Who is the best OU Running Back of ALL time?

[CatfishSooner]

Billy Sims?
Little Joe?
Vessels?
AD?
Pruitt?
Q?
Demond Parker?
Steve Owens?
Dupree?

I would take AD all day!
What are y'alls pick?
:pop:

[All_Day_28]

AD and Demond Parker

[Big Red Ron]

1 Billy, 2 AD, 3 Demond

[insuranceman_22]

Billy Sims #1 Dude was as much if not of a freak in his day than AD was the last few years. Strength, Speed, Moves.....he had it all.

[goingoneight]

Does this mean we'll see an Adrian Peterson BBQ joint in about 20 years? :D

[Big Red Ron]

Does this mean we'll see an Adrian Peterson BBQ joint in about 20 years? :DBilly's got some good stuff.

[goingoneight]

I know, but kind expensive when we wnat to order BBQ at the office. I make a point to get Boomer-Q at least once during football season to watch a game. It's usually Baylor, or some other game I don't want to pay PPV for. So I just donate my money to the United Billy BBQ Feed.

[Big Red Ron]

I even bought a "Fraternal Order of Fro Fluffers" t-shirt. It has a skull with a fro and two picks crossed behind.

:D

[Big Red Ron]

Oh, Little Joe and Mike Gaddis round out my top five.

[LittleWingSooner]

Joe Washington, Billy Sims, Greg Pruitt, Steve Owens, and Tommy McDonald

[StuIsTheMan]

AD would have been hands down if he had come back for his Sr. year. But I have to vote for Billy Sims...TOTAL FREAK...Q would be up there as well...

[badger]

i was a big Q fan. he's like jenna plumley is to our women's bball team now to our football team back then.

[The_Red_Patriot]

Marcus Dupree would have been.



Demond Parker if not for John Blake and 90% of his 50+ yard runs werent called back for holding.

So im goin with little Joe

[swardboy]

A big part of the '74/'75 national championships was because Joe Washington graced both teams. Sadly, he sat out too many 2nd half blowouts to appreciate his true talent per all-time yardage stats. And he still wound up, what? 2nd all-time?

[SteelClip49]

Was it because of not being on TV and probation the Heisman did not go to Joe Washington?

[Sonner magic923]

Billy but AD is a close second

[JohnnyMack]

Oh, Little Joe and Mike Gaddis round out my top five.

No mention of Steve Owens or Billy Vessels?

[XingTheRubicon]

1. Billy Sims
2. Joe Washington
3. Billy Vessels
4. Greg Pruitt
5. Adrian Peterson

[Big Red Ron]

No mention of Steve Owens or Billy Vessels?I don't think either could do what these guys did against the defenses nowadays. I love 'em but they wouldn't be as successful these days. Maybe Steve but certainly not Vessels.

[Big Red Ron]

1. Billy Sims
2. Joe Washington
3. Billy Vessels
4. Greg Pruitt
5. Adrian Petersonwow, have a thing for older men I see. ;)

[XingTheRubicon]

wow, have a thing for older men I see. ;)

No, I've just seen them all play....(except for Mr. Vessels)

[Octavian]

Patrick Collins never gets mentioned on anyone's list....he was underrated

[Big Red Ron]

No, I've just seen them all play....(except for Mr. Vessels)Me too and Demond was as electrifying as AD at times. Different styles but a home run threat every time he touched the ball.

[CrimsonChampion]

Sims, he's got the record so he's got my vote.

If AD would've broke the record I'd give it to him though, both were as dominate.

If Dupree wasn't a lazy bum he would've had a chance to break the record.

[OUDoc]

Only Big Red Ron mentioned Mike Gaddis? If he had a spare knee, he would have been legendary. Look at what he did vs Barry Sanders' OSU team.

[CrimsonChampion]

Only Big Red Ron mentioned Mike Gaddis? If he had a spare knee, he would have been legendary. Look at what he did vs Barry Sanders' OSU team.

GAHHHHH, I can't believe I forgot about the jerry curl jitterbug. Gaddis was SICK!!! He's the reason we said screw the fake turf and put in the most beautiful grass in any stadium, pros or college. Fake turf should be outlawed, nobody should have their career ended because of the playing surface.

[Sonner magic923]

what about James Allen:D

[the_ouskull]

I haven't gotten to see all of OU's tailbacks play, so, based on what clips I've seen, what people whose opinions I respect have told me, and what I've seen in person, my Top 5 are:

1) Billy Sims
2) AD
3) Joe Washington
4) Billy Vessels
5) Demond Parker

the_ouskull

[Big Red Ron]

I haven't gotten to see all of OU's tailbacks play, so, based on what clips I've seen, what people whose opinions I respect have told me, and what I've seen in person, my Top 5 are:

1) Billy Sims
2) AD
3) Joe Washington
4) Billy Vessels
5) Demond Parker

the_ouskullThat's a very fair list.

[Big Red Ron]

what about James Allen:DOne of my personal favorites. Another victim of Boo Blake.

[elderlysooner]

Me too and Demond was as electrifying as AD at times. Different styles but a home run threat every time he touched the ball.
You guys are all too young to have seen Billy Vessels. In the words of Bud Wilkenson " He was both the fastest man and the toughest man on the team,and it's very rare to see those two traits in one individual."I've been a Sooner fan since Dewey Luster was the coach.

[Big Red Ron]

You guys are all too young to have seen Billy Vessels. In the words of Bud Wilkenson " He was both the fastest man and the toughest man on the team,and it's very rare to see those two traits in one individual."I've been a Sooner fan since Dewey Luster was the coach.You're right and I hope I didn't offend sir.

[bixby28]

I'm not old enough to have had the chance to watch Sims, and most of OU's great backs, but i can't imagine any of them having more talent than Peterson.

[OU_Sooners75]

No offense to Billy Sims, but had Peterson been healthy all year every year, he would have surpassed Billy Sim's records in just his Sophomore season, or the beginning of his Junior season. Also, had he been healthy in 2006, he would have won that overrated trophy.

1. Adrian Peterson
2. Billy Sims
3. Demond Parker
4. Quentin Griffin
5. Steve Owens
6. Billy Vessels

[OU_Sooners75]

You guys are all too young to have seen Billy Vessels. In the words of Bud Wilkenson " He was both the fastest man and the toughest man on the team,and it's very rare to see those two traits in one individual."I've been a Sooner fan since Dewey Luster was the coach.

I did not have the priviledge to see Vessels play, and that is a shame. However, he would not have the talent to be on the roster today. In his era he was the best of the best. Today, he would ride the pine.

I do not mean to offend you or Billy Vessels accomplishments in anyway.

[Remembering Tom Stidham]

Billy Vessells and Mike Gaddis.

[RiddlerOK]

If you throw pure running back talent into the equation and forget whether they played a full season, set career records, or all those other determining statistics, I think the list would look something like this:

1. Adrian Peterson
2. Joe Washington
3. Billy Sims
4. Marcus Dupree
5. Mike Gaddis

It's hard to believe that OU has had so many other great running backs that didn't even get a mention here.......Greg Pruitt, Elvis Peacock, Patrick Collins, Spencer Tillman, James Allen, Quentin Griffin, Steve Owens, Clendon Thomas, Prentice Gautt and Buster Rhymes among others!

[Big Red Ron]

If you throw pure running back talent into the equation and forget whether they played a full season, set career records, or all those other determining statistics, I think the list would look something like this:

1. Adrian Peterson
2. Joe Washington
3. Billy Sims
4. Marcus Dupree
5. Mike Gaddis

It's hard to believe that OU has had so many other great running backs that didn't even get a mention here.......Greg Pruitt, Elvis Peacock, Patrick Collins, Spencer Tillman, James Allen, Quentin Griffin, Steve Owens, Clendon Thomas, Prentice Gautt and Buster Rhymes among others!I hate to nitpick and I was at one point the only person that mentioned Mike Gaddis but Mike was hurt and Demond has better stats.

Dupree can't even make the conversation because like Troy in the QB debate he didn't do enough on the field to warrent disscussion.

I would go.

1. Billy
2. AD
3. Vessels
4. Little Joe
5. Parker

[soonerboomer93]

Little Joe #1

[Big Red Ron]

Little Joe #1Luckly at OU we are really splitting hairs for the top five RB's in school history. And they call thenselves "Tailback U" at okie state.:D

[cvsooner]

Little Joe for his versatility and overall skills. Talk about a guy who should've won the Heisman Trophy.

[wheatonsooner]

1. Billy
2. Joe
3. Steve ans vessels (tied)

[olevetonahill]

No particular order But , Billy , lil Joe . and AD
with Honorable mention for Gaddis and the others . Demond would have been Great, I just wish he had stayed around for his senior year under Bob .

[Since71ASooner4Life]

Billy was a freak who ran with the proverbial wreakless abandone. I remember at least once when he broke into the endzone and start ruinning in an arch while touching his finger tip of one hand to the ground. I thought that looked cool and when I scored in our neighborhood game tried to do the same and quickly was eating grass. Another time I tried to leap over the line at the goal line and discovered that it isn't so easy to elevate 3 or 4 feet up and 8 feet forward - I pretty much speared a kid in the back instead of leaping over him.

[Soonerus]

Gotta go with Billy...

[FlatheadSooner]

I'd go with:

1. Billy
2. AD
3. Joe W
4. Vessels, Owens
5. Gaddis, Parker

You have to give Vessels and Owens their due. Performance has to be based on the competition of the day as well as the game and preparation methods /tools of the day.

:rolleyes:

[dog-knee]

I never saw Vessels play, but if Bud says he was the fastest and
the toughest guy on the team, then we would ALL lose money betting against him. Personally, Owens was the toughest I ever saw. He took, and dealt out, more punishment than anybody. Little Joe was the most exciting in a oh-my-lord, what-is-he-doing-now sort of way.

Dupree and AD are both in the every play could be a game-breaker category, but ultimately fall short. AD because of injuries and early exit; Dupree because, well, he was just either too lazy or too foolish to get anywhere close to his potential (by the way, Switzer has said publicly that Dupree had more potential than ANYONE he ever coached).

That leaves Sims. I'm probably prejudiced in favor of Billy (even though I'm a Miami native, and have known the Owens family all my life), because I was a freshman in '77, when Billy spoke to the pre-Dally Rally, and told us all to come down to Dallas and, "see me fly." He was as much fun to watch as anyone who ever put on the crimson and cream.

[pardon the interREDtion]

Whats the definition of best?
Most fun to watch- Little Joe, bar none.
Most durable- Steve Owens
Most dissapointing- Marcus Dupree
Most surprising- Q
Most untimely- Parker
Most drug induced and maybe unheralded- Stanley Wilson
Most bestest-Billy, maybe Pruitt and too early to call AD, I know you said OU rb

[soonerjoker]

sooner75

you talk about how well AD would've done, had he not been injured.

Billy stayed @ OU (loyalty) but only played a little more than 2, due to
INJURIES !!!!!!!!!!! he really needed the money when he was a JR; but Barry talked him into coming back for his 5th season. (loyalty)

his yards/carry were (are) better than ADs. what makes AD better ???

you know nothing about Billy Vessels.
he was a super athlete.

[PLaw]

Billy Sims?
Little Joe?
Vessels?
AD?
Pruitt?
Q?
Demond Parker?
Steve Owens?
Dupree?

I would take AD all day!
What are y'alls pick?
:pop:

My POV:
1) Billy Sims
2) Adrian Peterson
3) Marcus Dupree
4) Steve Owens
5) Joe Washington
6) Greg Pruitt
7) Billy Vessels
8) David Overstreet
9) Thomas Lott / 'bone QB was the 4th RB
10) Demond Parker
11) Stanley Wilson
12) Quentin Griffin
13) Prentice Gautt
14) J.C. Watts / see (9)
15) Spencer Tillman
16) Buster Rhymes
17) Horace Ivory
18) Mike Gaddis
19) Lycell Carr
20) Leon Crosswhite
21) Tommy McDonald
22) Jamelle Holieway
23) J.D. Runnells
24) Clendon Thomas
25) Elvis Peacock


BOOMER SOONER - TODAY, TOMORROW, and FOREVER
PLAW

[stoops the eternal pimp]

Jeff Frazier

[stoopified]

I don't think either could do what these guys did against the defenses nowadays. I love 'em but they wouldn't be as successful these days. Maybe Steve but certainly not Vessels.
While I appreciate the accuracy of what you are sayin gI believe each player should be measured against his era not against what he could do now.By that criteria AD,Q will be dinosaurs in 20 years.Having said that ,here is my top 10:
1 Joe Washington
2 Billy Sims
3 Greg Pruitt
4 Billy Vessels
5 Steve Owens
6 Adrian Petersen
7 Qentin Griffin
8 Demond Paeker
9 Mike Gaddis
10 Tommy McDonald

Lokking at the list after I finshed it,I see how I could move some players up and some down but the one thing I will stand by is these are the TOP TEN ,if not necessarily in that order.

[Jdog]

I'm not old enough to have had the chance to watch Sims, and most of OU's great backs, but i can't imagine any of them having more talent than Peterson.

Check out Joe Washington on utube. Also look for the list of the top 25 greatest individual performances of Monday night Football. Joe had one that ranked somewhere in the second 10. At 53 he was the only person that could cover Jerry Rice in the flag football game at the college hall of fame induction ceremony last year.

Here’s my list:
1) Billy Sims - the best all-round
2) Joe Washington - do a utube search.
3) Greg Pruitt - reason why 71 team sloberknocked USC.
4) Adrian Peterson - we only got a glimpse of his talent.
5) Marcus Dupree - the most natural talent of them all and knew it – felt like he didn’t have to try.
6) Steve Owens - was like a Timex watch - and won a Heisman
7) Quentin Griffin - poor mans Sanders
8) Billy Vessels - Heisman
9) David Overstreet - had the physical skills of Billy, but fumbled too much.
Tied 10) Kenny King – Sims and King were the best boneTandem
Tied 10) Joe Wyle - Pruitt/Wyle was the second best tamdem

Tied 12) Steve Sewell - The drive.
Tied 12) Demond Parker - should be higher, but where
Tied 12) Mike Gaddis - Should have been top 10 - Cotton bowl turf sucked.
Tied 12) Elvis Peacock - overshadowed by other backs

Tied 16) Horace Ivory - overshadowed - but had a good pro career
Tied 16) Spencer Tillman - very good - Kind of like Allen Patrick

17) Tommy McDonald - should be up higher - should have won the Heisman
18) Clendon Thomas – hard to rank these guys

Tied 19) James Allen – Should have been better but the Coaching sucked
Tied 19) Jerald Moore – Ditto Allen comment

20) Stanley Wilson - doper - classy escape before the Super bowl.
22) Leon Crosswhite – great wishbone fullback
23) Lydell Carr – very good but …..
24) J.D. Runnells - Could have ranked higher if they would have just given him the ball more.

[Jdog]

sooner75

you talk about how well AD would've done, had he not been injured.

Billy stayed @ OU (loyalty) but only played a little more than 2, due to
INJURIES !!!!!!!!!!! he really needed the money when he was a JR; but Barry talked him into coming back for his 5th season. (loyalty)

his yards/carry were (are) better than ADs. what makes AD better ???

you know nothing about Billy Vessels.
he was a super athlete.

According to Barry's book, Sims stayed because some one came up with 5 grand and his Mommy wanted him to graduate.
He would have also had a legal battle to fight because he would have been the first Junior to come out.

[Jdog]

No offense to Billy Sims, but had Peterson been healthy all year every year, he would have surpassed Billy Sim's records in just his Sophomore season, or the beginning of his Junior season. Also, had he been healthy in 2006, he would have won that overrated trophy.

1. Adrian Peterson
2. Billy Sims
3. Demond Parker
4. Quentin Griffin
5. Steve Owens
6. Billy Vessels

You've got to remember that both Sim's and Washington's Stats would have been better had they played more - Neither got much playing time in the second half of games, and they both missed games due to injury. Sims blew out a knee in his first year and also missed some games in his senior year due to injury.

[Jimminy Crimson]

Jermaine 'Gumbo' Fazande :D

[Flagstaffsooner]

Hopefully some guy in the next few years.

[soonerjoker]

nobody seems to listen; Sims missed most of THREE seasons. maybe he didn't stay for 5 seasons due to loyalty, but his 4 were more than AD's 3, & he stayed so long that he was 25 before playing professionally.

his ypc is a full yard better than that of AD. what is it that makes some folks
think that AD is better than Billy ?????

[soonerjoker]

Plaw has the best list. i pick all of those guys, in no particular order.

Washington was one of a few that got 4 full seasons. he was in the 1st class
in which freshmen could play.

Steve Owens or Billy Vessels would have more yards if they had had 4 yrs.

[SoonerRoads]

Billy Sims?
Little Joe?
Vessels?
AD?
Pruitt?
Q?
Demond Parker?
Steve Owens?
Dupree?

I would take AD all day!
What are y'alls pick?
:pop:


Steve Owens for more reasons than just what he achieved or how many yards he had. Team player, leader, character, tough, took a beating and kept on ticking...mano a mano. He is the lead dog. All the others were great backs but in all areas......none can exceed Steve Owens.

Just my take.

[Geekboy]

Doesn't Pruitt still hold the NCAA record for highest avg. yards per carry?

Over 8 yards a carry? Rushing, by the way, not all purpose yards.

Just asking.

[stoopified]

PRUITT HAS THE RECORD FOR AVERAGE yards per carry for season 1971 1665 yards,9.4 acarry.His career mark is 7.4 a carry 2which is tops for OU.

[Jdog]

Plaw has the best list. i pick all of those guys, in no particular order.

Washington was one of a few that got 4 full seasons. he was in the 1st class
in which freshmen could play.

Steve Owens or Billy Vessels would have more yards if they had had 4 yrs.

Joe got 4 years, but he was a back up his freshman year to Pruitt.

So he got 3 first half games when Pruitt was injured and a lot of second have time.

[Salt City Sooner]

Pruitt does NOT hold the record for yds. per rush anymore. The record holders are as follows:

75-100 carries: Glenn Davis, Army ( 82 rushes for 944 yds., 11.5 avg.)

101-213 carries: Chuck Weatherspoon, Houston (119 for 1,146 yds. 9.6 avg.)

214-281 carries: Mike Rozier, Nebraska (275 for 2,148 yds., 7.8 avg.)

282 + carries: Barry Sanders, Ok. St. (344 for 2,628 yds. 7.6 avg.)

[soonerjoker]

so weatherspoon holds the record. i remember his great season, he played in the "run-n-shoot" for houston.

jDog

if wash was back-up for Pruitt, who was other halfback ??

[SoonerJLB]

(1) Billy Sims
(2) AD
(3) Demond Parker
(4) Q
(5) Little Joe

[EstablishedSooner1967]

1. Billy Sims
2. Adrian Peterson
3. Joe Washington
4. Greg Pruitt
5. Mike Gaddis (who by the was much better than Demond Parker)
then you can put in Vessels, Owens, McDonald, Griffin, Parker,

[Jdog]

so weatherspoon holds the record. i remember his great season, he played in the "run-n-shoot" for houston.

jDog

if wash was back-up for Pruitt, who was other halfback ??

I believe for most of the season it was Joe Wylie. I'll confirm with "Wash" the next time I talk to him.
Washington was the second leading rusher on the team that year with over 600 yards - but I think a lot of that was during the second half in the first 6 games.
I remember Wylie started the Bowl game and he and Robertson were the big play guys in that game. Wylie threw an HB pass to Owens just before Robertson's first TD pass and Wylie faked and end around on a 4th down.

[theboz44]

(1) Billy Sims - nothing but a winner and sold me after the Boomer Sooner yell during JW's Heisman speech...gotta love the guy
(2) Billy Vessels - cornerstone of the legacy of a football program bud created
(3) LJ Washington - most of us are way too young to remember....but damn this guy has some highlight's that make walter payton look soft
(4) AD - probably the strongest piece sob of all...and doesn't get credit for the influence he had on his teammates...hope the guy has a great nfl career and makes a ton **** ton of $...deserves some good luck once in a while

[Jason White's Third Knee]

Why do I not remember Mike Gattis worth a damn? Were we on probation?

[soonerjoker]

doesn't matter when Wash got his yds as a fresh. my point was (is) that he had a 633 yd head start over everyone that couldn't play as freshman.
+

[OUDoc]

Why do I not remember Mike Gattis worth a damn? Were we on probation?
Not yet. He was there in the late '80's.

OU rushing yds/game (http://www.soonerstats.com/fb/recordbook/player/rush_game.cfm)
274 yds on 29 carries (9.45 yds/carry) 3 TD's vs. osu
217 yds on 25 carries (8.68 yds/carry) 4 TD's vs. Mizzou

[RedstickSooner]

No offense to Billy Sims, but had Peterson been healthy all year every year, he would have surpassed Billy Sim's records in just his Sophomore season, or the beginning of his Junior season. Also, had he been healthy in 2006, he would have won that overrated trophy.

1. Adrian Peterson
2. Billy Sims
3. Demond Parker
4. Quentin Griffin
5. Steve Owens
6. Billy Vessels

There's more to football than stats. Sims ran back during the day of the option attack - which means he had to split ground yards. AD wasn't just a featured back, he was a *heavily* featured back.

Had Billy played in our (current) system, he would've out-gained Adrian every year (barring injury to either). That's not a knock on Adrian -- it's an acknowledgement of just how good Billy was.

I wouldn't complain about having to "settle" with either of 'em in my backfield, though.

[SoonerRoads]

(1) Billy Sims - nothing but a winner and sold me after the Boomer Sooner yell during JW's Heisman speech...gotta love the guy
(2) Billy Vessels - cornerstone of the legacy of a football program bud created
(3) LJ Washington - most of us are way too young to remember....but damn this guy has some highlight's that make walter payton look soft
(4) AD - probably the strongest piece sob of all...and doesn't get credit for the influence he had on his teammates...hope the guy has a great nfl career and makes a ton **** ton of $...deserves some good luck once in a while

What I am about to say will probably stir things up a bit...but here goes. Aside from all the speculation as to who is the best back to ever play at OU, I will say this. As good as AD was, the team as a whole, will probably reach greater heights of accomplishment without him, than they did, with him. Because he was so good, everyone depended on him more. When they have been without him, I have seen a team that comes together and plays even harder than they did when he was in. I hope that continues this season.

Just my take.

[AlbqSooner]

Washington, Sims, Vessels, Owens, AD, and a few others are so close that you cannot really say who was the best among them.

Washington was without a doubt, IMHO, the most exciting running back to play. We often hear that some back has the potential to break it to the house on any given play. Washington had the potential to break it to the house on any given play, as well as on any given attempted tackle. There were so many plays in which the defense converged on him with 3, 4, or 5 guys getting to him all at once and somehow he would come scooting out of the scrum and take it to the house. Smoke through a keyhole was his running style.

[insuranceman_22]

The Sims vs. AD arguement on yards per carry is tough. AD was the focal point of our offense for two of his 3 years (when he was healthy and with JW at QB for AD's freshman year). Sims was a focal point, but he wasn't the key cog that AD was. On the Sims teams, OU had 3 other guys in the backfield that you had to account for. Also, Sims got a lot of yards on the corner from the option pitch. AD had to fight his way to get to the corner, then go after those yards. Two very different offense's. Damn I'd have liked to see AD and Sims line up at half-back together, with a health Jamelle Holieway at QB......that would've been tough!

[LittleWingSooner]

OU changed their offense for Sims. He was the focal point of the offense. Yes OU had 3 backs to account for but they gave it to Sims more then they did in any other player and it wasn't even close.

AD is a great, great back. But he didn't have the speed on the field Sims had. Sims was just explosive. AD is a better power back then Sims was. And he's not exactly slow either. But Billy was a blur to watch and he could carry the load.

The only thing that kept Sims from getting the carries AD had was because Billy was on teams that were a little better.

[Desert Sapper]

Damn I'd have liked to see AD and Sims line up at half-back together, with a health Jamelle Holieway at QB......that would've been tough!

You forgot to add Steve Owens at the Fullback. He may not have been one when he played, but he would have made a hell of a Wishbone FB.

[Taxman71]

OU was on probation with Gaddis in 1989 but most games were shown on dealy IIRC. Gaddis was an all-timer if he could have stayed healthy. When he got in 89 against the whorns, he was the nation's leading rusher....and still was several weeks later. Go watch the 87 or 88 games against osu to see him at his finest.

[Soonerus]

Billy,Little Joe or AD....

[Soonerus]

Congrats....

[Soonerus]

Cat....

[Soonerus]

heck...

[Soonerus]

of...

[Soonerus]

a...

[Soonerus]

thread....

[goingoneight]

So if AD wins this little contest... do we call him AT??? :confused:


:les: ALL TIME BABY!!!