.png) Ferguson in 1961 | |||||||||||||
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| Position | Fullback | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
| Born | (1939-08-29)August 29, 1939 Troy, Ohio, U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Died | December 30, 2004(2004-12-30) (aged 65) Columbus, Ohio, U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||||||||||||
| Weight | 220 lb (100 kg) | ||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||
| High school | Troy | ||||||||||||
| College | Ohio State (1959–1961) | ||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 1961: 1st round, 5th overall pick | ||||||||||||
| AFL draft | 1961: 1st round, 8th overall pick | ||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||
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| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||
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Robert Eugene Ferguson (August 29, 1939 – December 30, 2004) was an American professionalfootballfullback who played in theNational Football League (NFL) with thePittsburgh Steelers andMinnesota Vikings. He playedcollege football for theOhio State Buckeyes, where he won theMaxwell Award in 1961. He was inducted into theCollege Football Hall of Fame in 1996.
Ferguson attendedTroy High School inTroy, Ohio. Ferguson's first year of eligibility atOhio State University was 1959. The startingfullback at the beginning of the season was the senior, andHeisman Trophy candidate,Bob White. Through the course of the season, however, Ferguson supplanted White as the starter and led the team in rushing that season, averaging 6.1 yards per carry.
Over the next two seasons, Ferguson continued to lead the Ohio State offensive attack. In both 1960 and 1961 Ferguson was a unanimousAll-American selection. In 1961, he won theUPI College Football Player of the Year, theMaxwell Award, and was the runner-up toErnie Davis for the Heisman Trophy. The 1961 Heisman vote was the second-closest in the history of the award, with Davis edging Ferguson by 53 points.
Ferguson shared the Ohio State backfield in 1961 withhalfbacksPaul Warfield andMatt Snell. Ferguson was a power runner and Warfield was supplied speed. The common description of the time said, "Warfield is the lightning, Ferguson is the thunder." The Buckeyes won theBig Ten Conference that year and were votednational champions by theFootball Writers Association of America (FWAA).
Ferguson finished his career at Ohio State with 2,162 rushing yards. This rushing total was at the time second in team history behindHoward Cassady. Ferguson owns the distinction of never having been thrown for a loss during his college football career. Ferguson was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1996, and into Ohio State's own Varsity O Hall of Fame in 1987. He was selected to theOhio State Football All-Century Team in 2000.
Ferguson was a first-rounddraft pick by both thePittsburgh Steelers of theNational Football League and theSan Diego Chargers of theAmerican Football League. Ferguson accepted the offer from the Steelers, but a head injury hampered his football career. After two seasons, playing both for the Steelers and theMinnesota Vikings, he joined theDayton Colts of theMidwest Football League in 1965.[1]
Ferguson returned to Ohio State University and earned a master's degree insociology. He worked as a youth counselor inColumbus, Ohio until he was forced to retire in 1990 due to health problems. Ferguson died in 2004 of complications due to diabetes.