American football player
 Elkins in 1928 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born: | (1899-08-16)August 16, 1899 Utica, New York |
| Died: | August 10, 1966(1966-08-10) (aged 67) Philadelphia |
| Height: | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
| Weight: | 190 lb (86 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Haskell (KS) |
| College: | Haskell, Southeastern State Teachers (Durant, Oklahoma), Dallas University, Nebraska |
| Position: | Back |
| Career history | |
| |
| Stats at Pro Football Reference | |
Fait Vernon "Chief" Elkins (August 16, 1899 – August 9, 1966) was an American football player and decathlete.
Elkins was born in Utica, New York, in 1899. He enrolled at the Haskell Indian School at age 15. He played college football at Haskell (1921–1923), Southeastern State Teachers College, Dallas University, and Nebraska (1926–1927). He held the national decathlon record in 1928 while attending Nebraska. He pulled a tendon that prevented him from competing in the 1928 Summer Olympics.
Elkins also played professional football the National Football League (NFL) as a back for the Frankford Yellow Jackets (1928–1929), Chicago Cardinals (1929), and Cincinnati Reds (1933). He appeared in 20 NFL games, 10 as a starter.
Elkins died in Philadelphia in 1966.
He was posthumously profiled by Sports Illustrated in 1991 as "among the greatest athletes ever seen in this country — a golden sportsman during sport's golden age."
References
- ^ Bob Gilbert (October 16, 1991). "The Twists of Fait". Sports Illustrated.
- "Packers Expect Stiff Opposition From Cardinals". The Post-Crescent. October 3, 1929 – via Newspapers.com.
- "Lo! Another Indian Hope". Fort Worth Record-Telegram. June 14, 1928.
- "Decathlon Star Plans Hard Work: 'Chief' Elkins Quits College To Train For Olympics; Now In New York". News and Observer. February 19, 1928 – via Newspapers.com.
- "Elkins Probably Lost to U.S. Olympic Squad". The Lincoln Star. July 3, 1928. p. 10 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Chief Elkins". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
- "Fait Elkins obituary". The Philadelphia Inquirer. August 12, 1966.
External links
Media related to Chief Elkins at Wikimedia Commons
