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23 Facts About Jim Hudson

1.

James Clark Hudson was a professional American football defensive back.

2.

Jim Hudson was one of the first players to ever win a national championship in college and a Super Bowl as a professional.

3.

Jim Hudson played for the New York Jets from 1965 to 1970, playing in both the American Football League and National Football League.

4.

Jim Hudson started in Super Bowl III for the Jets, and made a key interception just before the end of the first half.

5.

Jim Hudson was born in Steubenville, Ohio, but he grew up in La Feria, TX, where his father, Maurice, a retired steelworker, had settled with his family.

6.

Jim Hudson was a stand-out athlete, excelling in basketball, track and football in high school.

7.

Jim Hudson played at various times wide receiver, running back, defensive back and quarterback at Texas and returned punts.

8.

Jim Hudson began at Texas in 1961, and in 1962, his first year on the varsity, he played wingback and defensive back.

9.

Jim Hudson was moved to quarterback at the start of the 1964 season, but he was injured before the season started and replaced by Marvin Kristynik.

10.

Jim Hudson's only start at quarterback came in the 2nd week against Texas Tech.

11.

Jim Hudson was injured on the first scoring play at the end of the first quarter and replaced by Kristynik for good.

12.

Kristynik struggled early, and Jim Hudson was put in after a penalty turned a punt into a first down.

13.

Jim Hudson hit George Sauer, his future teammate in Super Bowl III, for a 69-yard touchdown pass and helped lead Texas to victory.

14.

Undrafted, Jim Hudson was signed by the Jets as a defensive back in 1965 joining his former teammate Sauer and opponent Namath.

15.

Jim Hudson only played in 2 games in 1965, but he saw much more playing time from 1966 to 1969, recording 14 career interceptions over that period.

16.

Jim Hudson knocked down another likely touchdown at the goal line in the 4th forcing another field goal.

17.

Jim Hudson played through three knee operations and a bad back, then retired after six seasons.

18.

When, in the 1970s, one of his clients asked him to join him the horse-racing business, Jim Hudson became a successful trainer of quarter horses in Texas.

19.

Jim Hudson then switched to training thoroughbred horses in the 1980s, racing them at Louisiana Downs and then Oaklawn Park in Arkansas.

20.

Jim Hudson was inducted into the University of Texas Men's Hall of Honor in 2012.

21.

Jim Hudson later returned to Austin, Texas where he lived with his second wife Lise, until his death there on June 25,2013.

22.

Jim Hudson died from what was originally deemed Parkinson's dementia, but since doctor's believed this had been caused by football-related trauma; his brain and spine were donated to researchers studying the relationship between head trauma and neurological disease at Boston University.

23.

Jim Hudson was one of at least 345 NFL players to be diagnosed after death with this disease, which is caused by repeated hits to the head.