FAYETTEVILLE — Jon Brittenum, the starting quarterback on dominant teams for the University of Arkansas in 1965 and 1966, passed away early Thursday at age 78.
Brittenum, a native of Brinkley, had been in ill health for several years and living in south Texas.
Brittenum lettered in 1963, when he split time at quarterback with Bill Gray, redshirted during the national championship season of 1964, then held the starting job as a junior and senior the following two years.
He earned All-Southwest Conference honors in both of those seasons. Brittenum passed for 1,103 yards with 8 touchdowns and 7 interceptions for the 1965 team, which won its first 10 games to extend the school’s winning streak to 22 consecutive games.