Greatest CU Football Player

[FlatironsBuff]

I think @ahoelsken has it correct above with Cliff Branch. I can't think of anyone else. I believe Solder only won 2 with NE.

Ted Johnson has three, all with the Patriots.

 

[Alfred91]

Ted Johnson has three, all with the Patriots.

I was just going to post that. I checked, and I found that Branch and Johnson both have 3, and Boyd Dowler (a nominee for best NFL career for a CU alum), Dick Anderson, Barry Helton, and Alfred Williams have 2.

A lot of guys have won one, and it's possible that some other guys have won a couple as bit players.

Edit: you were right on the Patriots thing - Christian Fauria and Daniel Graham also won 2 with NE, on the same teams in 2003 and 2004.

 

[FlatironsBuff]

I was just going to post that. I checked, and I found that Branch and Johnson both have 3, and Boyd Dowler (a nominee for best NFL career for a CU alum), Dick Anderson, Barry Helton, and Alfred Williams have 2.

A lot of guys have won one, and it's possible that some other guys have won a couple as bit players.

I’d call Ashworth and Solder more than bit players. They have two each.

Was hoping with many great Buffs going to the Steelers that we would have a contender there. But apparently that was after the 4 SB run they had.

 

[Alfred91]

I might seem like a complete noob here, but why was Bo Matthews the highest picked former Buff? He apparently was drafted #2 overall by San Diego in the 1974 draft.

His college stats are nothing special, and his pro stats are pedestrian, bordering on bust territory considering his draft position.

Someone who was old enough to watch him play help me out.

 

[Buffnik]

Daniel Graham deserves some love in this thread. Mackey Award winner and consensus All-American. 1st round draft pick who won 2 rings and was considered one of the most complete TEs in the game for about a decade.

 

[WarBuff]

Daniel Graham deserves some love in this thread. Mackey Award winner and consensus All-American. 1st round draft pick who won 2 rings and was considered one of the most complete TEs in the game for about a decade.

This thread might be easier if the nominations were by position.

 

[Always BUFF]

Looking at the OP's lists I went down and tried remember where each was from by state.

 

[ZandiBuff]

Cody Hawkins

Ban?

 

[GoBuffs08]

Dave Logan- kidding

Hagan. Alfred, and Salaam are tops of my list of people I got to see play, but there were so many great players back in the day.

 

[CPVbuff]

Mike Pritchard! Always under appreciated. He was the MVP of the.national championship team. If you are old enough to ha e watched him that season. It has to be my favorite.

Recall the telecast against Notre Dame and the hype for Rocket. Pritchard was better in almost every category.

 

[vinniew_11]

As a complete athlete, Logan does deserve a nod. Varsity in FB, BB and baseball means a ton.

 

[68buffs]

As a complete athlete, Logan does deserve a nod. Varsity in FB, BB and baseball means a ton.

Getting drafted in all 3 isn't to bad either.

 

[skibum]

I might seem like a complete noob here, but why was Bo Matthews the highest picked former Buff? He apparently was drafted #2 overall by San Diego in the 1974 draft.

His college stats are nothing special, and his pro stats are pedestrian, bordering on bust territory considering his draft position.

Someone who was old enough to watch him play help me out.

This happened before I was born, but I think I know my Buffs history. I'm going to do this from memory, and then go check the source book and make sure I got it right, so...

He was a fullback - probably the best to ever play the position at CU. It was a serious position of need for San Diego, and he was damn good.

Now, I'm going to go out on limb:
He was originally an Alabama commitment. He was going to be the player that Bear Bryant used to integrate the Alabama team. Bear Bryant invited him to attend the Alabama bowl game; the Liberty Bowl in Memphis, where they played CU.

CU was already integrated. Matthews saw how the Alabama fans treated CU's black players.

And the standard for how you do a bowl game was forever set:

You go, you win, you steal the other team's best recruit.


Edit: ****ing nailed it. https://www.denverpost.com/2007/12/27/1969-buffs-made-their-mark-on-racism/
I know it's the DP, but it's Paige, and he got this one right.

 

[Rob DeVere]

Unfortunately he doesn't get the credit he deserves, but if he had played and accomplished what he did 20 years ago instead of almost 90, I believe no other name would be under consideration.

Hands down, White is the best CU student-athlete ever!

If you haven't seen the display of his accomplishments in the Byron White Courthouse on Denver, go visit: https://www.ca10.uscourts.gov/education/byron-white

Go visit the Courthouse, that is! Hidden gem in it's reconfigured state.

 

[Liver]

good thread headed into game day!

we've had a lot of greats. if you forced me to pick only one, it would be DH. but, i think about it more holistically in the eras they played and the teams they were on.

white would always be a safe pick because of his awesomeness across his life. the stories about him fiercely kicking the sup.ct. clerks asses day in and day out in pickup basketball, well into his 80s, are legendary.

cliff branch was electric. there is a whole category of electric game breakers where everyone would just stop what they were doing to watch them do their magic--- branch, walter stanley, pritchard, bloom, etc.

heart and soul guys, you have to consider the greats up front like gurode, naeole, tyler braxton, hypolite, etc.

linebackers is really all its own category because we've had so many truly great ones.

tomorrow, we will see some guys whose stories aren't yet written. viska, landman, montez, and others all have a chance to leave their own mark. if they can lead us to a great season, they will be remembered forever.

 

[patebuff]

This thread might be easier if the nominations were by position.

For **** sakes