A December 1997 movement science graduate, Robert “Bobby” Felix came to WNMU from Sunnyside High School in Tucson, Arizona after being named the Player of the Year by the Hispanic Sports Association in 1991. He went on to wear a purple and gold number 21 on his football jersey from 1992 to 1995.
Felix was a Mustang starter as a freshman and posted strong numbers from the beginning. He averaged 46.8 receiving yards in his first season. He nearly doubled his numbers his sophomore year with 88.5 receiving yards, but that is not where Felix excelled. His specialty was as a return specialist. He averaged 34.9 yards on kickoff returns and 14.4 on punt returns. For this, Felix was named a 1993 All-American.
elix’s best season came in 1994 when he led the nation in all-purpose yardage with 2,109. He posted 439 yards rushing, 853 yards receiving, 150 yards in punt returns, 667 in kickoff returns to average a total of 263.6 yards per game. He earned All-American honors for the second time. This time it was as an all-purpose player. The team was also recognized that same year as the Annual Kickoff Return Champion, which Felix recorded the majority of.
Felix battled injuries in 1995 but still averaged 30.6 yards on kickoff returns and 73.4 yards on receiving. Overall, he finished his four-year career with 5701 all-purpose yards. Two thousand four hundred and ninety-seven of those yards were off of kickoff and punt returns to set a new all-time NCAA record. Felix alsoposted 52 touchdowns, three two-point conversions, and 258 points over his four years.
Following graduation in 1997, Felix went on to play for the Helsinki Roosters, an American-based professional football team in Finland. He then returned to Tucson a year later to become a personal trainer for the next seven years before his passing in 2006.
“Bob was a master at looking at the solution, not the problem,” states former WNMU graduate and teammate Alfred Montez who resides in El Paso, Texas and teaches at Del Valle High School. “He wanted the best for his family and friends and went out of his way to help us. He taught us to enjoy life and all it has to offer… The true measure of his greatness lies with others’ attempt to be the next ‘Bobby Felix’, but at the end of the day, they never quite measure up to the original.”
