Keith Byars

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Keith Byars
Byars in Tikrit, Iraq, signing autographs during a February 2006 troop visit.
Date of birth	October 14, 1963 (age 43)
Place of birth	Dayton, Ohio
Position(s)	Running Back
College	Ohio State
NFL Draft	1986 / Round 1/ Pick 10
Pro Bowls	1993
Stats
Statistics	Pro Football Reference DatabaseFootball
Team(s)
1986-1992 1993-1996 1996-1997 1998	Philadelphia Eagles Miami Dolphins New England Patriots New York Jets

Keith Byars (born October 14, 1963 in Dayton, Ohio) is a sports broadcaster and former American football player.

1 College career
2 NFL career
3 After Retirement
4 External links

[edit] College career

Byars was a tailback at Ohio State University from 1982 to 1985.

In 1984, he was runner-up for the Heisman Trophy (to Doug Flutie) after a season where he gained an OSU record 2,441 all-purpose yards, including a then-school record 1,764 rushing yards and 22 touchdowns. He was a unanimous first-team All-America selection, and voted the Big Ten Conference Most Valuable Player.

1984 featured a game against Illinois in which Byars led a come-back from a 24-0 deficit, rushing for 274 yards and five touchdowns, the last with 36 seconds remaining in the game. On his 4th touchdown run, going for 67 yards, he famously lost his left shoe at the Illini 40 but never broke stride.

Byars was a preseason favorite for the 1985 Heisman, but fractured the bone in his right foot near the little toe in preseason practice. He missed the first five games of the 1985 season, and returned too early. He reinjured the broken bone in his second game back and missed the remander of the regular season. He attempted to return for the Citrus Bowl game on December 28, but reinjured his foot again in the second Ohio State offensive series of the game. Many observers note that throughout the remainder of his football career Byars was never as dominant a player as he had been in 1984.

Despite losing almost his entire senior year, Byars finished his college career at Ohio State with 4,369 total yards, 3,200 rushing yards, and 50 touchdowns. His 50 touchdowns remain the second most in school history.

[edit] NFL career

As a professional, he played fullback and tight end for the Philadelphia Eagles (1986-1992), Miami Dolphins (1993-1996), New England Patriots (1996-1997), and the New York Jets (1998). Byars was selected to the Pro Bowl in 1993.

A superb rusher, blocker, and pass receiver, Byars was a vital contributor for every team he played on. In 1988 he rushed for 517 yards, recorded 71 receptions(ranking him 9th in the NFL), and scored 10 touchdowns. In the Eagles 20-12 loss to the Chicago Bears in the postseason, he rushed for 34 yards and caught 9 passes for 103 yards. In 1990, he recorded 81 receptions for 819 yards, the third most receptions in the NFL, rushed for 141 yards, and even completed 4 of 4 passes for 53 yards and 4 touchdowns. In the 1996 season, Byars made his first and only championship appearance, playing with the Patriots in Super Bowl XXXI. His team lost the game 35-21, but the 33-year old Byars had a good performance in it, catching 4 passes for 42 yards and a touchdown.

In his 13 seasons, Byars rushed for 3,109 yards, caught 610 passes for 5,661 yards, returned 5 kickoffs for 94 yards, and completed 6 of 13 passes for 119 yards and 6 touchdowns, with 1 interception. He also scored 54 touchdowns (23 rushing and 31 receiving)

[edit] After Retirement

He is currently a television analyst for "New York Football Weekly" and This Week in Football on the YES Network.

Preceded by Don Thorp	Big Ten Football MVP 1984	Succeeded by Chuck Long
Preceded by John Frank	Ohio State Buckeyes Football Season MVP 1984	Succeeded by Jim Karsatos
Preceded by Tim Spencer	Ohio State Buckeyes Starting Tailbacks 1983-1984	Succeeded by John Wooldridge
Preceded by Mike Rozier	NCAA Football Rushing Leader 1984	Succeeded by Lorenzo White
Preceded by Mike Rozier	NCAA Football Scoring Leader 1984	Succeeded by Bernard White
Preceded by Napoleon McCallum	NCAA Football All-Purpose Yards Leader 1984	Succeeded by Napoleon McCallum

Ohio State Buckeyes Football I-Formation Tailbacks
Griffin • Logan • Springs • Murray • Spencer • Byars • Wooldridge • Workman • Snow • Smith • Harris • George • Pearson • Wiley • Combs • Wells • Clarett • Ross • Pittman