GopherSports: Who is your Gopher football Linebackers Mount Rushmore?

[BleedGopher]

My picks:

De'Vandre Campbell
Pete Najarian
Damien Wilson
Blake Cashman

https://gophersports.com/poll.aspx?poll=14

Go Gophers!!

 

[MNVCGUY]

This is actually a pretty tough one. Gut tells me that Light and Najarian have to be there. After those two gets a lot tougher. Would probably go with 2 from the group of Campbell, Wilson, Conzemius and Williams but not sure which 2 I would take.


Here are some career stats from Wikipedia:

Tackles[edit]

Career Rank Player Tackles Years 1 Tyrone Carter 528 1996 1997 1998 1999 2 Pete Najarian 482 1982 1983 1984 1985 3 Bill Light 395 1969 1970 1971 4 Parc Williams 351 1995 1996 1997 1998 5 Russ Heath 329 1990 1991 1992 1993 6 Steve Stewart 325 1974 1975 1976 1977 7 Bruce Holmes 323 1983 1984 1985 1986 8 Joel Staats 318 1988 1989 1990 1991 9 Justin Conzemius 317 1992 1993 1994 1995 10 Glenn Howard 308 1978 1979 1980 1981

Single season Rank Player Tackles Year 1 Bill Light 172 1970 2 Jon Leverenz 162 1987 3 Tyrone Carter 158 1998 4 Jack Brewer 155 2001 5 George Washington 154 1975 6 Pete Najarian 144 1984 Tyrone Carter 144 1999 8 Tyrone Carter 143 1997 9 Bruce Holmes 139 1985 10 Pete Najarian 137 1985

Single game Rank Player Tackles Year Opponent 1 Bill Light 32 1970 Iowa 2 Bill Light 29 1969 Indiana 3 Pete Najarian 26 1983 Nebraska Pete Najarian 26 1984 Purdue 5 Ron King 25 1969 Michigan 6 Wayne King 24 1968 Iowa 7 Tim Wheeler 23 1966 Kansas Ollie Bakken 23 1973 Ohio State George Washington 23 1975 Illinois Pete Najarian 23 1985 Oklahoma

 

[coolhandgopher]

I'm quite enjoying the Mount Rushmore's by position and when I've found the time, it's sent me on an exploration of past greats, many of whom I'm unaware. Using wikipedia as a source is not ideal, but I found the following through what they have listed for All-Big Ten teams:
'60s and '70s
Bill Light's got to be on the team-both in 1970 and 71 was first team media, second team coaches

Noel Jenke is a strong contender too-'67, coaches 2nd team, '68 first team media, second team coaches. Also was a letter winner in baseball and hockey, and a first round MLB baseball pick, played four seasons in the NFL.

'80s
While there were some awfully lean years, it was a pretty strong run for linebackers back then.

Jim Fahnhorst was a first team coaches and media choice in '81. Went on to play several years in the NFL and started for the 49ers at times during their Super Bowl runs.

Pete Najarian is the other shoo-in with Light. Three straight years on 2nd team coaches, two years on media all big ten. Some linebacking legends in the Big Ten (Spielman, Larry Station, Mike Mallory, Pepper Johnson) kept him from first team.

After Najarian left, Bruce Holmes was second team in both coaches and media in '86 and Jon Leverenz followed in '87 as first team media, second team coaches. And while he never received Big Ten honors, Mark Dusbabek was a 4th round draft pick in the '87 draft (and a favorite of my childhood, for what it's worth).

'00s
Sean Hoffman was 2nd team coaches in 2000.

'10s
Damien Wilson, 1st team media, 2nd team coaches in '14

Other notables through the years:
Thomas Barber, Joe Pung, Gary Reierson, Ollie Bakken

Looking all this over, I think I'd go:
Light
Najarian
Fahnhorst
Jenke

Interesting about the standout linebackers through time is how local they've been. Here's where these guys hailed from:
Light-Hopkins
Jenke-Owatonna
Bakken-St Paul (Harding)
Fahnhorst-St. Cloud (Tech)
Najarian-Minneapolis (Central)
Pung-Paynesville
Reierson-Edina
Dusbabek-Faribault
Barber-Plymouth
Parc Williams-Zumbrota
Cashman-Eden Prairie

 

[Otis]

Hmm, not a lot of standout play from the linebackers. Lots of tackles 5 yards deep.

One that I can remember, I believe his name was Larry Joyner, undersized linebacker, less than 225 for sure. Should have played safety. Against Ohio State at the Metrodome, the Gophers, behind Foggie are putting up a hell of a game! The play of the game? Ohio State runs Keith Byars, all 260 lbs of him, wide left behind great blocking. Who's there to stop him on an island? undersized outmanned Larry Freaking Joyner! This is a microcosm of this match up, BlueBlood OSU vs. Nobody also-ran Minny. So what happens when the irresistible object of Byers hits the completely resistible force of Joyner one yard from the First Down line?

That's right! Joyner stops him Stone Cold Steve Austin style! For good measure he wraps Byers up in what bear hug he can muster and drives him backwards five yards in the ultimate display of sheer force of will over everything that makes sense. Like John Wick killing three men in a bar with a pencil! Yes, it was one play. But it was legendary!

Give me Larry Joyner on that wall!

 

[DarrenTheGreek]

Light
Fargo Flash
Wilson
Cashman

 

[Gophersince72]

Leverenz was really something special. Unfortunately, I believe he blew out a knee on that awful 80's era turf and was never the same.