Q&A with Hart Lee Dykes

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Another ex-athlete wishing he did all the kinds of things that today's Patriots demand out of each and every player and living to regret that he didn't.

It's funny that everybody that remembers him with us thinks he was a total bust and a joke, but I happen to believe that he would have been a pretty damn good pro if not for the injuries and the infamous Club Shalimar fight that greased the skids.

He showed flashes of being an Anquan Boldin-type on the field. A classic example of undisciplined talent, but he definitely had the talent.
 
Hawg73 said:
Another ex-athlete wishing he did all the kinds of things that today's Patriots demand out of each and every player and living to regret that he didn't.

It's funny that everybody that remembers him with us thinks he was a total bust and a joke, but I happen to believe that he would have been a pretty damn good pro if not for the injuries and the infamous Club Shalimar fight that greased the skids.

He showed flashes of being an Anquan Boldin-type on the field. A classic example of undisciplined talent, but he definitely had the talent.
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I don't know why anyone would call him a bust. He simply was snake bitten, as he blew out his knee twice (I forget if it was the same knee twice, or if one was on each side). There's no doubt in my mind he had talent, and if he could have stayed healthy, I think he would have had a fine career.

It's such a shame, what could have been.
 
dchester said:
I don't know why anyone would call him a bust. He simply was snake bitten, as he blew out his knee twice (I forget if it was the same knee twice, or if one was on each side). There's no doubt in my mind he had talent, and if he could have stayed healthy, I think he would have had a fine career.

It's such a shame, what could have been.
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Bull......he played two seasons and did little except get in trouble off the field. For a first round draft choice his production was poor.

In his third year, he fractured his knee cap while coming down with a pass in the Phoenix game, then the next season he fractured the other knee cap while simply tossing a fooball back and forth. That smacks of steroids to me. Knee caps don't usually fracture in non contact situations.

Besides throwing everyone under the bus in his muli-school recruiting scandle..... after he retired, he staged a phony home invasion/armed robbery, at a pool party that he threw at his house in Texas.The police were called, and when they showed up they found everyone tied up by the pool. It was all staged, because he was trying to defraud the insurance company.

The guy is a scumbag of the highest order. I used to see him around town once in a while. He hung out with Irving Fryar a lot. Fryar was always an outgoing, friendly guy, but Dykes was a total jerk.

I had to laugh at the article that was linked. He says that he WAS in real estate for a while, but now he's just a dad. In other words, he doesn't have a job. Not surprising.
 
BluVayner said:
The guy is a scumbag of the highest order. I used to see him around town once in a while. He hung out with Irving Fryar a lot. Fryar was always an outgoing, friendly guy, but Dykes was a total jerk.
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People said similar things about Irving Fryar in his early years, but he ended up having a pretty good career. I don't know either of them personally, so I can't speak to the character stuff.
 
Hart Lee was the poster child for having his hand out during recruitment. He got like 5 schools in trouble for recruiting violations. Think he picked Ok State after they gave him a convertible.

Could he have had a great career? Sure.

But all I'm saying is his "sense of entitlement" is not one I would associate with players who "go the extra mile" to turn God given talent into a great career..
 
I always had mixed feelings about HLD. In the end the injuries got him, but when he was on the field, I always felt he didn't take advantage enough. But hey, he was a Pat so I cheered and rooted.

That said, I don't think that either he or the interviewer brought jack #&*$ to the Q&A.

Cheers, BostonTim
 
dchester said:
People said similar things about Irving Fryar in his early years, but he ended up having a pretty good career. I don't know either of them personally, so I can't speak to the character stuff.
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Irving wasn't that bad of a guy. He just had cutlery problems.

The knife in the kitchen, the fork in the road and a spoon up his nose.
 
Hawg73 said:
Irving wasn't that bad of a guy. He just had cutlery problems.

The knife in the kitchen, the fork in the road and a spoon up his nose.
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Very clever, Hawg! Fryer was a bit tempestuous early; then he found religion and became a good guy. He was a heck of a receiver though.
 
I'll go to my grave believing Irving Fryar helped throw the game when Nebraska was upset by Miami in the Orange Bowl. His contribution is at the 5:00 minute mark of the video...


<iframe title="YouTube video player" width="480" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/bdRlQWQCRfU" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
 
Number Cruncher said:
I'll go to my grave believing Irving Fryar helped throw the game when Nebraska was upset by Miami in the Orange Bowl. His contribution is at the 5:00 minute mark of the video...
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I remember that game well. I believe that Tom Osborne blew the National Championship for Nebraska with a bone head decision. The Cornhuskers only needed a tie to win the National Championship.

Entering the 4th quarter they were down 31-17. They needed 15 points to win the game outright, or 14 points to tie, and still win the national championship. They didn't score the first touchdown until there were about 6 minutes left in the game. Knowing that they needed 15 points to win, they should have gone for two points right then and there. If they get it, they would only need to score 7 more points to win. If they miss it, they still have the opportunity to go for two again, and secure the tie, and the National Championship. Essentially you're getting two chances at the two point conversion for the Championship. If you miss the first attempt, you try again, and don't have the stigma attached that you were a team that went for the tie, when they had a chance to win the game. It's a win/win move. You try to win it, but you still have the tie to fall back on without shame.

This is not something that I figured out in hindsight. This is what I was yelling at my tv that night as I watched the game.
 
Hart Lee Dykes was at worst a decent player, when he was out there (not injured). But he was on a bad team...that 1989 had those 3 big injuries in the one exhibition game against Green Bay (Veris, Lippett, and Tippett if memory serves). Grogan was on his very last legs; they did have John Stevens who was good at runningback. But they were generally awful that year, and Raymond Berry was going out as coach too...very little good leadership on that squad.

A bad team for Dykes to be drafted into. And his injuries....
 
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