The most decorated running back in NCAA history, Ron Dayne is currently the NCAA’s all-time leading rusher with 7,125 yards (6,397 without bowl games). As a freshman, Dayne set an NCAA freshman rushing record with 1,863 yards, although with the bowl game his 2,109 yards made him only the 10th player in history to top 2,000. He claimed Big Ten Freshman of the Year and Copper Bowl MVP honors as a freshman. He rushed for 1,457 yards and 15 TDs in 1997, becoming the first sophomore in history to be a finalist for the Doak Walker. He rushed for 1,525 yards and 15 TDs as a junior. His junior season finished with a Big Ten title and shocking upset Rose Bowl win over previously No. 1 ranked UCLA. As a senior, Dayne again topped the 2,000-yard mark (2,034) and scored 21 TDs en route to the Badgers' second straight Big Ten title. He was only the fourth player in NCAA history to rush for 1,000 yards in four seasons. He became the Big Ten’s first player to ever lead the league in rushing three different years. He earned two Rose Bowl MVPs and owns every major BCS Bowl rushing record - attempts (34, 2000 Rose Bowl), rushing yards (246, 1999 Rose Bowl) and rushing TDs (4, 1999 Rose Bowl). The consensus All-American won the 1999 Doak Walker, 1999 Maxwell, 1999 Big Ten Player of the Year and the 1999 Heisman Trophy. Dayne finished his career with 1,220 attempts for 7,125 yards and 71 TDs. He left Wisconsin with 48 school records and was inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame in 2009.
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