Sept. 22, 2006

Frank Ditta, an All-America offensive guard on Baylor's 1980 Southwest Conference championship team, will be honored as the Legend of the Game during Saturday's Baylor-Army football game at Floyd Casey Stadium.

A native of Houston and a three-year letterman for Baylor from 1978-80, Ditta was a second-team All-Southwest Conference selection as a junior in 1979 when the Bears beat Clemson, 24-18, in the Peach Bowl to cap an 8-4 season.

Ditta served as a team captain on Baylor's 1980 SWC championship team which went 10-2 and played in the Cotton Bowl. He earned consensus All-Southwest Conference honors in his final Green & Gold campaign and was selected The Dallas Morning News' SWC Offensive Player of the Year after helping to pave the way for running back Walter Abercrombie to rush for a school-record 1,187 yards. As a team, the 1980 Bears rushed for a school-record 296.8 yards per contest. Ditta also garnered 1980 first-team All-America honors from The Associated Press.

Following his standout career at Baylor, Ditta was drafted in the ninth round of the 1981 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears.

He is the third former Bear great to be honored in 2006, following in the footsteps of Ronnie Bull (TCU) and Robin "Big Cat" Jones (Northwestern State).