Former OU football player Adrian Peterson pledged a $1 million donation to OU athletics, the department announced Thursday.
The donation will support the new student housing building, Headington Hall, and establish the Adrian Peterson Football Scholarship Endowment.
Peterson's gift is the largest given to the university by a former football player.
"This was something that I had been thinking about doing for a long time," the current Minnesota Vikings running back said in a prepared statement. "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 a no-brainer."
As a thank you for the donation, the football program plans to rename the team's meeting room — currently called "The Red Room" — the "Adrian Peterson Team Meeting Room."
OU President David Boren said Peterson is helping to assure OU's athletic tradition continues.
"I not only appreciate his generosity but also the example he is setting for others by giving back to the program in which he was an outstanding participant," Boren said.
OU football coach Bob Stoops said he's glad Peterson's name will appear in Headington Hall as a reminder of the All-American's example of "selfless dedication and generocity."
Peterson played for the Sooners from 2004 to 2006 and is the program's third-leading rusher.
Headington Hall is the 230,000-square-foot housing center for OU students and student-athletes currently under construction on the southeast corner of Lindsey Street and Jenkins Avenue. The building is scheduled to be completed by fall 2013.
