Terence Newman
Born: September 4, 1978 (Salina, Kansas)
Graduated: Salina Central High School, 1998 / Kansas State University, 2003


Our next entry is without a doubt the best athlete to come from the city of Salina, Kansas. Terence Newman was a multi-sport athlete while attending Salina Central, playing in football, baseball, basketball and track. In track, he ran a 10.36-second 100-meter dash and a 21.6-second 200-meter dash. However, his best sport was football. In his senior year, Newman had 251 yards and three touchdowns as a wide receiver, five interceptions as a cornerback and had two punt return touchdowns. As a result, he was an All-Class 5A selection for the Topeka Capital Journal and Wichita Eagle.

After his time at Salina, Newman went to play for the Kansas State Wildcats, led by Bill Snyder. In his junior year, Newman had 14 pass breakups and three interceptions, helping get him major recognition, including being a semifinalist for the Jim Thorpe Award, given to college football’s best defensive back and being named second-team All-Big 12.

As a senior, Newman had one of the best years a Kansas State defender has ever had. He had 14 pass breakups and five interceptions, was named first-team All-Big 12, Big 12 Conference Defensive Player of the Year, a unanimous first-team All-American and won the Jim Thorpe Award. Newman remains the only Wildcat to win the award.

Newman was selected with the fifth pick by the Dallas Cowboys in the 2003 NFL Draft, the highest a Wildcat had been selected since Veryl Switzer in 1954.

In his first two seasons of the NFL, Newman led the Cowboys in interceptions with four in each season. In 2005, Newman had seven turnovers, which was the best of his career. Newman made two Pro Bowls in his career, one in 2007 and the other in 2009. In 2010, Newman had five interceptions, his career-best.

Newman went from the Cowboys to the Cincinnati Bengals prior to the 2012 season, where he played three seasons with a total of five interceptions and three recovered fumbles. In 2015, Newman joined the Minnesota Vikings, where he played the final three seasons of his career.

Newman retired from playing football in 2018 after playing 15 seasons in the NFL and he immediately joined the Vikings’ coaching staff. Newman finished his NFL career with 42 career interceptions, 183 pass breakups and four defensive touchdowns, all of which are the most for any Kansas State alum in the NFL. Newman ranks tied for seventh in Cowboys’ history for interceptions with 32 in his nine seasons there. Newman is also one of just two cornerbacks in NFL history to have two or more interceptions in a single game at the age of 37, alongside Pro Football Hall of Famer Deion Sanders.

Newman was inducted into the Kansas State Hall of Fame in 2018.

Please welcome Terence Newman to the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame.

By: Sam Hays