(ALBUQUERQUE) Former Dallas Cowboys star running back Don Perkins died at the age of 84 on Thursday.
Posted yesterday at 7:20 p.m.
The Cowboys and the University of New Mexico, where Perkins excelled before turning pro, confirmed the news. No cause of death has been revealed.
Perkins rushed for 6,217 yards in 107 games with the Cowboys from 1961 to 1968, and ranks fourth on the team behind Football Hall of Famers Emmitt Smith and Tony Dorsett and Ezekiel Elliott. Perkins’ 42 touchdowns rank him fifth in Cowboys history.
Although he had originally been selected by the Baltimore Colts in the ninth round of the 1960 draft, Perkins had previously come to an agreement with the Cowboys, then an expansion team. The Dallas squad earned their rights after sending a ninth-round pick to the Colts.
Perkins missed the Cowboys’ inaugural season with a broken foot. In 1961, he rushed for 815 yards and finished third in the voting for NFL Rookie of the Year. He had a career-high 945 rushing yards in 1962.
During his NFL career, Perkins was selected to the Pro Bowl six times.
Born in Waterloo, Iowa, Perkins played with the University of New Mexico from 1957 to 1959. He served as captain the last two seasons when Marv Levy was the Lobos’ head coach.
Perkins moved back to the Albuquerque area after his NFL career.
“Don is one of the best Lobos and definitely one of the best football players to ever wear the University of New Mexico uniform. He was an amazing student-athlete and had a great career in the NFL. But he was more than that, said University of New Mexico athletic director Eddie Nuñez. He came back to New Mexico and he worked for the state. He was a wonderful ambassador for many people. »