Donald Roy Simensen (September 11, 1926 – April 22, 1994) was an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

offensive tackle Offensive may refer to: * Offensive (military), type of military operation * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Fighting words, spoken words which would have a tendency to cause acts of violence by the ...

who played two seasons with the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

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at the University of St. Thomas.

Early life

Donald Roy Simensen was born on September 11, 1926, in

Minot, North Dakota Minot ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Ward County, North Dakota, United States, in the state's north-central region. It is most widely known for the Air Force base approximately north of the city. With a population of 48,377 at the 2 ...

. He attended Central High School in

Saint Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (often abbreviated St. Paul) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County, Minnesota, Ramsey County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, ...

College career

Simensen was a member of the St. Thomas Tommies of the University of St. Thomas from 1947 to 1950. He helped the Tommies win the

Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC ) is an List of NCAA conferences, intercollegiate athletic conference that competes in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division III, Division III. All 13 of the mem ...

championship each year from 1947 to 1949. He also played hockey for the Tommies. Simensen graduated from St. Thomas with a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

in 1951. He was inducted into the school's athletics hall of fame in 1974.

Professional career

Simensen signed with the

after going undrafted in the 1951 NFL draft. He played in all 12 games, starting 11 at tackle, for the Rams during his rookie year in 1951. He also started for the Rams in the 1951 NFL Championship Game, a 24–17 victory over the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...

. He appeared in 12 games, starting nine, during the 1952 season. He also started one playoff game that year. Simensen became a free agent after the 1952 season.

Personal life

Simensen was a teacher at high schools in

St. Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (often abbreviated St. Paul) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 311,527, making it Minnesota's second-most populous city a ...

after his NFL career. He died on April 22, 1994, in Fridley, Minnesota.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Simensen, Don 1926 births 1994 deaths Players of American football from North Dakota American football offensive tackles St. Thomas (Minnesota) Tommies football players Los Angeles Rams players Sportspeople from Minot, North Dakota Saint Paul Central High School alumni St. Thomas (Minnesota) Tommies men's ice hockey players