Peter Nicholas Duranko[2] (December 15, 1943 – July 8, 2011) was a college and professional American football player. A defensive end, he played college football at the University of Notre Dame, and his professional career for the Denver Broncos. He had also been drafted by the Cleveland Browns. Duranko was an All-American and a member of Notre Dame's 1966 national champion team.
| No. 55 | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Defensive end |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | (1943-12-15)December 15, 1943 Johnstown, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Died: | July 8, 2011(2011-07-08) (aged 67) Windber, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Height: | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
| Weight: | 250 lb (113 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College: | Notre Dame |
| NFL draft: | 1966 / Round: 4 / Pick: 61 |
| AFL draft: | 1966 / Round: Red Shirt 2 / Pick: 12 (by the Denver Broncos)[1] |
| Career history | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Player stats at PFR | |
AtBishop McCort High School, he played football, ran track, and was a shot putter. He was inducted into the Pennsylvania State Hall of Fame.[3]
Duranko earned a Master's degree from St. Francis UniversityofLoretto, Pennsylvania. After his playing days, he became a steel company executive. Duranko died in 2011 from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), which he had had since 2000. Postmortem research showed that Duranko had developed chronic traumatic encephalopathy.[4] He was one of at least 345 NFL players to be diagnosed after death with this disease, which is caused by repeated hits to the head.[5][6]