Merlin Olsen Biography

Fast Facts

• Won the Outland Trophy for the nation's best interior lineman at Utah State in 1961
• Graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Utah State
• Was a first-round draft pick (third overall) in 1962 by the Los Angeles Rams
• With Deacon Jones, Lamar Lundy and Rosey Grier, made up the Fearsome Foursome, one of the NFL's all-time great defensive lines
• Played together with his brother Phil on the Rams from 1971 to '74
• Named to 14 consecutive Pro Bowls, beginning in his rookie season
• Also named NFL MVP in 1974 by the Maxwell Club
• Earned his masters in economics from Utah State while playing for the Rams
• Retired from the NFL in 1976, signing on with NBC the following year to work as a broadcaster opposite Dick Enberg
• Joined Little House on the Prairie in 1977 as Michael Landon's new sidekick Jonathan Garvey
• Starred in his own series, Father Murphy, in 1981
• Named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1982
• Was commercial spokesman for FTD Florists
• In 2009, Utah State's football field was named in his honor, Merlin Olsen Field
• Diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2009, he sued NBC and other companies for allowing him to be exposed to asbestos
• He succumbed to the disease in 2010