1982 College Football All-America Team

Official list of the best college football players of 1982

1982 College Football All-America Team
College Football All-America Team
1982 NCAA Division I-A football season
1980 1981 ← → 1983 1984

The 1982 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 1982. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) recognizes four selectors as "official" for the 1982 season.^[1] They are: (1) the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) based on the input of more than 2,000 voting members; (2) the Associated Press (AP) selected based on the votes of sports writers at AP newspapers; (3) the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) selected by the nation's football writers;^[2] and (4) the United Press International (UPI). Other selectors included Football News (FN), the Gannett News Service (GNS), the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA), The Sporting News (TSN), and the Walter Camp Football Foundation (WC).

Thirteen players were unanimously selected as first-team All-Americans by all four official selectors.^[1] They were:

Jim Arnold, punter for Vanderbilt
Anthony Carter, wide receiver for Michigan, consensus first-team All-American in both 1981 and 1982 and the 1982 winner of the Chicago Tribune Silver Football as the Most Valuable Player in the Big Ten Conference
Eric Dickerson, running back for SMU who rushed for 1,617 yards in 1982
John Elway, quarterback for Stanford, the 1982 recipient of the Sammy Baugh Trophy
Gordon Hudson, tight end for BYU
Terry Kinard, defensive back for Clemson, a consensus All-American in both 1981 and 1982 and the CBS National Defensive Player of the Year in 1982
Steve Korte, offensive lineman for Arkansas
Don Mosebar, offensive lineman for USC
Chuck Nelson, placekicker for Washington
Dave Rimington, center for Nebraska, two-time winner of the Outland Trophy and the namesake of the Rimington Trophy, which is awarded annually to the nation's top collegiate center
Herschel Walker, running back for Georgia, a three-time consensus first-team All-American who finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting in 1981 and won the award in 1982
Billy Ray Smith Jr., defensive end for Arkansas and who was a consensus first-team All-American in both 1981 and 1982
Darryl Talley, linebacker for West Virginia

Consensus All-Americans

The following charts identify the NCAA-recognized consensus All-Americans for the year 1982 and displays which first-team designations they received.

Offense

Name	Position	School	Number^[3]	Official	Other
Eric Dickerson	Running back	SMU	4/5/9	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI	FN, GNS, NEA, TSN, WC
John Elway	Quarterback	Stanford	4/5/9	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI	FN, GNS, NEA, TSN, WC
Herschel Walker	Running back	Georgia	4/5/9	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI	FN, GNS, NEA, TSN, WC
Anthony Carter	Wide receiver	Michigan	4/4/8	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI	GNS, NEA, TSN, WC
Dave Rimington	Center	Nebraska	4/4/8	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI	GNS, NEA, TSN, WC
Bruce Matthews	Guard	USC	3/5/8	AFCA, AP, UPI	FN, GNS, NEA, TSN, WC
Steve Korte	Guard	Arkansas	4/3/7	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI	GNS, NEA, TSN
Gordon Hudson	Tight end	BYU	4/2/6	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI	TSN, WC
Don Mosebar	Tackle	USC	4/1/5	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI	WC
Jimbo Covert	Tackle	Pittsburgh	3/2/5	AFCA, FWAA, UPI	GNS, WC
Mike Rozier	Running back	Nebraska	3/1/4	AFCA, FWAA, UPI	FN

Defense

Name	Position	School	Number^[3]	Official	Other
Terry Kinard	Defensive back	Clemson	4/4/8	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI	GNS, NEA, TSN, WC
Billy Ray Smith Jr.	Defensive end	Arkansas	4/4/8	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI	GNS, NEA, TSN, WC
Darryl Talley	Linebacker	West Virginia	4/3/7	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI	GNS, NEA, TSN
Terry Hoage	Def. back	Georgia	3/4/7	AFCA, AP, UPI	GNS, NEA, TSN, WC
Vernon Maxwell	Defensive end	Arizona St.	3/4/7	AFCA, FWAA, UPI	GNS, NEA, TSN, WC
Mike Pitts	Def. tackle	Alabama	3/2/5	AFCA, FWAA, UPI	NEA, TSN
Mike Richardson	Def. back	Arizona State	3/2/5	AFCA, AP, UPI	TSN, WC
George Achica	Middle guard	USC	2/3/5	AP, UPI	NEA, TSN, WC
Ricky Hunley	Linebacker	Arizona	3/0/3	AFCA, AP, UPI	-
Marcus Marek	Linebacker	Ohio State	2/1/3	AFCA, UPI	WC
Wilber Marshall	Linebacker	Florida	2/1/3	AP, FWAA	GNS
Gabriel Rivera	Def. tackle	Texas Tech	2/1/3	AFCA, AP	GNS
Rick Bryan	Def. tackle	Oklahoma	2/0/2	FWAA, UPI	-

Special teams

Name	Position	School	Number^[3]	Official	Other
Chuck Nelson	Placekicker	Washington	4/4/8	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI	GNS, NEA, TSN, WC
Jim Arnold	Punter	Vanderbilt	4/2/4	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI	FN, NEA, TSN

Offense

Receivers

Anthony Carter, Michigan (CFHOF) (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, GNS-1, NEA, TSN, WC)
Kenny Jackson, Penn State (AP-1, UPI-2)
Trumaine Johnson, Grambling (TSN)
Willie Gault, Tennessee (AP-3, GNS-2, NEA)
Henry Ellard, Fresno State (AP-2, GNS-1)
Chris Castor, Duke (AP-2)
Stanley Washington, TCU (GNS-2)
Mike Martin, Illinois (AP-3, GNS-3)
Trumaine Johnson, Grambling (GNS-3)

Tight ends

Gordon Hudson, BYU (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, TSN, WC)
Tony Hunter, Notre Dame (GNS-2, NEA)
David Lewis, California (GNS-1)
Allama Matthews, Vanderbilt (AP-2, UPI-2, FN)
Darren Long, Long Beach State (AP-3)
Chris Dressel, Stanford (GNS-3)

Tackles

Don Mosebar, Southern California (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, GNS-2, WC)
Jimbo Covert, Pittsburgh (CFHOF) (AFCA, FWAA, UPI-1, GNS-1, WC)
Bill Fralic, Pittsburgh (CFHOF) (AP-1, NEA)
Harvey Salem, California (AP-2, GNS-2, TSN)
Chris Hinton, Northwestern (UPI-2, GNS-1, TSN)
Karl Nelson, Iowa State (NEA)
Randy Theiss, Nebraska (AP-2)
Maceo Fifer, Houston (UPI-2)
Sid Abramowitz, Tulsa (AP-3)
Robert Oxendine, Duke (AP-3)
Alfred Mohammad, Arkansas (GNS-3)
Eric Moran, Washington (GNS-3)

Guards

Steve Korte, Arkansas (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, GNS-1, NEA, TSN)
Bruce Matthews, USC (AFCA, AP-1, UPI-1, FN, GNS-1, NEA, TSN, WC)
Dave Drechsler, North Carolina (AP-2, FWAA, UPI-2, WC [tackle])
Joe Lukens, Ohio State (AP-2, UPI-2)
Tom Thayer, Notre Dame (GNS-2)
Jeff Kiewel, Arizona (GNS-2)
Wayne Harris, Mississippi State (AP-3)
Dave Schreck, Air Force (AP-3)
Rob Fada, Pittsburgh (GNS-3)
Steve Cox, Tulsa (GNS-3)

Centers

Dave Rimington, Nebraska (CFHOF) (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, GNS-1, NEA, TSN, WC)
Bart Oates, Brigham Young (AP-2)
Wayne Radloff, Georgia (UPI-2, GNS-3)
Robin Ham, West Texas State (GNS-2)
Tony Slaton, USC (AP-3)

Quarterbacks

John Elway, Stanford (CFHOF) (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, FN, GNS-1, NEA, TSN, WC)
Tom Ramsey, UCLA (AP-2, UPI-2)
Tony Eason, Illinois (AP-3, GNS-2)
Doug Flutie, Boston College (CFHOF) (GNS-3)

Running backs

Herschel Walker, Georgia (CFHOF) (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, FN, GNS-1, NEA, TSN, WC)
Eric Dickerson, SMU (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, TSN, UPI-1, FN, GNS-1, NEA, WC)
Mike Rozier, Nebraska CFHOF) (AFCA, AP-2, FWAA, UPI-1, FN, GNS-2)
Ernest Anderson, Oklahoma State (AP-2, UPI-2, GNS-3, WC)
Curt Warner, Penn State (UPI-2)
Tim Spencer, Ohio State (UPI-2)
James Jones, Florida (GNS-2)
Marcus Dupree, Oklahoma (AP-3)
Craig James, SMU (AP-3)
Mike Gunter, Tulsa (GNS-3)

Defense

Defensive ends

Billy Ray Smith, Jr., Arkansas (CFHOF) (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, GNS-1, NEA [LB], TSN, WC)
Vernon Maxwell, Arizona State (AFCA, AP-2 [LB], FWAA [LB], UPI-1, GNS-1 [LB], NEA [LB], TSN, WC)
William Fuller, North Carolina (AP-2 [DT], FWAA)
Charles Benson, Baylor (AP-2, UPI-2, GNS-1)
Jody Schulz, East Carolina (AP-3, GNS-2)
Walker Lee Ashley, Penn State (UPI-2, GNS-3)
Michael Walter, Oregon (GNS-2)
Kiki DeAyala, Texas (AP-3)
Mike Pitts, Alabama (GNS-3)

Defensive tackles

Mike Pitts, Alabama (AFCA, FWAA, UPI-1, NEA [DE], TSN)
Rick Bryan, Oklahoma (AP-2, FWAA, UPI-1, GNS-2)
Gabriel Rivera, Texas Tech (CFHOF) (AFCA, AP-1, UPI-2 [MG], GNS-1)
Mike Charles, Syracuse (FWAA, UPI-2, AP-3)
Bill Maas, Pittsburgh (TSN)
Jimmy Payne, Georgia (WC)
Gary Lewis, Oklahoma State (AP-1, GNS-1)
Charles Benson, Baylor, (NEA [DE])
Jim Jeffcoat, Arizona State (GNS-1)
Mark Bortz, Iowa (UPI-2)
Andrew Provence, South Carolina (AP-3, GNS-2)
William Perry, Clemson (AP-3)

Middle guards

George Achica, USC (AP-1, UPI-1, GNS-3, NEA, TSN, WC)
Tim Krumrie, Wisconsin (WC)
Karl Morgan, UCLA (AP-2)

Linebackers

Darryl Talley, West Virginia (CFHOF) (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, GNS-1, NEA, TSN)
Marcus Marek, Ohio State (AFCA, AP-2, UPI-1, WC)
Ricky Hunley, Arizona (CFHOF) (AFCA, AP-1, UPI-1, GNS-2)
Wilber Marshall, Florida (CFHOF) (AP-1, FWAA, UPI-2, GNS-1)
Mark Stewart, Washington (AP-1, TSN, WC)
Tony Caldwell, Washington (NEA)
Albert Richardson, LSU (AP-2, UPI-2)
Scott Radecic, Penn State (UPI-2, GNS-1)
Garin Veris, Stanford (GNS-2)
Ray Cone, Colorado (GNS-2)
Darrell Patterson, TCU (GNS-2)
Johnny Jackson, New Mexico (AP-3)
Andy Ponselgo, Navy (AP-3)
Mark Zavagnin, Notre Dame (AP-3)

Defensive backs

Terry Kinard, Clemson (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, GNS-1, NEA, TSN, WC)
Terry Hoage, Georgia (CFHOF) (AFCA, AP-1, UPI-1, GNS-1, NEA, TSN, WC)
Mike Richardson, Arizona State (AFCA, AP-1, UPI-1, TSN, WC)
Mark Robinson, Penn State (AP-3, FWAA, UPI-2, GNS-2, NEA, TSN)
Tommy Wilcox, Alabama (WC)
James Britt, LSU (NEA)
Jeremiah Castille, Alabama (AFCA, AP-2, UPI-2, GNS-1)
Dave Duerson, Notre Dame (FWAA)
Leonard Smith, McNeese State (GNS-1)
Keith Bostic, Michigan (AP-2, UPI-2)
Russell Carter, SMU (AP-2)
Gill Byrd, San Jose State (GNS-2)
Vince Newsome, Washington (GNS-2)
Joey Browner, USC (AP-3, GNS-2)
Mike Williams, Army (AP-3)

Special teams

Kickers

Chuck Nelson, Washington (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, GNS-1, NEA, TSN, WC)
Fuad Reveiz, Tennessee (AP-2, GNS-2)
Paul Woodside, West Virginia (AP-3, UPI-2)
Mike Bass, Illinois (GNS-3)
Kevin Butler, Georgia (GNS-3)

Punters

Jim Arnold, Vanderbilt (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, FN, GNS-2, NEA, TSN)
Reggie Roby, Iowa (AP-3, UPI-2, GNS-3, WC)
Jimmy Colquitt, Tennessee (GNS-1)
Bucky Scribner, Kansas (AP-2)

Returners

Willie Gault, Tennessee (FWAA)

Key

Bold – Consensus All-American^[1]
-1 – First-team selection
-2 – Second-team selection
-3 – Third-team selection
CFHOF = College Football Hall of Fame inductee

Official selectors

AFCA – American Football Coaches Association^[4]
AP – Associated Press^[5]
FWAA – Football Writers Association of America^[2]^[4]
UPI – United Press International^[6]

Other selectors

FN – Football News^[7]
GNS – Gannett News Service^[8]
NEA – Newspaper Enterprise Association "picked from a consensus poll of coaches, writers and pro scouts by syndicated columnist Murray Olderman"^[9]^[10]
TSN – The Sporting News
WC – Walter Camp Football Foundation^[11]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c "Football Award Winners" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). 2016. pp. 3, 12. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
^ ^a ^b Ted Gangi (ed.). "FWAA All-America Since 1944: The All-Time Team" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2019. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
^ ^a ^b ^c This column lists the number of selectors choosing the player as a first-team All-American as follows: official selectors/other selectors/total selectors.
^ ^a ^b "Awards". The Arizona Republic. November 23, 1982. p. C4 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "1982 Associated Press All-America Team". Santa Cruz Sentinel. December 7, 1982. p. B2 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "1982 UPI All-America football team". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. December 7, 1982. p. 4B – via Newspapers.com.
^ Bill Traughber (September 16, 2015). "Matthews overcame injury to become All-American tight end". Commodore History Corner. Archived from the original on March 10, 2016. Retrieved March 10, 2016.
^ Joel Buchsbaum (November 25, 1982). "Elway, Walker head Gannett all-star squad". Poughkeepsie (NY) Journal. p. 50 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Walker heads NEA All-America football team". The Paris (TX) News. December 26, 1982. p. 4B – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Nelson, Roby land NEA honors". The Des Moines Register. December 23, 1982. p. 9 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Walter Camp All-America team". The Courier-Journal. November 25, 1982. p. D2.

1982 College Football All-America Team consensus selections

Offense

QB John Elway
RB Eric Dickerson
RB Mike Rozier
RB Herschel Walker
WR Anthony Carter
TE Gordon Hudson

OT Jim Covert
OT Don Mosebar
G Steve Korte
G Bruce Matthews
C Dave Rimington

Defense

DB Terry Hoage
DB Terry Kinard
DB Mike Richardson

Special teams

K Chuck Nelson
P Jim Arnold

v t e College Football All-America Teams
1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023

College Football All-America Teams