FCHS Football Great “Dee” Dowis Killed in Wreck

Before he became the star quarterback for the U.S. Air Force Academy, Royston native Michael “Dee” Dowis was the star quarterback for the Franklin County High School Lions.

Dowis was killed in a wreck Monday in metro Atlanta.

According to the Gwinnett County Police, Dowis died in a wreck on I-85 Northbound about 5a Monday morning.

According to the Gwinnett Police Department’s Accident Investigation Unit, Dowis had entered the northbound lane of I-85 traveling in the wrong direction.

Dowis apparently realized his mistake and was trying to back his vehicle up in the center median when he was hit by a vehicle traveling northbound.

That vehicle hit Dowis’ car in the passenger side door.

INvestigators say Dowis was not wearing a seatbelt and died at the scene.

The driver of that car, identified as 22-year old Jeremy Weiss of Raleigh, NC suffered non-life threatening injuries and taken to Northeast Georgia Medical Center in Braselton.

Investigators said Weiss’ vehicle hit Dowis’ vehicle in the driver’s side door. Dowis was not wearing his seat belt and died at the scene of the crash.

Dowis, who lived in Greenville, was inducted into the Franklin County Sports Hall of Fame as a charter member on July 17, 1998 along with classmate and former NFL All-pro tackle Tony Jones.

Former Lions Football Coach Jeff Davis remembers Dowis as a determined young man with tremendous ability.

“He had God-given talent, but he worked at it,” Davis said. “He was one of those special athletes. He had the ability to see the open field. He had the ability to make good decisions, but he made good decisions on and off the field.”

Davis said while Dowis was not the biggest player on the field, he was one of the most supportive when it came to his teammates.

“You very seldom find this combination of greatness, yet being so humble,” Davis remembered. “He always recognized his teammates. He always gave them the credit they deserved. He always put them first. Dee didn’t care about all the hype. He just wanted to be successful and he wanted people around him to be successful.”

According to his Wikipedia biography, Dowis was generally regarded as one of the best option quarterbacks in NCAA history. He finished sixth in the Heisman Trophy voting in 1989.

As a quarterback for the U.S. Air Force Academy football team, Dowis set the NCAA Division I career record for rushing yards by a quarterback with 3,612, became the fifth player in Division I history to both pass and rush for 1,000 yards, was an honorable mention All-American, and was the Western Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year.

Dowis also set the NCAA record for most rushing touchdowns by a quarterback in a game with 6 (against San Diego State University in 1989).

He set the Western Athletic Conference record for most rushing yards by a quarterback in a game in the same game with 249.

Dowis’ 249 yard game was the Air Force school record for rushing in a single game by any player until October 13, 2007. The record was broken by Chad Hall, who had 256 rushing yards against Colorado State.

Dowis graduated from the Air Force Academy in 1990 and briefly served as a coach on the Air Force staff.

At the time of his death, Dowiss worked as a manager for Pfizer pharmaceuticals.

Dowis leaves behind a wife and two children.

“He left a great example for his kids. He left a great example for his family. It’s a sad day for the Franklin County Community, I can tell you that,” Davis said.

Funeral arrangements for Dee Dowis are incomplete and will be announced as they become available.

Dee Dowis was 48.