Paul W. Bryant Museum: Exploring Alabama football legacy
Discover the legacy of Alabama football through artifacts, memorabilia and state-of-the-art displays at the Paul W. Bryant Museum
Gary Cosby Jr. and Chase Goodbread
Former Alabama linebacker Lee Roy Jordan, 84, has died, the Dallas Cowboys confirmed Saturday.
A native of Excel, Alabama, Jordan was a unanimous selection as an All-American as a senior in 1962.
He played on the Crimson Tide’s 1961 national championship team, its first national title under legendary coach Paul W. “Bear” Bryant. A team captain at Alabama, Jordan led a 1961 defense that posted six shutouts and didn’t allow more than seven points to any opponent in an 11-0 season. In his final game at Alabama, Jordan was credited with an incredible 31 tackles in a 17-0 win over Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl.
“He was one of the finest football players the world has ever seen. If runners stayed between the sidelines, he tackled them,” Bryant once said of Jordan, per the National Football Foundation. “He never had a bad day, he was 100% every day in practice and in the games.”
He went on become a first-round draft choice of the Cowboys (No. 6 overall) in 1963. He played a lengthy pro career of 14 seasons, all with the Cowboys, earning five Pro Bowl berths. He was a member of the Cowboys team that won Super Bowl VI, 24-3 over the Miami Dolphins in 1972. A year later, Jordan was named the NFC Defensive Player of the Year.
Jordan was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1983, and inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 1980.
Tuscaloosa News columnist Chase Goodbread is also the weekly co-host of Crimson Cover TV on WVUA-23. Reach him at cgoodbread@gannett.com. Follow on X.com @chasegoodbread.
