FRISCO, Texas – Anytime his name is mentioned, his teammates light up and cannot help but genuinely smile from ear to ear; this fun-loving Dallas Cowboy is center Joe Looney.
Looney grew up in Lake Worth Florida to a football family. His father played at the University of Louisville and brought football practice home to his family.
“ He got my brother and me into football at a young age. It was a big football family. We were watching college football on Saturday and NFL on Sunday. He would throw some stuff on the grill and he was actually our coach growing up. We did not even call him dad we called him coach. It paid off, he has two sons in the NFL: my brother is on the practice squad with the Green Bay Packers. “
Looney developed a pro football dream at a young age. He began to realize in fifth grade he was “bigger than some kids and could push some people around. “
His hard work paid off and in 2012 his dream became reality. Looney was drafted as a guard out of Wake Forest, in the fourth-round by the San Francisco 49ers. He was with the 49ers for three seasons (2012-14), before being picked up by the Tennessee Titans in 2015 as an unrestricted free agent. In 2016, Looney arrived in Dallas where the Cowboys signed him to a two-year contract.
He now enters the 2018 season, as the starting center in the Cowboy’s offensive line after Travis Frederick’s recent diagnosis with Guillain-Barre Syndrome. He worked closely with Frederick over the past two years as they discussed hypothetical play calls watching film together and Frederick gave him feedback after watching his snaps. In addition, Looney worked alongside Dak Prescott in 2016 before he became the starting quarterback, and he is ready to assume the full responsibility and role of center.
He has prepared daily for this moment, even though this is not the ideal way he would have chosen to enter the starting lineup. Frederick’s diagnosis came as a shock after he visited several doctors undergoing evaluations. The Cowboys frequently express that the “team is family” and one of their own is dealing with an off-the-field struggle. They are all hurting, but Looney is the right man for this job. His positive attitude and contagious smile are impacting the Cowboy’s offensive line and team as a whole, as they go through this transitional period and uncertainty of Frederick’s diagnosis. Looney hits a cord with each player on the roster and coaching staff bringing laughter back into the locker room with his hilarious impromptu dance moves, imitations of Frederick, and his approachable kindhearted spirit. He is the persona of a giant teddy bear! (Not at the line of scrimmage of course)!
The greatest influencers in his life are his parents and his kids. “Seeing them at games and their eyes light up is what definitely keeps me going. “
He is a regular family man that loves to swim with his family in the Texas heat and go “fishing with his pops. “ He is the type of man the Cowboy’s offense can depend on to be the new centerpiece that holds the line together and begins the play with each snap of the ball.
The reason behind Looney’s constant smile, “ faith in God.” He puts his complete trust in God’s plan for his life and fully intends to continue to enjoy life with a big smile on his face no matter what each day brings.
Joe Looney is a humble man that brightens up the room when he steps foot in the door. The best of luck to No. 73 on the field this season and there is no one more deserving of this opportunity!
