Don Peterson (American football)
Donald Williams "Jiggs"[1] Peterson (April 26, 1928 – July 20, 2010)[2] was an American football player. He played college football for the University of Michigan from 1948 to 1951 and was selected as the Most Valuable Player of the 1951 Michigan Wolverines football team
Michigan Wolverines | |
![]() Peterson from the 1952 Michiganensian | |
Born: | April 26, 1928 St. Louis, Missouri |
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Died: | July 20, 2010 (aged 82) |
Career information | |
Position(s) | Fullback/Halfback |
Height | 5 ft 10 in (178 cm) |
Weight | 175 lb (79 kg) |
College | University of Michigan |
High school | St. Catherine's High School (Racine, Wisconsin) |
Career history | |
As player | |
1948–1951 | Michigan |
Career highlights and awards | |
Awards | Most Valuable Player, 1951 Michigan Wolverines football team |
A native of Racine, Wisconsin, Peterson attended St. Catherine's High School and played football for the St. Catherine's Angels championship football team in 1945.[1]
![](../I/m/Don_Peterson_(1951).jpg)
He later enrolled at the University of Michigan and played football for the Michigan Wolverines football teams from 1948 to 1951.[3][4][5][6] He played in the 1951 Rose Bowl game and finished the 1951 season as the fourth leading ground gamer in the Big Ten Conference.[7] During the 1951 season, he scored two touchdowns against Iowa and rushed for a career-high 104 yards against Illinois. In his final game for Michigan, Peterson rushed for 70 yards and scored the only touchdown in a 7-0 win over Ohio State.[8] At the end of the 1951 season, he was selected as the Most Valuable Player on the 1951 Michigan Wolverines football team.[7] His older brother, Tom Peterson, played fullback for Michigan in 1944-1949.[7][9] Don was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the 17th round (196th overall pick) of the 1952 NFL Draft.[10]
References
- "Knights of Columbus Honor Angel Athletes at Banquet". Racine Journal Times. 1953-12-07.
- "Donald William Peterson". Muehlig Funeral Chapel. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
- "1948 Michigan football roster". University of Michigan, Bentley Historical Library. Archived from the original on 2010-08-19.
- "1949 Football Team". University of Michigan, Bentley Historical Library.
- "1950 Football Team". University of Michigan, Bentley Historical Library.
- "1951 Football Team". University of Michigan, Bentley Historical Library.
- "Don Peterson Named Most Valuable at U-M". Ironwood Daily Globe (AP story). 1959-11-29.
- "Michigan Stops Ohio State and Janowicz". The Sunday Star. 1951-11-25.
- "1948 Football Team". University of Michigan, Bentley Historical Library.
- "1952 NFL Player Draft". databasefootball.com. Archived from the original on 2010-09-09. Retrieved 2010-08-01.