Four Bruins Named to ESPN's Greatest All-Time Players List
January 09, 2020 | Football
Four Bruin football greats, linebacker Jerry Robinson, safety Kenny Easley, offensive tackle Jonathan Ogden and quarterback Gary Beban have been named to the list of college football's 150 greatest players of all-time as selected by ESPN as part of the network's yearlong celebration of College Football's 150thย season.
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Jerry Robinson, No. 89 on the ESPN list, started at linebacker at UCLA from 1976-78. He became the nation's first three-time consensus All-America selection since SMU's Doak Walker in 1947-49 and the first-ever in conference history. Robinson still ranks second on UCLA's all-time tackle list (468) and owns the top two single-season tackle totals in school history (161 in 1978; 1959 in 1976). He finished 10th in the voting for the Heisman Trophy in 1978. Robinson's No. 84 was retired at UCLA and he was inducted into the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame in 1991 and into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1996.
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Robinson went on to be selected in the first-round of the 1979 NFL Draft and enjoyed a 13-year professional career with the Eagles (1979-84) and the Raiders (1985-91). He was a member of Philadelphia's team for Super Bowl XV, and was chosen for the Pro Bowl after the 1981 season.
Easley, No. 114 on the ESPN list, was regarded as one of the nation's best defenders, playing free safety from 1977-1980. He started from the second game of his true freshman season and went on to become only the second three-time consensus All-American in UCLA and Conference history (1978-80). The native of Chesapeake, Va. finished ninth in voting for the 1980 Heisman Trophy. He became the first four-time first-team all-conference selection in league history. Easley ranks first on the all-time UCLA career interceptions list with 19 and is still fifth in all-time tackles (374). He also ranks among the all-time top 10 at UCLA in career punt returns (45).
A four-time first-team All-Pro and five-time Pro Bowl safety who was selected by the Seattle Seahawks with the No. 4 overall pick in the 1981 NFL Draft, Easley recorded 32 interceptions through seven professional seasons, racking up 538 return yards and three touchdowns in the process. He earned AFC Defensive Rookie of the Year honors in 1981 and had a League-leading 10 picks including two pick-sixes in 1984, when he was named NFL Defensive Player of the Year. Easley was named to the NFL's All-Decade Team of the 1980s.
In 2017, Easley became the sixth Bruin to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, joining Troy Aikman (inducted in 2006, played for Cowboys from 1989-00), Tom Fears (inducted in 1970, played for Rams from 1948-56), Jimmy Johnson (inducted in 1993, played for 49ers from 1961-76), Jonathan Ogden (inducted in 2013, played for Ravens from 1996-07), and Bob Waterfield (inducted in 1965, played for Rams from 1945-52).
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Ogden, No. 121 on ESPN's list of greats, was a four-year starter at offensive tackle for UCLA in the 1992-95 seasons. He won the 1995 Outland Trophy, was runner-up for the Lombardi Award and earned consensus All-America honors that season. Ogden was selected All-Pac-10 Conference following the 1994 and 1995 campaigns and was awarded the Morris Trophy, as the conference's best offensive lineman in 1995. He helped the Bruins to a share of the Pac-10 title in 1993 and an appearance in the 1994 Rose Bowl. Ogden was inducted into College Football Hall of Fame in the 2012 Class.
The first-ever draft choice of the Baltimore Ravens, Ogden was selected with the fourth pick of the first round of the 1996 NFL Draft. He played tackle for 12 seasons with Baltimore, from 1996-2007, and went on to appear in 11 straight Pro Bowls. In 2001, Baltimore won Super Bowl XXXV against the N.Y. Giants. A member of the NFL's All-Decade Team of the 2000s, Ogden was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in the Class of 2013.
Beban, No. 146 on the list of college football's best, was UCLA's starting quarterback from 1965-67 and was awarded the Heisman Trophy in 1967. He was a consensus All-America selection in 1967 and a three-time first-team all-conference selection in 1965-67. Beban also won the 1967 Maxwell Award, 1967 Sporting News Player of the Year honors and was named a National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete. He finished fourth in the 1966 voting for the Heisman Trophy and led the Bruins to a 24-5-2 record in his three varsity seasons, including a win over top-ranked Michigan State in the 1966 Rose Bowl. Beban, who still ranks among UCLA's all-time leaders in passing yards (4,087), scoring (214 points), touchdowns (35) and career total offense (5,358), was voted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1988. He was selected in the second round of the 1968 NFL Draft by the Rams.
The ESPN list of College Football's 150 Greatest Players of All-Time (at espn.com) is derived from a blue-ribbon panel vote comprised of 150 influential figures from across the spectrum of college football. The top-25 players on the list will be unveiled on Jan. 13 at halftime of the CFP Championship game.
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Jerry Robinson, No. 89 on the ESPN list, started at linebacker at UCLA from 1976-78. He became the nation's first three-time consensus All-America selection since SMU's Doak Walker in 1947-49 and the first-ever in conference history. Robinson still ranks second on UCLA's all-time tackle list (468) and owns the top two single-season tackle totals in school history (161 in 1978; 1959 in 1976). He finished 10th in the voting for the Heisman Trophy in 1978. Robinson's No. 84 was retired at UCLA and he was inducted into the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame in 1991 and into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1996.
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Robinson went on to be selected in the first-round of the 1979 NFL Draft and enjoyed a 13-year professional career with the Eagles (1979-84) and the Raiders (1985-91). He was a member of Philadelphia's team for Super Bowl XV, and was chosen for the Pro Bowl after the 1981 season.
Easley, No. 114 on the ESPN list, was regarded as one of the nation's best defenders, playing free safety from 1977-1980. He started from the second game of his true freshman season and went on to become only the second three-time consensus All-American in UCLA and Conference history (1978-80). The native of Chesapeake, Va. finished ninth in voting for the 1980 Heisman Trophy. He became the first four-time first-team all-conference selection in league history. Easley ranks first on the all-time UCLA career interceptions list with 19 and is still fifth in all-time tackles (374). He also ranks among the all-time top 10 at UCLA in career punt returns (45).
A four-time first-team All-Pro and five-time Pro Bowl safety who was selected by the Seattle Seahawks with the No. 4 overall pick in the 1981 NFL Draft, Easley recorded 32 interceptions through seven professional seasons, racking up 538 return yards and three touchdowns in the process. He earned AFC Defensive Rookie of the Year honors in 1981 and had a League-leading 10 picks including two pick-sixes in 1984, when he was named NFL Defensive Player of the Year. Easley was named to the NFL's All-Decade Team of the 1980s.
In 2017, Easley became the sixth Bruin to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, joining Troy Aikman (inducted in 2006, played for Cowboys from 1989-00), Tom Fears (inducted in 1970, played for Rams from 1948-56), Jimmy Johnson (inducted in 1993, played for 49ers from 1961-76), Jonathan Ogden (inducted in 2013, played for Ravens from 1996-07), and Bob Waterfield (inducted in 1965, played for Rams from 1945-52).
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Ogden, No. 121 on ESPN's list of greats, was a four-year starter at offensive tackle for UCLA in the 1992-95 seasons. He won the 1995 Outland Trophy, was runner-up for the Lombardi Award and earned consensus All-America honors that season. Ogden was selected All-Pac-10 Conference following the 1994 and 1995 campaigns and was awarded the Morris Trophy, as the conference's best offensive lineman in 1995. He helped the Bruins to a share of the Pac-10 title in 1993 and an appearance in the 1994 Rose Bowl. Ogden was inducted into College Football Hall of Fame in the 2012 Class.
The first-ever draft choice of the Baltimore Ravens, Ogden was selected with the fourth pick of the first round of the 1996 NFL Draft. He played tackle for 12 seasons with Baltimore, from 1996-2007, and went on to appear in 11 straight Pro Bowls. In 2001, Baltimore won Super Bowl XXXV against the N.Y. Giants. A member of the NFL's All-Decade Team of the 2000s, Ogden was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in the Class of 2013.
Beban, No. 146 on the list of college football's best, was UCLA's starting quarterback from 1965-67 and was awarded the Heisman Trophy in 1967. He was a consensus All-America selection in 1967 and a three-time first-team all-conference selection in 1965-67. Beban also won the 1967 Maxwell Award, 1967 Sporting News Player of the Year honors and was named a National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete. He finished fourth in the 1966 voting for the Heisman Trophy and led the Bruins to a 24-5-2 record in his three varsity seasons, including a win over top-ranked Michigan State in the 1966 Rose Bowl. Beban, who still ranks among UCLA's all-time leaders in passing yards (4,087), scoring (214 points), touchdowns (35) and career total offense (5,358), was voted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1988. He was selected in the second round of the 1968 NFL Draft by the Rams.
The ESPN list of College Football's 150 Greatest Players of All-Time (at espn.com) is derived from a blue-ribbon panel vote comprised of 150 influential figures from across the spectrum of college football. The top-25 players on the list will be unveiled on Jan. 13 at halftime of the CFP Championship game.
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