A. B. Whitfield, Jr. (born September 2, 1943) was a former American football running back in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys and Washington Redskins. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at the University of North Texas.

Early years

Whitfield attended Wilson White High School, where he started playing high school football as a sophomore. He moved on to North Texas State University where he played halfback and

fullback Fullback or Full back may refer to: Sports * A position in various kinds of football, including: ** Full-back (association football), in association football (soccer), a defender playing in a wide position ** Fullback (gridiron football), in Americ ...

. As a sophomore, he had 2 scores in eight seconds to help upset

West Texas State University West Texas A&M University (WTAMU or WT) is a public university in Canyon, Texas. It is the northernmost campus of the Texas A&M University System and accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). It was established on S ...

. As a senior, he posted 592 rushing yards (led the conference) and 2 touchdowns. He finished his college career with 936 rushing yards, 142 receiving yards and 8 touchdowns.

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys

Whitfield was not selected in the

1965 NFL Draft The 1965 National Football League draft was held at the Summit Hotel in New York City on Saturday, November 28, 1964. The first player selected was Tucker Frederickson, back from Auburn, by the New York Giants. The draft was marked by the failur ...

and was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Dallas Cowboys. He spent most of his rookie year in the team's taxi squad, before being waived in

1966 Events January * January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko. * January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...

Washington Redskins

The Washington Redskins claimed him off waivers on July 29,

. His best game came against the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...

, when both teams set the NFL record for most combined points (113) in a game, on November 27. Fourteen different players scored, with Whitfield accounting for two rushing touchdowns and one by reception. Although he was mostly used as a

change of pace running back In American football, a player informally known as a change-of-pace running back is a substitute for the starting running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running bac ...

, he led the Redskins in rushing in

(472 yards) and in

1967 Events January * January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair. * January 5 ** Spain and Romania sign an agreement in Paris, establishing full consular and ...

(384 yards). On September 16,

1969 This year is notable for Apollo 11's first landing on the moon. Events January * January 4 – The Government of Spain hands over Ifni to Morocco. * January 5 **Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes into a house on its approach to ...

, he was cut and later signed to the taxi squad. He was waived on November 6.

BC Lions (CFL)

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli intensity of X (''Extrem ...

, he signed with the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and was second in team rushing with 754 yards.

Denver Broncos

On August 2,

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses ( February 25, July 22 and August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 10, and August 6). The world population increased by 2.1% this year, the highest increase in history. Events Ja ...

, he was signed by the Denver Broncos. Even though he was the second leading rusher in preseason behind

Floyd Little Floyd Douglas Little (July 4, 1942 – January 1, 2021) was an American professional football player who was a halfback for the Denver Broncos, initially in the American Football League (AFL) and later the National Football League (NFL). He ...

, he was released on September 16.

Florida Blazers (WFL)

After being out of

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

for three years, he signed with the

Florida Blazers The Florida Blazers were an American football team who played in the World Football League in 1974. The team moved to San Antonio in 1975 and became the San Antonio Wings. History The Blazers began in 1974 when oceanographic engineer E. Joseph W ...

of the

World Football League The World Football League (WFL) was an American football league that played one full season in 1974 and most of its second in 1975. Although the league's proclaimed ambition was to bring American football onto a worldwide stage, the farthest t ...

(WFL) in

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; f ...

and finished with 202 rushing yards.

Personal life

Whitfield worked for

New York Life Insurance New York Life Insurance Company (NYLIC) is the third-largest life insurance company in the United States, the largest mutual life insurance company in the United States and is ranked #67 on the 2021 Fortune 500 list of the largest United State ...

until his retirement. A. D. Worked at Satellite West Jr. High School in Brooklyn, NY from 1978 to 1982 as a gym teacher.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Whitfield, A. B. 1943 births Living people People from Rosebud, Texas Players of American football from Texas American football running backs Canadian football running backs North Texas Mean Green football players Dallas Cowboys players Washington Redskins players BC Lions players Florida Blazers players