Top 5/10 IU FB players, all time, any era, any position.
- Thread starter Radio Zero
- Start date
A.T. definitely could've been, & I think likely WOULD have been if we don't miss a 29 yarder to lose to Purdue in '89. A.R.E. was never going to win on those teams at that time. If we were even just a little better, then maybe it could have gotten interesting.
Here's my top 9, though not in any particular order, with some notes:
--AT
--Pihos---Voted by the fans as IU's #1 all-time player in '69. AA in '43 as an E; 2nd team AA '45 as a FB (behind Doc Blanchard at ND). 8th in Heisman '45. 2x 1st team ABT, 2x 2nd team ABT. Member of both the college and pro Halls of Fame. 1st team AP 5/9 years and probably #1 receiver of his day.
--ARE
--Billy Hillenbrand---CAA in '42. 5th in Heisman voting '42. 2x ABT. #6 in NFL draft
--Corby Davis---1934-35; 1937. AA in '37. BT MVP '37. #1 pick NFL draft
--Chuck Bennett---1926-28. BT & IU MVP '28. For a 9th place team. Captain of the E-W Shrine team and game MVP, scoring 2 TDs
--Taliaferro
--Tevin Coleman
--John Tavener---1941-44. IU MVP and Captain '43 & '44. CAA '44. BT Lineman of Year '44. College Football Hall of Fame.
HM, no particular order: Dumas; Norman; Vern Huffman; Nowatzke; Van Waiters; Bob Haak; Feeney; Butcher; Faison; McFadden; Pat Gedman; Tandon Doss; Isenbarger; Ogunleye; Snaidecki; Marv Woodson; John Cannady; Hardy; Porter; Duanne Gunn; Tegray Scales
I was at the first game ARE played, at home against Western Michigan. Anyone could tell that he would be spectacular in his career. A WMU right in front was incredulous in discussing how good he was.
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At that time there were still top football programs running the option........I always thought that he would have won a Heisman playing for Nebraska.
for sure. He was just like their Heisman winner that year, Eric Crouch, except about 10x better.
The most accurate listing I've seen so far... ( I'm now rethinking putting Green on mine.. oh well).....
But,... I have to put Tom Nowatzke ahead of either Coleman or Bennett... Nowatzke was All-American both his Jr. (FNN only) and Sr. years.... AND He played... THREE ways... as a Fullback, Linebacker AND Place Kicker..... he led IU in scoring Coleman was a little better runner but a totally different type. As a fullback, Nowatzke would crush his would-be tacklers and then as a lineback knock them on their asses. He was a true bad-ass. He's gotta be in the top 10. .... BTW, it's Gene Gedman
When I was growing up my older brothers and Dad (all IU fans) would talk about Faison, Nowatzke, and Marv Woodson.....
So I'm not arguing with vigor for Coleman & Bennett over Tom N., but let me note a few things.
First, Coleman was certainly a bit of a 'niche' player at IU. He wasn't great on the 3rd/4th and 1 situations. But he was unique in that, as a college player, if he caught a crease, he was gone. So I understand that TN was more of the traditional complete BT player. But......TC averaged 7.1 ypc for his career!! I know L. Williams was also in that territory, but he had ARE pitching the ball to him on the sidelines. Also, TC was a UNANIMOUS 1st team AA....Wiki lists 11 AA teams for that year, and he was 11/11, not just the 5 or 6 that count for UAA status.
Bennett was BT MVP for an Indiana team that finished 9th in the BT in '28. He scored the majority of his teams points for 3 years and also played LB. Also, he was the captain for the East team in the E-W Shrine game, which was the big post-season AS then (there was no CAS game yet). And, he scored 2 TDs and was named the MVP for the game. So he must have been very good. Looking at the BT that year, Wes Fesler (OSU) & Willie Glasgow(Iowa) were the two names that stand out. Neither, however, was a SR, so it might have been a little bit of a Tim Clifford situation.
As for Tom N.---he led the BT in rushing in '63 with something like 750 yds, which was then a huge total. He was probably one of the 4 best players in the BT that year---Sherman Lewis, Dick Butkis, and Carl Eller being the others. He must also have been a very good receiver, as he avg over 11 yards per catch for his career. He must have been hurt in '64, as his #s were down significantly, and he was only 2nd team ABT. He was a #11 pick in the NFL draft, which also shows how respected he was as a college player. But his pro career was very mediocre.
I've always which backfield player was better, Marv Woodson or Nate Ramsey. Both were on the same teams and went both ways, and they both had good pro careers.
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