TOLEDO, Ohio -- Mel Triplett, the starting fullback on the New York Giants 1956 NFL championship team, has died at age 71.

Triplett died Thursday after spending several months at a nursing home while suffering from diabetes, said his sister, Lesten McElroy.

Triplett was a star at the University of Toledo before the Giants drafted him in 1955. He played six seasons in New York.

He scored the first touchdown in New York's 47-7 victory over Chicago in the 1956 title game. He was named the team's top offensive player in the game.

Triplett played with the Giants through the 1960 season and was with the Minnesota Vikings in 1961 and 1962.

He rushed for 2,857 yards and 14 touchdowns in his professional career.

His younger brother, Bill, spent 11 years in the NFL with the St. Louis Cardinals, Giants and Detroit Lions.

Triplett played at Toledo from 1951-54, earning letters all four seasons. He received first-team All-Mid American Conference honors in 1954 and was inducted into the university's athletic hall of fame in 1983.

He is survived by five daughters and seven sons.

Funeral arrangements were not complete.