Don Dufek - Youth

Youth

Dufek grew up in Ann Arbor, the son of former fullback, Don Dufek, Sr., who was named Most Valuable Player of the 1950 Michigan Wolverines football team and the MVP of the 1951 Rose Bowl. In 1971, Dufek played linebacker for Ann Arbor Pioneer High School and was one of only three unanimous picks for the major All-State football teams in the State of Michigan, as selected by the United Press International (UPI), Associated Press (AP), and Detroit Free Press. The coach of Pioneer's cross-town rival Huron High School said of Dufek in 1971: "He's the best I've seen."

In a 2003 interview with the Grand Rapids Press, Dufek recalled growing up in Ann Arbor and meeting his father's Michigan teammates. "Living in Ann Arbor, and seeing all the things that embody a great university, you learned that there were highly successful people in athletics, and it just made you want to feel a part of it. Then, as you got older, and you got more deeply involved in the game yourself, you just hoped that you had a chance to play in college -- and after watching all those games at Michigan Stadium, that maybe Michigan would take a chance on you."