Mike Hart (American football)

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Mike Hart
Indianapolis Colts — No. 32
Running back
Date of birth: April 9, 1986 (1986-04-09) (age 22)
Place of birth: Syracuse, New York
Height: 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) Weight: 195 lb (88 kg)
National Football League debut
No regular season or postseason appearances
Career history
College: Michigan
NFL Draft: 2008 / Round: 6 / Pick: 202
 Teams:
Career highlights and awards

Leon Michael "Mike" Hart, (born April 9, 1986 in Syracuse, New York) is an American football running back for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League. He played college football at the University of Michigan, where he is the all-time leading rusher in the team's history.[1]

Contents

[edit] High school career

Hart attended Onondaga Central High School just outside Syracuse, New York where he set the national career record for rushing touchdowns (204) and finished second in career rushing yards (11,045). Onondaga Central went 46-1, losing only a single game to Mohawk Central School coached by Roy Upson, and won three state championships (against Dobbs Ferry, Briarcliff and Cambridge) during Hart's career.

Hart also excelled academically in high school scoring 1280 on the SAT and graduating in the top five of his class with a 94% average.[2]

[edit] College career

In 2004, Hart set a Michigan record for most rushing yards in a season by a freshman with 1,455. He rushed for nine touchdowns and had 26 receptions for 237 yards and a touchdown catch. In 2005, his sophomore season, Hart missed significant time due to a hamstring injury. He started only eight of Michigan's 12 games and played sparingly in three of those. He finished the season with 662 yards and four touchdowns rushing and added 15 receptions for 154 yards and a touchdown catch.

During the 2006 season, Hart rushed for 1,562 yards, the fifth-best season total in Michigan history, and 14 touchdowns. He also caught 17 passes for 125 yards. For his efforts, Hart was recognized as his team's co-MVP with linebacker David Harris. He was also selected by both coaches and media to the All-Big Ten Conference First Team, named a finalist for the Doak Walker Award, and placed fifth in Heisman Trophy balloting.

As a senior in 2007, Hart was elected team captain along with offensive tackle Jake Long and linebacker Shawn Crable. He entered the eighth week of the season as college football's leader in rushing yards, but after an ankle injury sidelined him for two games, he dropped in the rankings. Hart finished the season with 1,361 yards and 14 touchdowns.

In his career, Hart rushed 1,015 times for 5,040 yards; both marks are school records. His 41 career rushing touchdowns are third-best in Michigan annals. Hart's 28 career games with at least 100 yards rushing and five games with at least 200 yards rushing are each the most in Michigan history. Hart lost just 3 fumbles in his college career. The first came against Iowa on September 25, 2004 during his freshman season. His second and third lost fumbles happened during his final game, the Capital One Bowl against the Florida Gators, both inside the 5-yard line, ending scoring opportunities for Michigan. Hart's college career includes an 0-4 record against arch rival Ohio State and a 4-0 record against in-state rival Michigan State.

On January 1, 2008 in the Capital One Bowl, Hart passed the 5,000 yard mark in his career. He became only the fourth player in Big Ten history to reach 5,000 yards.

[edit] Michigan's career rushing record

Hart's records are shown in the following chart showing the Top 10 rushers in Michigan history, sortable by category.

Rank Name Attempts Net Yds Yds/Att Touchdowns Long Start End
1 Mike Hart 1015 5040 5.0 41 64 2004 2007
2 Anthony Thomas 924 4472 4.8 55 80 1997 2000
3 Jamie Morris 806 4392 5.5 25 68 1984 1987
4 Tyrone Wheatley 688 4178 6.1 47 88 1991 1994
5 Butch Woolfolk 717 3850 5.4 29 92 1978 1981
6 Chris Perry 811 3696 4.6 39 63 2000 2003
7 Rob Lytle 557 3307 5.9 26 75 1973 1976
8 Billy Taylor 587 3072 5.2 30 66 1969 1971
9 Gordon Bell 535 2902 5.4 28 53 1973 1975
10 Tim Biakabutuka 472 2810 6.0 24 60 1993 1995

[3]

[edit] College awards and honors

National awards

Conference honors

  • 2004 All-Big Ten Conference First Team (coaches and media)
  • 2004 Big Ten Freshman of the Year (coaches and media)
  • 2006 All-Big Ten Conference First Team (coaches and media, unanimous)
  • 2007 Big Ten Preseason Offensive Player of the Year (media)
  • 2007 All-Big Ten Conference Second Team (coaches and media)

Team awards

  • 2006 Michigan football team co-MVP with David Harris
  • 2007 Michigan football team MVP

[edit] Professional career

Hart was selected in the sixth round (202nd overall) of the 2008 NFL Draft by the Indianapolis Colts. He will wear the #32 jersey, his old high school number.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Official U of M archives http://stats.ath.umich.edu/football/footstart.php Official U of M archives
  2. ^ Detroit Free Press, 2007-08-30, Years after sister's death, U-M tailback Hart carries on, Windsor, Shawn
  3. ^ Michigan Football Statistic Archive Query Page. Regents of the University of Michigan (2003). Retrieved on 2007-12-06.

[edit] External links

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Indianapolis Colts 2008 NFL Draft selections