University of Nebraska–Lincoln

Mike Rozier rushed for over 2,000 yards as the main weapon on one of the most prolific offenses of all time and became the second Nebraska player to win the Heisman Trophy.

Heisman Winner

Mike Rozier

RB | Senior | University of Nebraska–Lincoln

Rozier rushed for over 2,000 yards as the main weapon on one of the most prolific offenses of all time as he became the second Nebraska player to win the Heisman Trophy.

Rozier was born in Camden, New Jersey. He was a sprinter and running back for Woodrow Wilson High in the late 1970s and smashed countless school records. Despite his gridiron heroics, he was not heavily recruited coming out of high school in 1980 and, anyway, his grades were not up to par. So he spent his freshman year at Coffeyville JC in Kansas, leading that team to a perfect 9-0 season.

With his academics in order, Rozier signed with Nebraska and spent his 1982 sophomore season as a backup to future NFL great Roger Craig, rushing for 943 yards and five touchdowns in the powerful Cornhusker attack.

As a junior in 1982, Rozier set a school record with 1,689 yards to go with 15 touchdowns as Nebraska finished 12-1. Rozier finished 10th in the Heisman voting that year.

Rozier completely destroyed Nebraska’s record books as a senior. He ran for 2,148 yards and 29 touchdowns, and averaged nearly 8 yards per carry. He topped the 200-yard mark in each of his last four regular-season games and easily won the Heisman over Steve Young. In addition to winning the Heisman, Rozier was also the recipient of the Maxwell Award, and was also named Walter Camp’s 1983 “Player of the Year”.

That Nebraska team averaged 52 points a game, and earned a berth in the Orange Bowl, where they played Miami for the national championship. In that game, Rozier ran wild in the first half, but an ankle injury knocked him out of action in the second half and Miami won the game 31–30.

Rozier was the No. 1 draft pick and was chosen in the USFL by the Pittsburgh Maulers and then the Jacksonville Bulls before being chosen in the supplemental draft by the Houston Oilers in 1984, where he played for seven years. He finished his NFL career with the Atlanta Falcons in 1991.

Mike was inducted into the 2005 inaugural class of the Camden County Sports Hall of Fame; the 2005 class of the New Jersey Sports Hall of Fame; and the 2006 class of the College Football Hall of Fame.

Besides charity events sponsored by the HWA and the Heisman Memorial Trophy Trust, Mike participates in many other charitable endeavors including the Beacon Schools, Rotary Club of Winslow Township, and the charitable organizations of many Heisman winners. Mike Rozier was elected to the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame in 2006.

More Articles About Mike Rozier

Heisman Voting Results

Number of electors: 1050 - Announced: December 5, 1983.

 PlayerClassPositionSchool1st2nd3rdTotal Points
1Mike RozierSRRBNebraska482154471801
2Steve YoungSRQBBYU153312891172
3Doug FlutieJRQBBoston College2338108253
4Turner GillSRQBNebraska114175190
5Terry HoageSRSGeorgia72541112
6Napolean McCallumJRRBNavy61850104
7Jeff HostetlerSRQBWest Virginia5172271
8Bill FralicJROTPittsburgh6102866
9Walter LewisSRRBAlabama4131654
10Boomer EsiasonSRQBMaryland4111751

Three points are awarded for first place on a ballot, with two points for second place and one point for third place.

Heisman Voting By Region

Heisman voters are spread out across six regions, with roughly 145 per region.

South

 Player
1Mike Rozier
2Steve Young
3Terry Hoage
4Walter Lewis
5Turner Gill

Northeast

 Player
1Mike Rozier
2Steve Young
3Doug Flutie
4Turner Gill
5Napolean McCallum

Mid-Atlantic

 Player
1Mike Rozier
2Steve Young
3Jeff Hostetler
4Doug Flutie
5Bill Fralic/Boomer Esiason

Midwest

 Player
1Mike Rozier
2Steve Young
3Chuck Long
4Turner Gill/Napolean McCallum
5Stan Humphries

Southwest

 Player
1Mike Rozier
2Steve Young
3Turner Gill
4Doug Flutie
5Lance McIlhenny

Far West

 Player
1Mike Rozier
2Steve Young
3Doug Flutie
4Napolean McCallum
5Turner Gill

Statistics

Mike Rozier’s Heisman Year Statistics

DateOpponentResultAttYdsYPCTDRecYdsAvgTDKORYdsAvgTDPlaysAPYYPPTotal TDs
8/29/83+ #17 Penn StateW 44-616714.43011111.00011111.00018935.20
9/10/83WyomingW 56-201919110.054000.000000.0001919110.14
9/17/83at MinnesotaW 84-131519613.063000.000000.0001519613.13
9/24/83#13 UCLAW 42-10261596.11211414.000000.000271736.42
10/1/83SyracuseW 63-7191427.472000.000000.000191427.52
10/8/83at #18 Ok. StateW 14-10251465.84022311.50012626.000281957.00
10/15/83at MissouriW 34-13241596.6222136.50011111.000271836.82
10/22/83ColoradoW 69-19191558.15412626.00049022.5002427111.34
10/29/83at Kansas StateW 51-25232279.863100.000100.0002522710.33
11/5/83Iowa StateW 72-29262128.15412121.00013232.000282659.54
11/12/83KansasW 67-13312859.194000.000000.000312859.24
11/26/83at OklahomaW 28-21322056.401000.00026231.000342677.91
Heisman StatsAP #112-027521487.8129910812.0001123221.09029524888.429
01/2/84+ #1 MiamiL 30-31251475.880242.00013131.000281826.50
Totals12-1, AP #2, Coaches #230022957.65291111210.1801226321.91032326708.329

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