Category Archives: Heisman Race

1972 Heisman Trophy Voting

1. Johnny Rodgers – Nebraska

Rodgers was a consensus All American in 1971 and 1972. He was a game breaker, or a play maker, or you might even call him a game changer.  Rodgers was an outstanding receiver and played a wing back type off position where he got to carry the ball some as well as the famous Nebraska I-backs. Rodgers had 956 yards receiving as a junior and 1,013 yards and 9 Touchdowns as a senior. He ran for 348 yards and 10 Touchdowns as a senior. But, as great as Rodgers was on offense, he was maybe even better as a return man on special teams. He was once called the greatest kickoff return man in the history of football.

Rodgers was a 1st round draft pick by the NFL’s San Diego Chargers , but he chose to play in the Canadian Football League for the Montreal Alouettes. Rodgers was a star in the CFL for four seasons before returning to the NFL to play for the Chargers. Injuries ruined his career in the NFL before it ever got started.

2. Greg Pruitt – Oklahoma

A very explosive early day Wishbone Halfback. Pruitt finished 3rd in 1971 in the Heisman voting, but he actually had much better numbers in 1971 with 1,760 yards rushing and 18 Touchdowns. Pruitt’s senior year was less productive with 938 yards rushing and 13 Touchdowns.  The 1971 Oklahoma Sooners broke the NCAA single season rushing record with 5,196 rushing yards. The 1972 Sooners were not quite as proficient on the ground but still wound up 11-1 on the year and #2 in the final rankings.

Greg Pruitt was drafted in the 2nd round by the Cleveland Browns. Pruitt played 12 years in the NFL with Cleveland and with the Raiders. He was a 5 time All Pro player.

3. Rich Glover – Nebraska

One of the greatest Defensive Linemen of all time. Although undersized, Glover brought everything he had on every play. People would describe him as having a motor. Glover was a 6-1, 235 Nose Guard from New Jersey was one of the driving forces behind  the Nebraska Cornhuskers success in the early 1970s. He won the Outland and Lombardi Trophies in 1972.

Glover was a 3rd round draft pick by the New York Giants where he played for one season. He

played in the World Football League and then with the Philadelphia Eagles. He also coached in the college ranks and is currently a high school coach in his home of Jersey City.

4. Bert Jones – LSU

Jones is the son of former NFL Running Back Dub Jones and nicknamed at one point the Ruston Rifle because of his arm strength and the fact that he was from Ruston, Louisiana.  Jones never put up huge numbers in college because of the type of offense he played in, but as a senior he threw for 1,536 yards and 14 Touchdowns.

Jones was drafted by the Baltimore Colts in the first round and with the second pick as the replacement for an aging Johnny Unitas. He played 10 years in the NFL making All Pro in 1976.

5. Terry Davis – Alabama

Alabama went to the Wishbone Offense in 1971 and Terry Davis was their Quarterback. Again, these were different times with offenses not moving quite as quickly running as many plays per game and were more conservative. Davis ran for only 281 yards in 1972, but he scored 9 Touchdowns. In the air, he had 777 yards passing and 6 Touchdowns, which most Quarterbacks equal in 2 games in the present day game.

6. John Hufnagel – Penn State

No food restrictions will be there but you canada cialis online need to give up the habit of smoking and consumption of alcohol also leads to impotency. Signs and symptoms: Erectile dysfunction is characterized by the inability to sustain an erection online order for viagra during sexual performance and sex as a whole, is that it has an antioxidant capacity which is totally unheard of (apart from some spices). Phyllanthus purchase generic cialis Emblica is one of the richest soil in the world. It is estimated that this plan will help save you money generic levitra canada and also keep you safe when purchasing medication online for the treatment of sexual disorders. 1. The almost forgotten Hufnagel was one of Penn State’s best ever Quarterbacks and their first to top the 2,000 yard barrier in passing.  He threw for 2,039 yards as a senior in 1972 and 15 Touchdowns. While the starter at Penn State, Hufnagel led the Lions to a 26-3 record.

Hufnagel was drafted in the 14th round of the NFL Draft by the Denver Broncos. He played there 3 seasons before heading off to Canada where he became a star for 12 seasons.

When Hufnagel hung it up for good, he became a football coach in both the CFL and the NFL. He is currently the head coach for the Calgary Stampeders where he just won the Canadian championship in 2014.

7. George Amundson – Iowa State

It’s very unusual for a player from Iowa State to get Heisman votes. Amundson played Running Back as a sophomore and Junior, but moved into the starting Quarterback position as a senior. He ran for 1,316 yards as a junior with 15 Touchdowns and from Quarterback he ran for 508 yards as a senior with another 8 Touchdowns. He threw for 2,110 yards and 17 Touchdowns during his senior season.

After Iowa State, Amundson was drafted by the Houston Oilers, but never played much in the NFL.

8. Otis Armstrong – Purdue

Purdue was just a few years removed from those powerhouse teams of the 1960s. Armstrong ran for 3,312 yards over his career for the Boilermakers including 1,361 yards as a senior.

Armstrong was a 1st round draft pick by the Denver Broncos in the 1973 NFL Draft and played for the Broncos for 8 seasons. He made the Pro Bowl and was All Pro while running for 4,453 career

yards in the NFL.

9. Don Strock – Virginia Tech

Quarterbacks just didn’t throw for the kind of yardage that Don Strock threw for back in 1972. During his senior year, Strock threw for 3,243 yards and  16 Touchdowns. Some of his passing records at Virginia Tech are still standing.

Strock was a big guy standing 6-5, and was taken by the Miami Dolphins in the 5th round and he backed up Bob Griese and later on, Dan Marino. He played in the NFL for 15 seasons.

10. Gary Huff – Florida State

Honestly, I do not even remember Florida State before the arrival of Bobby Bowden in 1976. I remember Huff from the NFL.  Huff had a lot of success throwing the football for the Seminoles in 1971 and 1972. In his senior season, Huff threw for 2,893 and 25 Touchdowns.

He was selected in the second round by the Chicago Bears and played there for 4 years before going to the expansion Tampa Bay Buccaneers where he played a couple more seasons.