Dottley played
high school football in
McGehee, Arkansas. At
Ole Miss, Dottley was the first
running back in the school's history to record back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons in 1949–1950. He also holds the single season rushing record of 1312 yards in 1949. In his autobiography, Hall of Famer Art Donovan paid Dottley this tribute: "They talk about Walter Payton making people pay for bringing him down, but Payton's nothing but a Fancy Dan compared to a halfback who used to play for the Bears named John Dottley, a tough big kid from Mississippi." ==NFL career statistics==