Miami football: 5 great players who didn’t live up to the NFL hype

Though he came to Miami with a ton of pedigree as a high school player, fullback/running back Alonzo Highsmith wasn’t used much in the 1983 season as the Hurricanes went on to win their first National Championship in program history. But once Jimmy Johnson took over the following season, he became a do-it-all force out of the backfield for the Canes.

Highsmith exploded in the 1984 season as he had 146 rushing attempts for 906 yards and nine touchdowns. More importantly, he began to establish himself as an all-around threat with his ability to block and make plays in the passing game, hauling in a career-high 37 receptions for 257 yards and two touchdowns.

Admittedly, the next two years weren’t quite as fruitful for Highsmith as the passing offense took precedent. Even still, Highsmith combined for 893 yards and nine touchdowns on 222 carries along with 51 receptions for 702 yards and five touchdowns over his final two seasons. And that led to him being a highly touted draft prospect and the Houston Oilers took him with the No. 3 overall pick in 1987.

He held out for six games before signing his rookie contract and was used for limited work as a rookie. However, he started 16 games in each of the next two seasons and was one of the better fullbacks in the league over that time. Unfortunately, a coaching and scheme change sent Highsmith out of Houston. Even more unfortunate, injuries unraveled his career from there.

Highsmith is the sad case of his NFL career not panning out simply due to factors beyond his control.