A Coffey Break We Never Wanted: Great Husky Runner Dies at 79

The Texan was the first oversized back to join the program and twice led the league in rushing.

No one could bring down Junior Coffey easily. He was the first oversized University of Washington running back, a powerful and slashing 6-foot-2, 215-pound Texan who terrorized West Coast defenses in the 1960s.

On Monday, the former Husky and NFL rusher turned successful Northwest thoroughbred trainer, died of congestive heart failure at a Federal Way, Washington, hospital. He was 79.

From football-crazed Dimmitt, a devoted "Friday Night Lights" town of 5,000 people in the Texas panhandle, Coffey left home and came to Seattle to play his college football because his home state Southwest Conference wouldn't integrate its teams until 1967. He picked the Huskies over Illinois, Kansas, Missouri and Minnesota.

With that memorable Junior Coffey name bringing him plenty of attention, he burst onto the scene as a breakaway sophomore fullback in 1962 and led the AAUW, one of the Pac-12 precursors, in rushing by averaging 6 yards per carry. 

"He had a very unique style, with those long legs," said Ron Medved, a former teammate and fellow UW running back. "He kind of stomped when he ran and you better not be in the way." 

Coffey scored 8 times in 10 games that first season, streaking to the end zone from 57 yards out against California and 43 yards away against Oregon State. 

It was all quite a feat considering that Coffey, caught up in prevailing racial inequities, did his running while primarily coming off the bench. 

While the UW was more welcoming of African-American players than the Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas schools, the Husky football program wasn't totally accommodating to him back then — even as the league's top rusher, Coffey started just one game during his team's 7-1-2 season that just missed out on earning a Rose Bowl berth. 

Husky fans clamored for him to play more, chanting his name during games. Teammates confided to him that he should be carrying the ball at a greater frequency. Future NFL players such as Terry Metcalf grew up in Seattle pretending to be Junior Coffey.

UW assistant coach Chesty Walker works with Junior Coffey.  / Dan Raley

However, Husky coach Jim Owens, who was accused of unfair racial practices multiple times during his time at the UW, felt a star system would negatively impact his program, especially if that headline player was black. 

"I was one of the first guys to get the crowd's attention because of my running style, and with Jim Owens it was the Washington Huskies and no one was bigger than them," Coffey said.

In 1963, Coffey suffered three stress fractures in his feet, greatly restricting his play throughout a Rose Bowl season. He broke his right foot during spring practice and again on the eve of the season opener, and he splintered his left one during bowl practice. 

He sat out the first four games of that season, which was interrupted by the assassination death of President John F. Kennedy in Dallas. The big back played only briefly on New Year's Day against Illinois, a 17-7 loss, unable to get going because of his injured foot. 

With a healthy Coffey, the Huskies certainly would have been a much better team than their 6-5 record. 

"We won have won the game," Medved said, imagining a healthy Junior, "and we would have won others, too."

As a senior, Coffey suffered more foot problems while continuously forced to wear shoes that didn't fit by a demanding UW trainer. He also ran afoul of Owens, who didn't think he was always running hard enough, unaware of the player's foot problems. Still, he led the conference again in rushing with 638 yards over 10 games.

Coffey played professionally with the Green Bay Packers for the legendary Vince Lombardi and won an NFC championship, and later for the Atlanta Falcons and the New York Giants. He suffered a knee injury that ended his career, finishing with 2,037 yards and 15 touchdowns rushing. 

He returned to the Seattle area and became a horse trainer for several decades at local tracks Longacres and then Emerald Downs, with the latter putting together the above film on his life. His horses and stalls were decorated with NFL memorabilia. He came away satisfied with how everything had turned out for him.

"Really, I've had a rosy life, even with all these adversities," Coffey said. "It taught me a lot. What I learned is you stand up for yourself, no matter what consequences."

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