1972 College Football All-America Team

The 1972 College Football All-America team is composed of college football players who were selected as All-Americans by various organizations and writers that chose College Football All-America Teams in 1972. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) recognizes six selectors as "official" for the 1972 season. They are:[1] (1) the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) which selected its team for Kodak based on a vote of the nation's coaches;[2] (2) the Associated Press (AP) selected based on the votes of sports writers at AP newspapers;[3] (3) the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) selected by the nation's football writers;[4] (4) the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) selected based on the votes of sports writers at NEA newspapers;[5] (5) the United Press International (UPI) selected based on the votes of sports writers at UPI newspapers;[6] and (6) the Walter Camp Football Foundation (WC).

Eight players are recognized by the NCAA as unanimous All-America selections. They are: (1) wide receiver and 1972 Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Rodgers of Nebraska; (2) tight end Charles Young of USC; (3) offensive tackle Jerry Sisemore of Texas; (4) offensive guard John Hannah of Alabama; (5) running back Greg Pruitt of Oklahoma; (6) defensive tackle Greg Marx of Notre Dame; (7) middle guard Rich Glover of Nebraska; and (8) defensive back Brad Van Pelt of Michigan State.[7]

Consensus All-Americans

The following chart identifies the NCAA-recognized consensus All-Americans for the year 1972 and displays which first-team designations they received.

NamePositionSchoolNumberOfficialOther
Rich GloverMiddle guardNebraska6/3/9AFCA, AP, FWAA, NEA, UPI, WCFN, Time, TSN
John HannahOffensive guardAlabama6/3/9AFCA, AP, FWAA, NEA, UPI, WCFN, Time, TSN
Greg MarxDefensive tackleNotre Dame6/3/9AFCA, AP, FWAA, NEA, UPI, WCFN, Time, TSN
Johnny RodgersWide receiverNebraska6/3/9AFCA, AP, FWAA, NEA, UPI, WCFN, Time, TSN
Jerry SisemoreOffensive tackleTexas6/3/9AFCA, AP, FWAA, NEA, UPI, WCFN, Time, TSN
Charle YoungTight endUSC6/3/9AFCA, AP, FWAA, NEA, UPI, WCFN, Time, TSN
Greg PruittRunning backOklahoma6/2/8AFCA, AP, FWAA, NEA, UPI, WCFN, TSN
Brad Van PeltDefensive backMichigan State6/2/8AFCA, AP, FWAA, NEA, UPI, WCTime, TSN
Tom BrahaneyCenterOklahoma5/3/8AP, FWAA, NEA, UPI, WCFN, Time, TSN
Willie HarperDefensive endNebraska5/2/7AFCA, AP, NEA, UPI, WCFN, TSN
Dave ButzDefensive tacklePurdue4/2/6AFCA, NEA, UPI, WCTime, TSN
Bert JonesQuarterbackLSU3/3/6AFCA, NEA, UPIFN, Time, TSN
Otis ArmstrongRunning backPurdue4/1/5AP, FWAA, UPI, WCTSN
Bruce BannonDefensive endPenn State4/1/5AFCA, NEA, UPI, WCFN
Randy GradisharLinebackerOhio State4/1/5AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPIFN
Cullen BryantDefensive backColorado3/2/5AFCA, NEA, UPITime, TSN
Paul SeymourOffensive tackleMichigan3/2/5AFCA, FWAA, NEATime, TSN
Ron RusnakOffensive guardNorth Carolina4/0/4AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI--
Randy LoganDefensive backMichigan3/1/4AFCA, UPI, WCFN
Woody GreenRunning backArizona State3/0/3AP, NEA, UPI--
Robert PopelkaDefensive backSMU3/0/3AP, FWAA, WC--
John SkorupanLinebackerPenn State3/0/3AP, FWAA, NEA--

Offense

Receivers

  • Johnny Rodgers, Nebraska (AFCA [flanker], AP-1, FWAA, NEA-1, UPI-1, WC, FN, Time TSN)
  • Steve Holden, Arizona State (FWAA, NEA-2, TSN, Time, FN)
  • Barry Smith, Florida State (AFCA [off. end], AP-2, UPI-2)
  • Jason Caldwell, North Carolina Central (NEA-2)
  • Mike Creaney, Notre Dame (AP-3 [TE])

Tight ends

Tackles

Guards

  • John Hannah, Alabama (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, NEA-1, UPI-1, WC, FN, Time, TSN)
  • Ron Rusnak, North Carolina (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1)
  • Skip Singletary, Temple (AP-2, NEA-2, UPI-2, WC)
  • Joe DeLamielleure, Michigan State (AP-2, TSN)
  • Geary Murdock, Iowa State (FN)
  • Ken Jones, Oklahoma (AP-3, UPI-2)
  • Larry Ulmer, Western Michigan (AP-3)

Centers

  • Tom Brahaney, Oklahoma (AP-1, UPI-1, NEA-1, WC, FWAA, TSN, Time, FN)
  • Jim Krapf, Alabama (AFCA, UPI-2)
  • Doug Dumler, Nebraska (NEA-2)
  • Orderia Mitchell, Air Force (AP-2)
  • Gerald Schultze, West Virginia (AP-3)

Quarterbacks

Running backs

Defense

Defensive ends

  • Willie Harper, Nebraska (AFCA [LB], AP-1, NEA-1, UPI-1, WC, FN, TSN)
  • Bruce Bannon, Penn State (AFCA, AP-2, NEA-1, UPI-1, WC, FN)
  • Wally Chambers, Eastern Kentucky (NEA-2, TSN, Time)
  • John Matuszak, Tampa (AP-3 [DT], NEA-2 [DT], TSN, Time)
  • Ernie Price, Texas A&I (NEA-2)
  • Tab Bennett, Illinois (UPI-2)
  • Danny Sanspree, Auburn (AP-2)
  • Steve Bogosian, Army (AP-3)
  • Merv Krakau, Iowa State (AP-3)

Defensive tackles

Middle guards

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Kickers

Punters

  • Ray Guy, Southern Miss (FWAA, TSN, Time)

Key

  • Bold – Consensus All-American[7]
  • -1 – First-team selection
  • -2 – Second-team selection
  • -3 – Third-team selection

Official selectors

Other selectors

  • FN – Football News
  • PFW – Pro Football Weekly
  • Time – Time magazine
  • TSN – The Sporting News

See also

References