MARCUS AND SWEETNESS

Given his short-yardage nose for the goal line, coupled with long jaunts (he seemed to float above the turf), and iron-man durability, Marcus Allen was a gifted all-around back. In 1981 (at USC) he rushed for 2,342. He led the nation in scoring, 12.5 points per game; rushing, 219.9 yards per game; and all-purpose running, 232.6 yards per game. Allen received the Maxwell Trophy and the Walter Camp Foundation and Pop Warner League designation as the Player of the Yearand the Heisman trophy.⁸

Marcus Allen played for two professional teams: Oakland Raiders (1982-1992) and the Kansas City Chiefs (1993-1997) during his 15-year NFL campaign. In 1982, Marcus began his pro career as the NFL Rookie of the Year and ended as the game’s all-time rushing touchdown leader and the first player in NFL history to rush for 10,000-plus yards and catch passes for 5,000 more. He was named to six pro bowls, was the 1985 NFL MVP, and the MVP of Super Bowl XV111 in which he had 20 carries for 191 yards and two touchdowns.⁹

Marcus Allen’s 74-yard touchdown run in the Raiders’ 38-9 romp over the Washington Redskins was an open-field classic that stamped him as a legend. He broke left, was trapped, reversed direction, turned the corner, eluded two tacklers, found a seam, and was gone in patented effortless strides.

Although Jim Brown was the best pure ball carrier in pro football history (with some marvelous runner-ups like Gale Sayers, Barry Sanders, Emmett Smith, and Eric Dickerson), Marcus Allen and the even-more-talented Walter Payton were the top all-purpose backs of all time. Payton was a complete offensive football player and, like Marcus Allen, a leader. Both were excellent pass-catchers and blockers who could also tackle if opponents intercepted or ran with a fumble. Payton (nicknamed “sweetness”) spent his entire 13-year career with the Chicago Bears and was a key member of the Bears’ 1986 Super Bowl championship.

Walter Payton won the NFC rushing title five straight years from 1976 to 1980. An amazing runner, Walter rushed for more than 1,000 yards 10 of his 13 seasons, (often for low-ranking Bears’ teams). His best season came in 1977, when he ran for 1,852 yards, third best in history at that time. The records he held at the time of his retirement included 16,726 total yards (21,803 including pass catching), 275 yards rushing in one game against Minnesota (1977), 77 games with more than 100 yards rushing, and 110 rushing touchdowns. Extremely durable, Payton missed one game in his rookie campaign and then played in 186 consecutive games.¹⁰

Walter Payton was beloved in Chicago, and when he died of a rare liver cancer at age 45 the city went into mourning. At the memorial service, former Super Bowl-winning coach and football broadcaster John Madden called Payton the best football player he ever saw. Walter Payton College Prep, a high school for the academically gifted, is one of Chicago’s most distinguished public education institutions.

SOURCES:
8 Courtesy of the National Football Foundation’s College Football Hall of Fame, http://www.collegefootball.org/famersearch.php?id=80030, available as of 11/7/07
9 Courtesy of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/member.jsp?player_id=15, available as of 11/7/07
10 Courtesy of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/member.jsp?player_id=174, available as of 11/7/07

(Marcus and Sweetness was excerpted from Guts in the Clutch: 77 Legendary Triumphs, Heartbreaks and Wild Finishes in 12 Sports, with a Foreword by Drew Olson of ESPN. Amazon print and e-Book, Nook and Google e-Books.)