Former KU Football Great Donnie Shanklin Passes Away

Sept. 4, 2009

Former Jayhawk football great and 1969 Orange Bowl MVP Donald “Donnie” Shanklin died Aug. 30, in his hometown of Amarillo, Texas, at the age of 62.

Shanklin’s funeral will be held Saturday, Sep. 5 at Mount Zion Baptist Church in Amarillo.

In the 1969 Orange Bowl, Shanklin handled the ball 19 times gaining 122 all-purpose yards and was voted the game’s most valuable player. A three-year letterwinner from 1966-68, Shanklin led KU in rushing in 1966 gaining 732 yards on 182 attempts. Shanklin was a star athlete in both track and field and football at Carver High School in Amarillo prior to KU.

After the star Jayhawk was finished in Lawrence he continued his playing career in the NFL, Canadian Football League and World Football League. In his later years, he was a professional golfer.

Shanklin leaves behind his wife, Juanita Bradley-Shanklin, three sisters, seven brothers, eight children, 26 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.