and three touchdowns.

During his two seasons at Michigan State, Dibble caught a total of 16 passes for 363 yards and five TDs.

Following his senior season, Dibble played in two college all-star games (1951 East-West Shrine Game; 1951 Senior Bowl).

Dibble was selected in the third round (No. 33 overall) of the 1951 NFL Draft by Detroit and played six seasons with the Lions (1951; 1953-57). He was a member of two NFL Champion teams with the Lions (1953 and 1957). Dibble played in 68 games with Detroit and had 146 receptions for 2,552 yards and 19 TDs during his professional career.

Dibble was inducted into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame in 2014.