The 1981 College Football All-America team is composed of college football players who were selected as All-Americans by various organizations and writers that chose College Football All-America Teams in 1981. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) recognizes four selectors as "official" for the 1981 season.[1] They are: (1) the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) based on the input of more than 2,000 voting members;[2] (2) the Associated Press (AP) selected based on the votes of sports writers at AP newspapers;[3] (3) the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) selected by the nation's football writers;[4] and (4) the United Press International (UPI) selected based on the votes of sports writers at UPI newspapers.[5] Other selectors included Football News (FN),[6] Gannett News Service (GNS),[7] the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA),[8] The Sporting News (TSN),[9] and the Walter Camp Football Foundation (WC).[10]

Nine players were unanimously selected as first-team All-Americans by all four official selectors.[1] They were:

  1. Marcus Allen, running back for USC, who won the 1981 Heisman Trophy, Maxwell Award, and Walter Camp Award after becoming the first player to rush for more than 2,000 yards (2,427) in a season;
  2. Anthony Carter, wider receiver for Michigan, consensus first-team All-American in both 1981 and 1982 who caught 50 passes for 952 yards during the 1981 season;
  3. Sean Farrell, offensive guard who helped lead Penn State to a 10–2 record and a #3 ranking in the final AP Poll;
  4. Jim McMahon, quarterback for BYU and winner of the 1981 Davey O'Brien Award and Sammy Baugh Trophy;
  5. Dave Rimington, center for Nebraska, two-time winner of the Outland Trophy and the namesake of the Rimington Trophy, which is awarded annually to the nation's top collegiate center.
  6. Kenneth Sims, defensive tackle who helped lead Texas to a 10–1–1 record and #2 ranking in the final AP Poll, and who became the #1 pick in the 1982 NFL Draft;
  7. Billy Ray Smith, Jr., defensive end for Arkansas and who was a consensus first-team All-American in both 1981 and 1982;
  8. Herschel Walker, running back for Georgia, a three-time consensus first-team All-American who finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting in 1981 and won the award in 1982; and
  9. Tim Wrightman, tight end for UCLA who caught 28 passes for 308 yards in 1981.

Allen, Carter, McMahon, Rimington, Smith, and Walker have been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.

The 1981 Michigan Wolverines football team led the nation with five of its players, all on offense, receiving first-team honors from one or more of the selectors. In addition to Anthony Carter, Michigan's honorees were offensive tackles Ed Muransky and Bubba Paris, offensive guard Kurt Becker, and running back Butch Woolfolk.

Consensus All-Americans

The following charts identify the NCAA-recognized consensus All-Americans for the year 1981 and displays which first-team designations they received.

Offense

Name Position School Number[11] Official Other
Marcus AllenRunning backUSC4/5/9AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPIFN, GNS, NEA, TSN, WC
Anthony CarterWide receiverMichigan4/5/9AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPIFN, GNS, NEA, TSN, WC
Sean FarrellOffensive guardPenn State4/5/9AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPIFN, GNS, NEA, TSN, WC
Herschel WalkerRunning backGeorgia4/5/9AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPIFN, GNS, NEA, TSN, WC
Dave RimingtonCenterNebraska4/3/7AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPIFN, GNS, WC
Tim WrightmanTight endUCLA4/2/6AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPINEA, WC
Jim McMahonQuarterbackBYU4/2/6AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPIFN, GNS
Roy FosterOffensive guardUSC3/2/5AFCA, FWAA, UPITSN, WC
Terry TauschOffensive tackleTexas2/3/5AP, UPIFN, TSN, WC
Kurt BeckerOffensive guardMichigan2/3/5AFCA, APFN, GNS, NEA
Terry CrouchOffensive tackleOklahoma2/0/2AFCA, FWAA–
Ed MuranskyOffensive tackleMichigan2/0/2AP, UPI–

Defense

Name Position School Number[11] Official Other
Kenneth SimsDefensive tackleTexas4/5/9AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPIFN, GNS, NEA, TSN, WC
Billy Ray Smith Jr.Defensive endArkansas4/5/9AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPIFN, GNS, NEA, TSN, WC
Bob CrableLinebackerNotre Dame3/4/7AFCA, AP, UPIFN, GNS, TSN, WC
Andre TippettDefensive endIowa3/2/5AP, FWAA, UPIFN, GNS
Tommy WilcoxDefensive backAlabama3/2/5AFCA, AP, UPIFN, WC
Jeff DavisLinebackerClemson3/1/4AFCA, FWAA, UPIFN
Tim KrumrieMiddle guardWisconsin2/2/4AP, UPIFN, WC
Mike C. RichardsonDefensive backArizona State2/2/4AP, FWAATSN, WC
Sal SunseriLinebackerPittsburgh3/0/3AFCA, AP, FWAA--
Terry KinardDefensive backClemson2/1/3AP, FWAANEA
Fred MarionDefensive backMiami (FL)2/1/3AP, FWAANEA

Special teams

Name Position School Number[11] Official Other
Reggie RobyPunterIowa2/2/4AP, UPIFN, WC

Offensive selections

Receivers

Tight ends

Tackles

Guards

Centers

Quarterbacks

Running backs

Defensive selections

Defensive ends

Defensive tackles

Middle guards

  • Tim Krumrie, Wisconsin (AP-1, UPI-1, FN-1, NEA-2, WC)
  • Emanuel Weaver, South Carolina (NEA-1)
  • George Achica, USC (AP-2, GNS)
  • Pat Dean, Iowa (UPI-2)

Linebackers

Defensive backs

  • Mike Richardson, Arizona State (AP-1, FWAA, UPI-2, NEA-2, TSN, WC)
  • Tommy Wilcox, Alabama (AFCA, AP-1, UPI-1, FN-1, WC)
  • Terry Kinard, Clemson (CFHOF) (AP-1, FWAA, NEA-1)
  • Fred Marion, Miami (Fla.) (AFCA, AP-2, UPI-1, FN-2)
  • John Krimm, Notre Dame (GNS, NEA-1, TSN)
  • Johnny Jackson, Air Force (AP-2, FWAA, NEA-2)
  • Steve Cordle, Fresno St. (AFCA)
  • Vann McElroy, Baylor (UPI-2, FN-1, WC)
  • Ray Horton, Washington (NEA-1)
  • Matt Vanden Boom, Wisconsin (AP-2, UPI-1)
  • Paul Sorensen, Washington State (FN-1, GNS, NEA-1)
  • Rodney Lewis, Nebraska (TSN)
  • Rick Woods, Boise State (GNS)
  • Jim Burroughs, Michigan State (FN-2, TSN)
  • Paul Lankford, Penn State (GNS)
  • Jim Bob Harris, Alabama (UPI-2)
  • Mike Kennedy, Toledo (NEA-2)
  • Kevin Potter, Missouri (FN-2)
  • Ken Thomas, San Jose State (NEA-2)

Special teams

Kickers

  • Morten Andersen, Michigan State (UPI-1, FN-2, GNS, NEA-2, TSN, WC; AP-3)
  • Bruce Lahay, Arkansas (FWAA, NEA-1)
  • Gary Anderson, Syracuse (AP-1)
  • Danny Miller, Miami (Fla.) (UPI-2, FN-1)
  • Eddie Garcia, SMU (AP-2)

Punters

Key

  • Bold – Consensus All-American[1]
  • -1 – First-team selection
  • -2 – Second-team selection
  • -3 – Third-team selection
  • CFHOF = College Football Hall of Fame inductee

Official selectors

Other selectors

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Football Award Winners" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). 2016. pp. 3, 12. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  2. 1 2 "Kodak All-America Team". The Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY). November 24, 1981. p. D2 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  3. 1 2 "All-America Team". Herald and Review (Decatur, IL). December 3, 1981. p. C2 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  4. 1 2 Ted Gangi (ed.). "FWAA All-America Since 1944: The All-Time Team" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2019. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  5. 1 2 "UPI All-Americans". The Indianapolis Star. December 9, 1981. p. 66 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  6. 1 2 "Football News cites Iowa's Roby, Tippett". The Des Moines Register. December 1, 1981. p. 1B, 3B – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  7. 1 2 "McMahon rates with the best". Democrat and Chronicle (Rochester, NY). December 8, 1981. pp. 1D, 4D – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  8. 1 2 Murray Olderman (November 28, 1981). "NEA's 1981 All-America football team". Mattoon (IL) Journal Gazette. p. 14 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  9. 1 2 "Football All Americans: Sporting News". The Pittsburgh Press. December 8, 1981. p. C4 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  10. 1 2 3 "All-America Teams". Arizona Republic. November 26, 1981. p. 9 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  11. 1 2 3 This column lists the number of selectors choosing the player as a first-team All-American as follows: official selectors/other selectors/total selectors.
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