1. Don Cooper "Dopey" Phelps was an American football halfback and defensive back who played for the Cleveland Browns in the National Football League in the early 1950s.
11 Facts About Don Phelps
1. 2.
Don Phelps led the nation that year in kickoff and punt returns and set a Kentucky single-season return yardage record.
3.
Don Phelps was suspended for most of the 1948 season for breaking team rules, but he returned in 1949, when Kentucky played in the Orange Bowl.
4.
Cleveland won the NFL championship in 1950, when Don Phelps served mainly as a punt and kickoff return man.
5.
Don Phelps worked for the state of Kentucky after leaving football.
6.
Don Phelps grew up in Danville, Kentucky, and played football at Danville High School, where he got the nickname "Dopey" from a comic strip character.
7.
Don Phelps was often in trouble with Bryant for team rule violations, and was suspended for most of 1948, his junior season.
8.
Don Phelps was used primarily on kickoffs and punts, registering 499 total return yards and one punt return for a touchdown in 1950.
9.
Don Phelps had 198 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown.
10.
Don Phelps's production declined in his second year to 65 rushing yards and 69 return yards.
11.
Don Phelps had just five punt returns in 1952, his final season with the Browns.