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EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. — Minnesota Vikings star Adrian Peterson signed the biggest NFL contract ever given to a running back before the 2011 season opened. Now he's sharing the wealth.
The University of Oklahoma announced Thursday that Peterson — who signed a seven-year, $100 million deal last September with $36 million guaranteed — donated $1 million to the university's athletic department, the largest gift ever given to the program by a former Sooners football player.
"This was something that I had been thinking about doing for a long time," Peterson said in an report on SoonerSports.com, the website for the school's athletic programs. "I always hoped to be in a position to be able to donate back to the University of Oklahoma and make it an even better place; do whatever I could to help the university that did so much for me.
"It was something that I always wanted to do, and there just came a time when I got established and comfortable enough to make it happen. It was a no-brainer to do it, and I am thankful that I'm in a position to give back to OU and to show my appreciation."
Peterson, 27, agreed to his big NFL deal with the Vikings after gaining at least 1,200 rushing yards and double-digit touchdowns in each of his first four seasons. He was drafted by Minnesota with the No. 7 overall pick in 2007 and was named the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year after rushing for 1,341 yards, including an NFL-record 296 in one game.
Peterson is currently rehabbing from knee surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament and torn medial collateral ligament suffered at the end of last season. Because of that, he finished just shy of 1,000 yards for the first time in his NFL career after dealing with a high ankle sprain and the knee injury, which cut short his season in Week 16.
Peterson initially slipped to the Vikings in the 2007 draft because of a collarbone injury, which had scared teams away. He was coming off a three-year career with Oklahoma in which he accumulated 4,045 rushing yards — the third-highest total in school history — and was a three-time All-Big 12 selection. He finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting as a freshman in 2004 when he set Oklahoma's school record with 1,925 yards rushing, also an NCAA freshman record.
In recognition of Peterson's donation to Oklahoma, the football team's meeting room will be renamed The Adrian Peterson Team Meeting Room. Peterson's donation will help support the construction of a new student-housing facility on campus named Headington Hall, and will also establish the Adrian Peterson Football Scholarship Endowment.
In the report on SoonerSports.com, Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops said, "Adrian is certainly special. He possessed great natural ability, but never took that ability or his teammates for granted, and it was common for him to place the interests of others above his own. I'm excited that his name will appear in Headington Hall to remind others of his example of selfless dedication and generosity. I'm also grateful to him for helping us continue the great Sooner legacy."
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