Olathe North, K-State great Darren Sproles picked for Senior Bowl 75th Anniversary Team

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Former Olathe North and Kansas State football star Darren Sproles has been selected for the Senior Bowl 75th Anniversary Team in partnership with the NFL Players Association.

Sproles, a 2021 College Football Hall of Famer and 2015 inductee into the K-State Ring of Honor, is one of 41 players picked for the team. He was chosen as the team’s lone return specialist.

Fans, NFL general managers and Senior Bowl staff voted on the team, which also included former Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Patrick Surtain Sr.

Sproles, a 2003 first-team All-American, rushed for a Wildcats-record 4,979 yards and finished fifth in the Heisman Trophy voting.

He went on to play 16 years in the NFL with San Diego, New Orleans and Philadelphia.

Sproles, who was part of the Eagles’ Super Bowl LII championship squad, owns the Chargers’ career record for kickoff-return yards and set an NFL record with 2,696 all-purpose yards in 2011 with the Saints.

A three-time Pro Bowl selection, Sproles ranks sixth in NFL history with 19,696 all-purpose yards.

Sproles previously was chosen for the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s All-Decade Team for the 2010s and was picked for the Chargers’ 50th Anniversary Team.

The 2024 Reese’s Senior Bowl is set for noon on Feb. 3 in Mobile, Alabama.

The 75th Anniversary Team, which features 19 Pro Football Hall of Famers, will be honored at halftime of the game.

“The history of our game means everything to us here at the Senior Bowl, so this is a special announcement,” Senior Bowl Executive Director Jim Nagy said. “This 75th Anniversary Team includes many of the greatest players in NFL history and they are all legendary players for their respective franchises. We look forward to bringing these all-time greats back to where their NFL journeys started, the city of Mobile, Alabama. The Senior Bowl is grateful for our partners at the NFLPA for helping to make this celebration happen.”

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