(DALLAS, May 19, 2019) – Friends of Clint Murchison Jr., an alliance of former Dallas Cowboys players, including six Hall of Fame inductees, as well as former executives and family members from the franchise’s leadership, this week will recommend the founder of the Dallas Cowboys as a candidate for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. This year, the group will emphasize the critical role the Dallas Cowboys original owner, Clint Murchison Jr., had in redefining NFL stadiums when he personally conceived, developed and built Texas Stadium.

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When Clint Murchison led the new stadium’s groundbreaking in 1969, few people realized he would produce a sophisticated, modern, money-making venue unlike any other in the NFL. At the time, most teams played in civic facilities; dual or multi-purpose stadiums shared with Major League Baseball; college venues; and even stadiums built for high school teams.  

Dallas Cowboys CEO and Executive Vice-President Stephen Jones underlined Murchison’s NFL leadership and his role as a game-changer in a video produced by the committee.

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“Clint was ahead of his time when he built Texas Stadium,” Jones said. “He was obviously cutting-edge when he came up with selling seat options. Now they call them Personal Seat Licenses (PSLs) in the NFL, and they're really the fundamental basis of how stadiums are financed.”

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Jones emphasized the fact that Murchison created the private funding model that is still used today to construct NFL stadiums, as well as other sports facilities around the world.

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Other experts echoed the belief that Murchison was a genius “way ahead of his time” because his design for Texas Stadium was the first to use luxury suites on a large scale. The stadium opened with 178 luxury suites, but Murchison left room for future owners to increase the total to some 400 suites.

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“Clint Murchison created the prototype for today’s modern NFL stadium,” said Michael Granberry who is completing a book on Texas Stadium, a venue the author calls iconic.

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“For the first time, Clint was able to work out a deal in which the stadium could produce significant revenues that did not have to be shared with another partner or with the NFL,” said Granberry. “Those profit centers, especially from luxury suites, the private clubs and other sponsorship deals, stayed in-house. Clint saw the stadium as a revenue source and predicted that money from television contracts would not be able to sustain the game’s growth.”

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Bryan Trubey, Principal and Executive Vice-President of HKS Inc and also lead architect for AT&T Stadium and U.S. Bank Stadium, said Clint Murchison’s Texas Stadium was a game-changer in the NFL. It impacted the game, Trubey said, but Murchison also changed the fan’s experience of the game.

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“Yes, he understood that the venue could make money to support the team,” said Trubey, “but he also cared deeply about taking care of the fans with a level of comfort, hospitality and access never seen before in the League. Most importantly, Clint believed the game should be subject to weather elements, so he created the famous hole-in-the-roof to protect the fans.”

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During the design of the Cowboys new stadium, that opened in 2009, Trubey said the Jones family was totally committed to keeping the hole-in-the-roof that Linebacker D.D. Lewis quipped was there “so God could watch his favorite team play.”

The video, produced by the alliance, included other notables with memories about Texas Stadium. One of those is Drew Pearson, Dallas Cowboys wide-receiver from 1973-1984.

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“Texas Stadium definitely gave us home-field advantage,” Pearson said, “but it was huge for the game because all the owners began to look at their stadiums as opportunities to bring more dollars in for the teams. That place also had a special feel to it. When you came out of the tunnel, it was clear, you are now in a true pro football stadium.”

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“Dad wanted to deliver a ‘best-in-class’ stadium for the team and the fans,” said his son Burk Murchison. “In truth, while accomplishing that, he also created the foundation for today’s modern NFL football stadiums.”

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Murchison fought for the right to bring NFL football to Dallas, Texas, and he received approval in 1959. The team’s first season was in 1960 and the Cowboys played at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, moving to Texas Stadium in Irving in 1971. He owned the team until 1984. During his ownership, teams produced outstanding rewards including 20 consecutive winning seasons, 17 years of playoff appearances, five trips to the Super Bowl and two Lombardi trophies.  Clint Murchison Jr. passed away at age 63 in 1987.