1983 College Football All-America Team

Official list of the best college football players of 1983

1983 College Football All-America Team
College Football All-America Team
1983 NCAA Division I-A football season
Official selectors
American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Associated Press (AP) Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) United Press International (UPI) Walter Camp Football Foundation (WCFF)
← 1982 1984 →

The 1983 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 1983. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) recognizes five selectors as "official" for the 1983 season. They are:^[1] (1) the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA);^[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 United Press International (UPI);^[5] and (5) the Walter Camp Football Foundation (WC).^[6] Other selectors included Football News (FN),^[7] Gannett News Service,^[8] the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA),^[9] and The Sporting News (TSN).

Consensus All-Americans

The following charts identify the NCAA-recognized consensus All-Americans for the year 1983 and displays which first-team designations they received.

Offense

Name	Position	School	Number^[10]	Official	Other
Bill Fralic	Tackle	Pittsburgh	5/3/8	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI, WC	GNS, NEA, TSN
Irving Fryar	Receiver	Nebraska	5/3/8	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI, WC	GNS, NEA, TSN
Mike Rozier	Running back	Nebraska	5/3/8	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI, WC	GNS, NEA, TSN
Steve Young	Quarterback	Brigham Young	5/3/8	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI, WC	GNS, NEA, TSN
Gordon Hudson	Tight end	Brigham Young	5/2/7	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI, WC	GNS, NEA
Dean Steinkuhler	Guard	Nebraska	4/3/7	AFCA, FWAA, UPI, WC	GNS, NEA, TSN
Bo Jackson	Running back	Auburn	4/2/6	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI	GNS, NEA
Terry Long	Tackle	East Carolina	4/0/4	AFCA, AP, FWAA, WC	-
Doug Dawson	Guard	Texas	3/0/3	AFCA, AP, WC	-
Tony Slaton	Center	USC	3/0/3	FWAA, UPI, WC	-
Napoleon McCallum	Running back	Navy	2/1/3	FWAA, WC	TSN
Greg Allen	Running back	Florida State	2/0/2	UPI, WC	-

Defense

Name	Position	School	Number^[10]	Official	Other
Rick Bryan	Def. tackle	Oklahoma	5/3/8	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI, WC	GNS, NEA, TSN
Russell Carter	Def. back	SMU	5/3/8	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI, WC	GNS, NEA, TSN
Reggie White	Def. tackle	Tennessee	5/3/8	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI, WC	GNS, NEA, TSN
Ricky Hunley	Linebacker	Arizona	5/1/6	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI, WC	NEA
Jerry Gray	Def. back	Texas	4/2/6	AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI	GNS, NEA
Terry Hoage	Def. back	Georgia	4/2/6	AFCA, FWAA, UPI, WC	NEA, TSN
Ron Rivera	Linebacker	California	3/3/6	AFCA, AP, FWAA	GNS, NEA, TSN
Wilber Marshall	Linebacker	Florida	4/1/5	AFCA, AP, UPI, WC	NEA
Don Rogers	Def. back	UCLA	3/2/5	AFCA, FWAA, WC	GNS, TSN
William Perry	Middle guard	Clemson	4/0/4	AP, FWAA, UPI, WC	-
Jeff Leiding	Linebacker	Texas	3/0/3	AP, FWAA, WC	-
William Fuller	Defensive end	North Carolina	2/1/3	AFCA, WC	TSN

Special teams

Name	Position	School	Number^[10]	Official	Other
Luis Zendejas	Placekicker	Arizona St.	3/1/4	AP, FWAA, WC	NEA
Jack Weil	Punter	Wyoming	3/0/3	AP, FWAA, UPI	-

Offense

Receivers

Irving Fryar, Nebraska (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, WC, GNS-1, NEA-1, TSN)
Gerald McNeil, Baylor (AFCA, AP-1)
Kenny Jackson, Penn State (AP-2, NEA-1)
Eric Martin, LSU (GNS-2, TSN)
Jerry Rice, Mississippi Valley State (GNS-1)
Brian Brennan, Boston College (AP-2, UPI-2)
Louis Lipps, Southern Mississippi (GNS-2)
Eric Richardson, San Jose State (NEA-2)
Dwight Collins, Pittsburgh (NEA-2)
Tracy Henderson, Iowa State (AP-3)
Dave Moritz, Iowa (AP-3)
Jim Sandusky, San Diego State (FN-3, GNS-3)

Tight ends

Gordon Hudson, Brigham Young (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, WC, GNS-1, NEA-1)
Chuck Scott, Vanderbilt (TSN)
John Frank, Ohio State (GNS-2, NEA-2)
Glenn Dennison, Miami (FL) (AP-2)
Paul Bergmann, UCLA (AP-3, UPI-2)

Tackles

Bill Fralic, Pittsburgh (CFHOF) (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, WC, GNS-1, NEA-1, TSN)
Terry Long, East Carolina (AFCA, AP-1 [guard], FWAA, UPI-2 [guard], WC)
Brian Blados, North Carolina (AP-1, UPI-2, NEA-1)
Mark Adickes, Baylor (AP-2, GNS-1, TSN)
Conrad Goode, Missouri (UPI-1)
Jim Juriga, Illinois (UPI-2, NEA-2)
Guy McIntyre, Georgia (AP-2)
William Roberts, Ohio State (GNS-2)
Don Maggs, Tulane (GNS-2)
Pat Arrington, Auburn (AP-3)
Scott Raridon, Nebraska (AP-3)

Guards

Dean Steinkuhler, Nebraska (AFCA, AP-2, FWAA, UPI-1, WC, GNS-1, NEA-1, TSN)
Doug Dawson, Texas (AFCA, AP-1, UPI-2, WC, GNS-2, NEA-2 [tackle])
Stefan Humphries, Michigan (AP-2, FWAA, UPI-1, GNS-2, NEA-2, TSN)
Gary Zimmerman, Oregon (AP-3, NEA-1)
Ron Solt, Maryland (GNS-1, NEA-2)
James Farr, Clemson (AP-3)

Centers

Tony Slaton, USC (AP-2, FWAA, UPI-1, WC)
Tom Dixon, Michigan (AFCA, AP-1, TSN)
Mike Ruether, Texas (UPI-2 [guard], NEA-1)
Jim Sweeney, Pittsburgh (AP-3, GNS-2)
Joel Hilgenberg, Iowa (NEA-2)

Quarterbacks

Steve Young, Brigham Young (CFHOF) (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, WC, GNS-1, NEA-1, TSN)
Randall Cunningham, UNLV (AFCA [punter], AP-2 [punter], GNS-2)
Doug Flutie, Boston College (CFHOF) (UPI-2)
Boomer Esiason, Maryland (NEA-2)
Turner Gill, Nebraska (AP-2)
Ben Bennett, Duke (AP-3)

Running backs

Mike Rozier, Nebraska (CFHOF) (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, WC, GNS-1, NEA-1, TSN)
Bo Jackson, Auburn (CFHOF) (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, GNS-1, NEA-1)
Greg Allen, Florida State (UPI-1, AP-3, WC, NEA-2)
Napoleon McCallum, Navy (CFHOF) (AP-2, FWAA, UPI-2, WC, NEA-2, TSN [return specialist])
Allen Pinkett, Notre Dame (AP-2, UPI-2, GNS-2, TSN)
Keith Byars, Ohio State (AP-3, UPI-2, GNS-2)

Defense

Defensive ends

William Fuller, North Carolina (AFCA, AP-2, UPI-2 [DT], WC, GNS-2, NEA-2, TSN)
Bruce Smith, Virginia Tech (CFHOF) (AFCA, AP-2, GNS-1, NEA-1)
Don Thorp, Illinois (AP-3 [DT], FWAA, UPI-2 [DT], NEA-2, TSN)
Freddie Gilbert, Georgia (AP-2, UPI-1, GNS-2)
Ron Faurot, Arkansas (UPI-1)
Donnie Humphrey, Auburn (UPI-2)
Jimmie Carter, New Mexico (AP-3)

Defensive tackles

Rick Bryan, Oklahoma (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, WC, GNS-1, NEA-1, TSN)
Reggie White, Tennessee (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, WC, GNS-1, NEA-1, TSN)
Keith Millard, Washington State (GNS-1)
Dan Ralph, Oregon (GNS-2)
Ray Childress, Texas A&M (GNS-2)
Doug Smith, Auburn (AP-3, NEA-2)

Middle guards

William Perry, Clemson (AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, WC)
Brian Pillman, Miami (OH) (AP-2)
Michael Carter, SMU (AP-3, UPI-2)

Linebackers

Ricky Hunley, Arizona (CFHOF) (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, WC, GNS-2, NEA-1)
Wilber Marshall, Florida (CFHOF) (AFCA, AP-1, UPI-1, WC, NEA-1)
Ron Rivera, California (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-2, GNS-1, NEA-1 TSN)
Jeff Leiding, Texas (AP-1, FWAA, UPI-2, WC)
Carl Banks, Michigan State (AP-1, UPI-1, GNS-1, NEA-1, TSN)
Vaughan Johnson, North Carolina State (AP-2, TSN)
Jay Brophy, Miami (Fla.) (AP-3, UPI-2, FN, NEA-2)
Jack Del Rio, USC (AP-3, GNS-1, NEA-2)
Kevin Murphy, Oklahoma (AP-2, UPI-2 [DE], GNS-2)
Gregg Carr, Auburn (AP-2)
Steve DeOssie, Boston College (AP-2)
Mike Knox, Nebraska (GNS-2)
Jim Dumont, Rutgers (AP-3)
Andy Ponseigo, Navy (AP-3)

Defensive backs

Don Rogers, UCLA (AFCA, AP-2, FWAA, UPI-2, WC, GNS-1, TSN, NEA-2)
Jerry Gray, Texas (CFHOF) (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, GNS-1, NEA-1)
Russell Carter, SMU (AFCA, AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, WC, GNS-1, NEA-1, TSN)
Terry Hoage, Georgia (CFHOF) (AFCA, FWAA, UPI-1, WC, GNS-2, NEA-1, TSN)
Mossy Cade, Texas (AP-1, UPI-2, WC, GNS-2, TSN, NEA-2)
Leonard Coleman, Vanderbilt (AP-3, GNS-1, NEA-2)
Craig Swoope, Illinois (AP-2, UPI-2, NEA-1)
Victor Scott, Colorado (AP-2)
David Fulcher, Arizona State (GNS-2)
Randy Robbins, Arizona (GNS-2)
Martin Bayless, Bowling Green (AP-3)
Harry Hamilton, Penn State (AP-3)

Special teams

Kickers

Luis Zendejas, Arizona State (AP-1, FWAA, WC, GNS-2, NEA-1)
Bruce Kallmeyer, Kansas (AFCA, AP-2, UPI-1, GNS-1)
Paul Woodside, West Virginia (UPI-2, TSN)
Tony Zendejas, Nevada (Reno) (NEA-2)
Jeff Ward, Texas (AP-3)

Punters

Jack Weil, Wyoming (AP-1, FWAA, UPI-1, NEA-2)
Jim Colquitt, Tennessee (WC, NEA-1)
Randall Cunningham, UNLV (AFCA, AP-2)
Ralf Mojsiejenko, Michigan State (GNS-1, TSN)
John Kidd, Northwestern (GNS-2)
John Teltschik, Texas (UPI-2)

Returners

Napoleon McCallum, Navy (TSN)

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, aka the Kodak-AFCA Team^[2]
AP – Associated Press^[3]
FWAA – Football Writers Association of America^[4]
UPI – United Press International^[5]
WC – Walter Camp Football Foundation^[6]

Other selectors

FN – Football News^[7]
GNS – Gannett News Service^[8]
NEA – Newspaper Enterprise Association^[9]
TSN – The Sporting News

References

^ ^a ^b "Football Award Winners" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). 2016. pp. 3, 12–13. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
^ ^a ^b "1983 Kodak-AFCA All-America Team". The Palm Beach Post. December 2, 1983. p. D6 – via Newspapers.com.
^ ^a ^b "Associated Press All-American Team". Herald and Review (Decatur, IL). December 6, 1983. p. B3 – via Newspapers.com.
^ ^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 Dave Raffo (December 8, 1983). "Offensive Titans Nebraska, BYU Dominate UPI All-America". Tyrone Daily Herald. p. 5 – via Newspapers.com.
^ ^a ^b "1983 Walter Camp All-America Team". The Palm Beach Post. December 2, 1983. p. D6 – via Newspapers.com.
^ ^a ^b "All-America". The Sioux City Journal. November 30, 1983. p. C2. Retrieved February 26, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ ^a ^b Buchsbaum, Joel S. (November 29, 1983). "Young, not Rozier deserves trophy". The Pensacola Journal. Gannett News Service. p. 3B. Retrieved February 26, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ ^a ^b "The 1983 NEA All-America team". The Republic (Columbus, Ind.). November 30, 1983. p. 16 – via Newspapers.com.
^ ^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.

1983 College Football All-America Team consensus selections

Offense

Defense

DL Rick Bryan
DL Reggie White
DL William Perry
DL William Fuller

DB Russell Carter
DB Jerry Gray
DB Terry Hoage
DB Don Rogers

Special teams

PK Luis Zendejas
P Jack Weil

v t e College Football All-America Teams
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College Football All-America Teams