Hokie Gajan
| No. 46 | |||||||||
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| Position: | Running back | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | September 6, 1959 Baker, Louisiana, U.S. | ||||||||
| Died: | April 11, 2016 (aged 56) New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height: | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 220 lb (100 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Baker | ||||||||
| College: | LSU | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 1981 / round: 10 / pick: 249 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Howard Lee "Hokie" Gajan Jr. (September 6, 1959 – April 11, 2016) was an American professional football player who was a running back for five seasons with the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the LSU Tigers.
Biography
[edit]Gajan played football at Baker High School in Baker, Louisiana, and he received a scholarship to play at Louisiana State University (LSU).[1] He was drafted out of LSU by the New Orleans Saints in the 1981 NFL draft.[2]
In 1984, the same season Los Angeles Rams running back Eric Dickerson set a new NFL single season rushing record, Gajan led all NFL rushers (with 100 or more attempts) in yards gained per attempt (102 carries, 615 yards; a 6.03 ypc average). Through 2015, he remains one of 19 NFL running backs to exceed six yards per carry in a (100 or more attempt) season.
Missing the 1986 season due to a knee injury, Gajan retired after the 1987 season after injuring the opposite knee.[3] During his career, Gajan rushed for 1,358 yards and 11 touchdowns, and also had 515 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Gajan worked as a scout for the Saints before he entered broadcasting. He was the color commentator alongside Jim Henderson on Saints radio broadcasts. In the fall of 2015, he was diagnosed with a rare cancer known as liposarcoma. Gajan died on April 11, 2016.[4] He was the 2016 recipient of the Joe Gemelli Fleur-De-Lis Award, an annual award honoring a person for contributions to the Saints organization. Gajan's award was voted in March and was announced posthumously.[5]
References
[edit]- ^ Massa, Dominic (April 12, 2016). "Hokie Gajan, beloved former Saints player, dies at 56". WWL-TV. Retrieved April 12, 2016.
- ^ Walker, Rod (April 11, 2016). "Report: Hokie Gajan moved to ICU after latest round of cancer tests". The Advocate. Retrieved April 12, 2016.
- ^ "New Orleans Saints mourn the loss of Hokie Gajan". New Orleans Saints. April 12, 2016. Retrieved April 12, 2016.
- ^ Triplett, Mike (April 12, 2016). "Hokie Gajan, ex-Saints fullback, radio voice, dies at 56 of cancer". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 12, 2016.
- ^ "Hokie Gajan to be honored with Joe Gemelli Fleur de Lis award"[permanent dead link], New Orleans Saints, April 12, 2016.
- 1959 births
- 2016 deaths
- Baker High School (Louisiana) alumni
- American football running backs
- LSU Tigers football players
- New Orleans Saints announcers
- New Orleans Saints players
- National Football League announcers
- Players of American football from Baton Rouge, Louisiana
- Deaths from liposarcoma
- Deaths from cancer in Louisiana
- Sportspeople from East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana