Junior Coffey
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Kyle, Texas, U.S.
Auburn, Washington, U.S.
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| Position | Running back | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
| Born | March 21, 1942 Kyle, Texas, U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Died | August 30, 2021 (aged 79) Auburn, Washington, U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 215 lb (98 kg) | ||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||
| High school | Dimmitt (TX) | ||||||||||||
| College | Washington | ||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 1965: 7th round, 94th overall pick | ||||||||||||
| AFL draft | 1965: 16th round, 122nd overall pick | ||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||
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| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||
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Junior Lee Coffey (March 21, 1942 – August 30, 2021) was an American professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) with the Green Bay Packers, Atlanta Falcons, and New York Giants.[1]
Born in Kyle, Texas, Coffey (6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 200 lb (91 kg)) with 10.2* speed in the 100 (yards), was one of the leading running backs and defensive linebackers in Texas high school football during the 1960s.[2][3] As a senior in 1960, he rushed for 1,562 yards in 11 games to lead the Dimmitt Bobcat offense.
In a bi-district playoff game against Olton during the 1960 season, Coffey carried the ball 34 times for 253 yards and scored both Dimmitt touchdowns despite leg cramps as the Bobcats fell 15-12 to Olton.
Coffey became an all-state performer for the Bobcats in football and basketball in the 1960-61 school year. He was previously incorrectly referred to as the first black athlete ever to play in a Texas UIL state basketball tournament in 1959-60. However, Bubba Ephriam, was the first. Ephriam played for Pecos High School starting in 1955 and played as the first black athlete in a Texas UIl Star tournament in 1957-58.
As a junior during the 1959 football season, he led the Dimmitt Bobcat offense with 1294 rushing yards on 165 carries and also led the defense with 185 tackles at linebacker.
College career
The Southwest Conference did not integrate until 1967, so Coffey had to leave the state to play major college football.[4] He attended the University of Washington in Seattle and played under head coach Jim Owens.[1] With the Huskies, Coffey was a three-time all-conference selection and was tabbed Honorable Mention All-American all three seasons. He finished his career as the second-leading ground gainer in school history.