Top 5 All-Time B1G Running Backs

Mavric

Mavric

Yoda
Staff member
5. Mike Rozier, Nebraska, 1981-1983: We could've gone a number of directions here, but Rozier got the nod for a few reasons. For one, he's one of just three NCAA running backs to ever average more than 7 yards a carry over 500-plus career touches. Plus, he won the 1983 Heisman and finished 10th in the Heisman voting the year before. There was a definite theme when describing Rozier's running style. "He acts like he's mad every time he runs the football," former Kansas State coach Jim Dickey said. Added then-Oklahoma coach Barry Switzer: "He plays mad every down." Rozier was a two-time consensus All-American, he won three conference titles, and Nebraska finished within the top-5 of the national rankings every year he played.
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ESPN

 
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Dayne had impressive yardage totals, but he got SO MANY carries. He averaged 25 carries per game as a Freshman, 24 per game as a Soph, 27 as a Junior & 28 as a Senior.

Eddie George barely carried the ball his Freshman & Sophomore years. Averaged 21 carries per game as a Junior & 25 as a Senior.

Mike Rozier averaged 14 carries per game as a Sophomore, 20 as a Junior and 23 as a Senior.

George had 683 career carries; Rozier had 668. Ron Dayne had 1,220 career carries, nearly double George & Rozier.

I mean, yeah he was productive, but he was their entire offense. Rozier split time with Roger Craig or he'd have even more yards.

I know a lot of the media fawns over Ron Dayne, and he's a great back, but you can only be using a bulk total metric when deeming Dayne 'better than' either George or Rozier.

 
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knapplc said:
Dayne had impressive yardage totals, but he got SO MANY carries. He averaged 25 carries per game as a Freshman, 24 per game as a Soph, 27 as a Junior & 28 as a Senior.

Eddie George barely carried the ball his Freshman & Sophomore years. Averaged 21 carries per game as a Junior & 25 as a Senior.

Mike Rozier averaged 14 carries per game as a Sophomore, 20 as a Junior and 23 as a Senior.

George had 683 career carries; Rozier had 668. Ron Dayne had 1,220 career carries, nearly double George & Rozier.

I mean, yeah he was productive, but he was their entire offense. Rozier split time with Roger Craig or he'd have even more yards.

I know a lot of the media fawns over Ron Dayne, and he's a great back, but you can only be using a bulk total metric when deeming Dayne 'better than' either George or Rozier.
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Dayne had some crazy yardage totals and he was a great workman like back and a tough and consistent straight ahead runner behind that line but heck give me Roger Craig back there rather than Ron Dayne. Ahman Green. No way I would pick Ron Dayne over those two even. Doug DuBose, Rozier, Lawrence Phillips. I'd take all of them over Ron Dayne.

 
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suh_fan93 said:
knapplc said:
Dayne had impressive yardage totals, but he got SO MANY carries. He averaged 25 carries per game as a Freshman, 24 per game as a Soph, 27 as a Junior & 28 as a Senior.

Eddie George barely carried the ball his Freshman & Sophomore years. Averaged 21 carries per game as a Junior & 25 as a Senior.

Mike Rozier averaged 14 carries per game as a Sophomore, 20 as a Junior and 23 as a Senior.

George had 683 career carries; Rozier had 668. Ron Dayne had 1,220 career carries, nearly double George & Rozier.

I mean, yeah he was productive, but he was their entire offense. Rozier split time with Roger Craig or he'd have even more yards.

I know a lot of the media fawns over Ron Dayne, and he's a great back, but you can only be using a bulk total metric when deeming Dayne 'better than' either George or Rozier.
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Dayne had some crazy yardage totals and he was a great workman like back and a tough and consistent straight ahead runner behind that line but heck give me Roger Craig back there rather than Ron Dayne. Ahman Green. No way I would pick Ron Dayne over those two even. Doug DuBose. I'd pick him as my rb over Ron Dayne.
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Calvin Jones, Derek Brown, Keith Jones, Ahman Green, Lawrence Phillips, Clinton Childs, Damon Benning, Rex Burkhead, Ameer Abdullah, Correl Buckhalter, and another half dozen more, at least, would rate above Dayne in my view. I would think there are 50 better than him in history of Big Ten with just Penn State, Ohio State, Michigan, etc. Not even sure Dayne would be the best from Wisconsin.

There's Jeff Smith, Tony Davis, etc etc, etc.

 
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Say what you will about the guy, but Lawrence Phillips may have been more talented than any on that list.

 
I would take LP/Green/ Craig over everyone on the "honorable mention" list. No way a scrub like Ki-Jana Carter is ahead of those three guys.

 
knapplc said:
Dayne had impressive yardage totals, but he got SO MANY carries. He averaged 25 carries per game as a Freshman, 24 per game as a Soph, 27 as a Junior & 28 as a Senior.

Eddie George barely carried the ball his Freshman & Sophomore years. Averaged 21 carries per game as a Junior & 25 as a Senior.

Mike Rozier averaged 14 carries per game as a Sophomore, 20 as a Junior and 23 as a Senior.

George had 683 career carries; Rozier had 668. Ron Dayne had 1,220 career carries, nearly double George & Rozier.

I mean, yeah he was productive, but he was their entire offense. Rozier split time with Roger Craig or he'd have even more yards.

I know a lot of the media fawns over Ron Dayne, and he's a great back, but you can only be using a bulk total metric when deeming Dayne 'better than' either George or Rozier.
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For their college career:

George - 5.5 ypc

Dayne - 5.8 ypc

Rozier - 7.2 ypc

Other "modern" names on the list:

Carter - 7.2 ypc

Gordon - 7.8 ypc

 
Red Five said:
Other "modern" names on the list:

Carter - 7.2 ypc

Gordon - 7.8 ypc
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I guess I like pain...

If you take away Gordon's 3 games against Nebraska, his ypc falls to 7.2. He averaged 17.5 ypc against us over 3 games (36 carries, 629 yards). Did we ever catch a break not having Wisconsin on our 2013 schedule.

9/29/12: 2 carries 5 yards

12/1/12: 9 carries 216 yards

11/15/14: 25 carries 408 yards

 
Which brings up the question: if you're a scholar of Big 10 football and you're asked to compile this list, does it feel weird that these Nebraska players never played in the Big 10?

That when you think All Time Big 10 Running Backs you normally wouldn't think of Mike Rozier at all? The football purist knows Rozier is better, but the Big 10 purist has to give it to Dayne.

What's worse, this would also mean there is zero mention of Mike Rozier in the all-time Big 12 record books.

 
I like your logic, Guy. However, I think you can make a distinct here. Nebraska resided in the Big 8 when Rozier played. That conference subsequently expanded and renamed itself as the Big 12. I see that as different from the later move of Nebraska from the Big 12 conference to an entirely different conference in the Big 10.

When the Big 8 renamed itself the Big 12, it remained the same conference or at least retained its essence, so all Big 8 records and former players would be admonished with the Big 12 title.

However, when Nebraska decided to move to a brand new title with no prior affiliation, no record or former player should be relabeled under the new conference but should remain with the team and former conference.

 
Thanks_Tom RR said:
I like your logic, Guy. However, I think you can make a distinct here. Nebraska resided in the Big 8 when Rozier played. That conference subsequently expanded and renamed itself as the Big 12. I see that as different from the later move of Nebraska from the Big 12 conference to an entirely different conference in the Big 10.

When the Big 8 renamed itself the Big 12, it remained the same conference or at least retained its essence, so all Big 8 records and former players would be admonished with the Big 12 title.

However, when Nebraska decided to move to a brand new title with no prior affiliation, no record or former player should be relabeled under the new conference but should remain with the team and former conference.
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Doesn't work that way and for good reason.

A conference you are no longer part of isn't going to promote your history.

Most fans aren't paying attention ot old conference lists, shows etc. They pay attention to and compare themselves against the conference they are in presently so those are where those comparisons belong.

 
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