Peter Gent

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Peter Gent (August 23, 1942 – September 30, 2011) was an American athlete and author. He played in the National Football League (NFL) as a wide receiver and later became a best-selling novelist.

Early life
Gent grew up in Bangor, Michigan, and went to Bangor High School, where he excelled in four sports: football, basketball, baseball, and track. He led his basketball team to the 1960 state championship and earned a reputation as a standout athlete.

College career
Gent attended Michigan State University, where he played basketball from 1962 to 1964 as a center/forward. He became the first Spartan to lead the team in scoring for three consecutive seasons, averaging 21 points per game in his senior year and finishing with 1,146 career points. He earned All-Big Ten honors (third team in 1963 and second team in 1964) and received the Big Ten Medal of Honor in 1964 for excellence in both scholarship and athletics. Gent graduated with a BA in advertising. He was later honored as a Distinguished Alumnus (2005).

Professional football career
Despite never playing college football, Gent caught the eye of the Dallas Cowboys and earned a spot at their 1964 training camp. He started out as a defensive back but, at 6’4” and 205 pounds, proved best suited for wide receiver, turning down an NBA offer from the Baltimore Bullets to join the Cowboys. He became a productive receiver by his second season, sharing time with Buddy Dial and Bob Hayes. In 1965 he had 16 receptions for 233 yards and 2 touchdowns; in 1966 he started 10 games, making 27 receptions for 474 yards and 1 touchdown, and helped the Cowboys win their division and reach the NFL Championship Game (where they lost to the Green Bay Packers). In 1967 he moved to tight end and played 7 games; in 1968 he appeared in 10 games with 16 receptions for 194 yards. Gent’s NFL career was shortened by knee and back problems, and he retired after five seasons. He briefly joined the New York Giants in 1969 but was waived before the season began.

Writing career
After football, Gent became a novelist who wrote about the sport. His best-known work, North Dallas Forty (1973), is a semi-autobiographical novel featuring a quarterback and a wide receiver—believed to be based on Don Meredith and Gent himself. The book scrutinized the NFL’s approach to drug use and other hypocrisies. The novel was adapted into a 1979 film starring Nick Nolte and Mac Davis, for which Gent wrote the screenplay. He later published a sequel, North Dallas After 40 (1989), and additional works including Texas Celebrity Turkey Trot (1979), The Franchise (1983), and The Conquering Heroes (1994), which explored college basketball. Gent was part of a Dallas circle of writers known as the Mad Dogs.

Personal life
Gent had two children, Holly and Carter Davis Gent. He spent many years in Texas but lived in Bangor, Michigan at the time of his death. He died from a pulmonary disease on September 30, 2011, at age 69.

Legacy
Gent is remembered for his multi-sport talent in his youth, his successful though injury-shortened NFL career, and his influential novels that offered a candid look at professional sports in America. His work North Dallas Forty remains a landmark in sports literature.