There are 4 days that separate us from Ohio State's march to Blacksburg. To help pass the time until the Buckeyes put the Sandman to bed I will countdown Ohio State's top 100 players according to the rubric* listed at the bottom of this article.
Eddie George's 3,768 rushing yards ranks him second in Ohio State history.
No. 4 EDDIE GEORGE, RB (1992-95)
Born: 1973 (Philadelphia)
High School: Fork Union Military Academy
OHIO STATE CAREER
- The Buckeyes were 38-10-2 with George on the team.
- 1993 Big Ten Title.
- 1993 Defeated BYU in the Holiday Bowl.
HONORS
- 1995 Heisman Trophy Winner.
- 1995 Doak Walker Award.
- 1995 Maxwell Award.
- 1995 Walter Camp Player of the Year Award.
- 1995 Big Ten MVP.
- 1995 Captain.
- 1995 Team MVP
- 2001 No. 27 was retired in his honor.
- 2006 Inducted into the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame.
- 2012 Inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
NFL DRAFT
Round 1 to the Houston Oilers with the 14th pick of the 1996 draft.
Eddie George led Ohio State in rushing in 1994 and 1995. The 1,927 yards he gained in 1995 is an Ohio State single season record.
Eddie George's Ohio State career per The Ohio State Team Guide:
At the start of the 1995 season, Eddie George was, at best, a long-shot contender for the Heisman Trophy. By season’s end, he was a runaway choice, easily outdistancing runner-up Tommy Frazier of Nebraska for college football’s most coveted award.
As Ohio State’s sixth Heisman recipient, George rushed for a school-record 1,927 yards and 24 touchdowns. Included in that yardage total were three 200-yard games, one of which was an Ohio State record 314 yards against Illinois Nov. 11, 1995.
George’s other honors in 1995 included the Doak Walker Award, the Maxwell Award, the Walter Camp Player of the Year Award and Big Ten MVP. He also was a team co-captain.
George, who attended Abington (Pa.) High School and then Fork Union Military Academy, played only sparingly his first two years at Ohio State. Given the chance to start, he rushed for 1,442 yards as a junior and completed his career as the second leading rusher in Ohio State history with 3,668 yards.
Selected by the Houston Oilers in the first round of the NFL Draft, he was the 1996 NFL Rookie of the Year and played nine years of professional football, earning four Pro Bowl berths. He currently holds a number of business interests and hosts the “Big Ten Quad” on the Big Ten Network.
In June of 2001, Eddie earned a bachelor’s degree in landscape architecture from Ohio State. He was a 2006 inductee into the Ohio State University Athletics Hall of Fame.
His jersey number “27” was retired Nov. 10, 2001. In July 2012 he was inducted into the NFF and College FB Hall of Fame. The Big Ten’s top offensive player receives the Graham-George Offensive Player of the Year award.
The 1995 Record-Setting Illinois Game:
Eddie's Big Run and Back-Breaking Touchdown against Notre Dame:
| CATEGORY | POINTS |
|---|---|
| HEISMAN | 8 |
| NO. RETIRED / HONORED | 8 |
| BIG TEN MVP | 6 |
| TEAM MVP | 5 |
| ALL-AMERICAN | 4 |
| CAPTAIN | 4 |
| 1ST ROUND NFL DRAFT PICK | 4 |
| ALL-BIG TEN | 3 |
| ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICAN | |
| NFL DRAFT PICK | |
| ACADEMIC ALL-BIG TEN | |
| LETTER | 1 |
| TOTAL | 43 |
For more information on other players who wore No. 27 go here.
Sources- The Ohio State Team Guide and Wikipedia
| CATEGORY | POINTS |
|---|---|
| HEISMAN | 8 |
| NO. RETIRED / HONORED | 8 |
| BIG TEN MVP | 6 |
| TEAM MVP | 5 |
| ALL-AMERICAN | 4 |
| CAPTAIN | 4 |
| 1ST ROUND NFL DRAFT PICK | 4 |
| ALL-BIG TEN | 3 |
| ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICAN | 3 |
| NFL DRAFT PICK | 2 |
| ACADEMIC ALL-BIG TEN | 1 |
| LETTER | 0.25 PER YEAR |
Today's article is brought to you by Eddie George's 314 rushing yards against Illinois and his Heisman Trophy:
