Best South Carolina football players: Modern-era Mount Rushmore – From Rogers to Clowney
By Ethan Lee
George Rogers
It should be fair to say George Rogers remains the greatest to ever play for South Carolina, right? Rogers is the only Heisman winner in South Carolina’s history. It’s a great thing Rogers played for South Carolina in 1980 so he could make this list.
Rogers had one of the most productive careers in South Carolina history. He is, by far, the best running back to ever play for the Gamecocks and he owns quite a few South Carolina football records.
In fact, the only person who could beat some of Rogers’ records was, well, Rogers himself.
Rogers has the most rushing yards in a season (and the second-most rushing yards in a season), the most rushing attempts in a season (and the second-most rushing attempts in a season), the most rushing attempts in a career, the second-most rushing touchdowns, and the most rushing yards in South Carolina football history.
For three straight seasons, unsurprisingly, Rogers was the leading rusher for the Gamecocks. He has more 100-yard rushing games than any other Gamecock in history with 27. The next highest total there is Brandon Bennett with 11.
In 1980, Rogers became South Carolina’s first Heisman Trophy winner and he did it with a Herculean effort.
That season, Rogers ran for 1,781 yards and 14 touchdowns on six yards per carry. That season capped off a phenomenal college career for Rogers in which he ran for 5,091 yards and 31 touchdowns.
He would go on to play professional football for seven seasons, running for 7,176 yards and 54 touchdowns before retiring.
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