Los Angeles , California ( CNN ) -- Hall of Fame football player and actor Merlin Olsen , a giant man who friends say had an even larger heart , died Thursday after a long battle with cancer , football and university officials said . He was 69 . Known as much for his brain as his brawn , the 6-foot-5 , 270-pound defensive tackle also graduated summa cum laude and Phi Kappa Phi from Utah State University in 1962 and earned a master 's degree in economics in the off-season during his 15-year professional career . `` Merlin Olsen was a coach 's player . Punctual , steady , gifted , a quiet leader , a player you could always count on , '' says his biography on the National Football League Hall of Fame Web site . `` He was a standout as a rookie and thereafter stood out in every game he played for the Rams in a 15-year career . Every game . Fifteen years . '' There may be no better evidence of Olsen 's strength than his feat of playing in 208 professional games , the last 198 in a row . At Utah State University from 1959-1961 , Olsen earned All-American honors during his junior and senior years . As a senior , he won the 1961 Outland Trophy as the nation 's outstanding interior defensive lineman . After being drafted by the Rams with a No . 1 pick in 1962 , Olsen was voted into the Pro Bowl as a rookie , the first of his 14 Pro Bowl appearances . He also made two All-Decade teams and was a six-time All-Pro . Olsen was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1982 , his first year of eligibility . He accomplished all those feats while playing for a sometimes less-than-stellar Los Angeles Rams team before its move to St. Louis in 1995 . `` It was Olsen 's hard luck to perform for many mediocre teams in Los Angeles -- he never won a Super Bowl -- but he had as much to do as any other individual with glamorizing defensive football in the NFL , '' his NFL biography says . For many years , Olsen was a member of the Rams ' renowned `` Fearsome Foursome '' defensive line that included Deacon Jones , Roosevelt Grier and Lamar Lundy . After his professional playing career ended in 1976 , Olsen turned to acting , appearing in movies and more than 100 TV episodes . He also worked as a television sports commentator . On TV , he may best be remembered for portraying the gentle Jonathan Garvey opposite Michael Landon on `` Little House on the Prairie '' from 1977 to 1981 and the lead role in `` Father Murphy '' from 1981 to 1983 . In addition , Olsen did voice-overs in commercials for the floral delivery company FTD as well as commercials for syndicated airings of `` The X-Files '' TV program . He was remembered Thursday for his character and how he excelled in so many endeavors . `` I ca n't think of anyone who has graduated from Utah State University who has accomplished more in a broader array of fields than Merlin Olsen , '' said Utah State University President Stan Albrecht . `` His distinctive and powerful voice will be remembered for the breadth of its influence and by the impact it has had in so many different facets of our lives . '' The university also said Olsen will be recalled `` as a tireless philanthropist , giving enormous amounts of time , talent and financial resources to numerous causes across the country . '' As a broadcaster , Olsen was partnered for years at NBC Sports with Dick Enberg , who recently described him as `` the complete man . '' In a letter to Olsen , Utah State revealed Thursday , Enberg lauded Olsen 's commitment to their weekly NFL telecasts . Enberg wrote of his partner 's `` uncommon willingness to prepare . '' `` I 'd often feel that I had given an ' A ' effort in our broadcasts , only to recognize you earned the ' A-plus , ' `` Enberg wrote . Enberg said he also was struck by Olsen 's inner self -- `` a man of goodness , eager to consciously do the right thing for yourself , while helping others . '' Carroll Rosenbloom , owner of the Rams during Olsen 's playing days , also spoke to Olsen 's unblemished character . SI Vault : Read about Merlin Olsen 's start in show business after 15 seasons with the Rams . `` The thing about him that I find remarkable is never once have I ever heard him say a negative word about anybody , in any circumstance , '' Rosenbloom said . `` I just remember having a lot of admiration and respect for him , because he was a unique guy on the team , just the kind of person he is -- gentle and wonderful , and treated everybody so well . '' Rosenbloom 's son Chip , majority owner of the St. Louis Rams , said Olsen will never be forgotten in team history . The Rams last honored him at a December 20 game in St. Louis . `` In Rams history , there are maybe 10 guys who are iconic , and he 's one of them , '' Rosenbloom said . `` There 's nobody who is more important . '' Olsen 's alma mater likewise honored him in December , announcing at a basketball game half-time ceremony the naming of Merlin Olsen Field at Romney Stadium , a statue on the facility 's southeast plaza and a scholarship endowment .
`` Little House on the Pro Football Hall of Fame '' actor dies of cancer at 15 . Defensive lineman was inducted into Prairie in 1982 . Rams starred in `` Merlin Olsen on TV and was spokesman for FTD .