The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi

Merlin Olsen, a star in the NFL and on television’s Little House on the Prairie, was honored during halftime of Utah State’s men’s basketball game Saturday, December 5, 2009, where the university announced that the Aggies’ football field will be named in his honor. Olsen led the Aggies to multiple bowl games and the school’s highest poll ranking in its history, winning the Outland Trophy as the nation’s outstanding interior lineman after his senior season. The second overall pick in the 1962 NFL Draft and charter member of the Los Angeles Rams and the famed "Fearsome Foursome," Olsen was named to an NFL-record 14 Pro Bowls in his 15 professional seasons and did not miss a single game during his career. He was named the NFL’s Defensive Rookie of the Year in 1962, the league’s Most Valuable Lineman in 1973 and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1982.

Olsen was a three-time academic All-American at USU and graduated Summa Cum Laude and Phi Kappa Phi in 1962 with a degree in finance. He is also a member of the College Football Hall of Fame and Academic All-America Hall of Fame. After retiring from football, he worked as a broadcaster and had a successful acting career. Olsen had a prominent role on the popular television series Little House on the Prairie and then starred as Father Murphy in a lead role on that series.

Utah State University President Stan Albrecht said during the halftime ceremony, "I can’t think of anyone that has carried the Utah State banner so proudly and with such distinction over the course of a lifetime than has Merln Olsen. He has touched and influenced millions of people, not just through his success in the athletic and entertainment fields, but through the personal generosity and humanitarian service that have been so much a part of his life, and that of his wife and partner, Susan."

A dedication ceremony will be held next fall during the 2010 Aggie football season in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of USU’s 1960 Sun Bowl team, which was led by Olsen. There will also be a larger-than-life statue unveiled on the southeast corner of Romney Stadium by renowned sculpture Ken Buswell.

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