PER Notre Dame

The first African-American to earn All-America honors at Notre Dame was 80 years old.

NOTRE DAME, Ind. -- Tom Hawkins, a 1959 University of Notre Dame graduate, basketball All-American, All-Century Team member and Notre Dame Ring of Honor inductee, passed away at his home in Malibu, California, on Wednesday, August 16, 2017.

Hawkins was the first African-American to earn All-America honors as a student-athlete at Notre Dame.

"I feel blessed and privileged that I got to develop a relationship with him as the head coach at Notre Dame," Notre Dame head coach Mike Brey said. "Tom was a trailblazer, a class act and a true 'Notre Dame Man.'''

A transcendent athletic talent out of Parker High School in Chicago, Hawkins was the first Irish player to average in double figures for scoring and rebounding during each of his three seasons (freshmen were ineligible during his collegiate career). His 1,318 career rebounds remains the oldest standing school record in the history of Notre Dame basketball.

Drafted in the first round (third overall pick) by the Minneapolis Lakers, Hawkins played 10 years in the National Basketball Association with Minneapolis, the Cincinnati Royals and the Los Angeles Lakers. He scored 6,672 points and grabbed 4,607 rebounds in the NBA.

Hawkins' life off the basketball court was as equally distinguished as his playing career. As a player representative, he played a key role in the first collective bargaining agreement with the player's union and the NBA. After his playing career, he worked in radio and television and served as the vice president of communications for the Los Angeles Dodgers. In 2012, Hawkins authored a book on poetry entitled Life's Reflections: Poetry for the People.

Hawkins' son, Kevin, graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 1981 and was a four-year member of the Irish basketball team.

Funeral arrangements are pending and will be updated here when available.