Editing Archie Griffin

{{Short description|American football player (born 1954)}}
{{for|the rugby player|Archie Griffin (rugby union)}}
{{Use American English|date=June 2023}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2023}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| name        = Archie Griffin
| image       = Archie Griffin Big Ten Championship (cropped 1).jpg
| caption     = Griffin in 2022
| number      = 45
| position    = [[Running back]]
| birth_date  = {{Birth date and age|1954|8|21}}
| birth_place = [[Columbus, Ohio]], U.S.
| height_ft   = 5
| height_in   = 9
| weight_lb   = 189
| high_school = [[Eastmoor Academy|Eastmoor]] <br> (Columbus, Ohio)
| college     = [[Ohio State Buckeyes football|Ohio State]] (1972–1975)
| draftyear   = 1976
| draftround  = 1
| draftpick   = 24
| pastteams   =
* [[Cincinnati Bengals]] ({{NFL Year|1976|1982}})
* [[Jacksonville Bulls]] ({{USFL Year|1985}})
| highlights  =
* 2× [[Heisman Trophy]] (1974, 1975)
* [[Maxwell Award]] (1975)
* 2× [[Walter Camp Award]] (1974, 1975)
* 2× [[Sporting News College Football Player of the Year|''SN'' Player of the Year]] (1974, 1975)
* 2× [[UPI College Football Player of the Year|UPI Player of the Year]] (1974, 1975)
* 2× [[Chic Harley Award]] (1974, 1975)
* 2× [[List of unanimous All-Americans in college football|Unanimous All-American]] ([[1974 College Football All-America Team|1974]], [[1975 College Football All-America Team|1975]])
* First-team [[College Football All-America Team|All-American]] ([[1973 College Football All-America Team|1973]])
* 2× [[Big Ten Most Valuable Player]] (1973, 1974)
* 3× First-team [[List of All-Big Ten Conference football teams|All-Big Ten]] ([[1973 All-Big Ten Conference football team|1973]], [[1974 All-Big Ten Conference football team|1974]], [[1975 All-Big Ten Conference football team|1975]])
* [[Ohio State Buckeyes football#Retired numbers|Ohio State Buckeyes No. 45]] retired
| statlabel1  = Rushing yards
| statvalue1  = 2,808
| statlabel2  = Rushing average
| statvalue2  = 4.1
| statlabel3  = Rushing [[touchdown]]s
| statvalue3  = 7
| statlabel4  = [[Reception (gridiron football)|Receptions]]
| statvalue4  = 192
| statlabel5  = Receiving yards
| statvalue5  = 1,607
| statlabel6  = Receiving touchdowns
| statvalue6  = 6
| pfr         = GrifAr00
| CollegeHOF  = 1953
}}

'''Archie Mason Griffin''' (born August 21, 1954) is an American former [[American football|football]] [[running back]] who played with the [[Cincinnati Bengals]] in the [[National Football League]] (NFL) for seven seasons. He played [[college football]] for the [[Ohio State Buckeyes football|Ohio State Buckeyes]], and is the only two-time [[Heisman Trophy]] winner in [[NCAA]] history, 1974–1975, considered one of the greatest college football players of all time.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-01-14 |title=The 150 greatest players in college football history: Jim Brown is No. 1 |url=https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/page/cfb150players/the-150-greatest-players-college-football-150-year-history |access-date=2024-12-02 |website=ESPN.com |language=en}}</ref> Griffin won four [[Big Ten Conference]] titles with the Buckeyes and was the first player to ever start in four [[Rose Bowl Game|Rose Bowls]]. He was selected in the first round by the Bengals in the [[1976 NFL draft]].

==Early life==
Griffin rushed for 1,787&nbsp;yards and scored over 170 points in 11 games, including 29 touchdowns, as a senior fullback at [[Eastmoor Academy|Eastmoor High School]] (now Eastmoor Academy) in [[Columbus, Ohio]]. That year, he led Eastmoor to the Columbus City League championship, rushing for 267&nbsp;yards on 31 carries in the title game against [[Linden-McKinley High School]]. In his junior year, Griffin also rushed for over 1,000&nbsp;yards.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nfhs.org/scriptcontent/va_custom/halloffame/athletes_a_g.cfm |title=National High School Hall of Fame: Archie Griffin |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060906224157/http://www.nfhs.org/scriptcontent/va_custom/halloffame/athletes_a_g.cfm |archive-date=September 6, 2006 }}</ref>

In 1996, Griffin was inducted into the High School Hall of Fame, with Eastmoor Academy renaming their playing field "Archie Griffin Field" in his honor.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nflhs.com/news/features/Legends_ArchieGriffin_12052005_lcb.asp |title=Legends of HS Football: Archie Griffin |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060320053145/http://www.nflhs.com/news/features/Legends_ArchieGriffin_12052005_lcb.asp |archive-date=March 20, 2006 }}</ref>

==College career==
Griffin played for the [[Ohio State University]] [[Ohio State Buckeyes|Buckeyes]] from 1972 to 1975. When he won a starting position his freshman year, many sophomores were disappointed because Griffin took their spot. Former Ohio State [[head coach]] [[Woody Hayes]] said of Griffin, "He's a better young man than he is a football player, and he's the best football player I've ever seen."<ref>{{cite news| url= http://www.toledoblade.com/College/2001/05/16/Griffin-singing-praise-for-Buckeyes-Tressel.html |title= Griffin singing praise for Buckeyes' Tressel |first= Dave | last= Hackenberg | newspaper= [[Toledo Blade]] |date= May 16, 2001 | access-date= January 13, 2015}}</ref>

In 1972, Griffin was a [[T-formation]] [[Running back|halfback]], and from 1973 through 1975, he was the team's [[I-formation]] [[Halfback (American football)|tailback]]. He led the Buckeyes in rushing as a freshman with 867&nbsp;yards, but his numbers exploded the following year with the team's conversion to the I-formation. He rushed for 1,428&nbsp;yards in the regular season as a sophomore, 1,620 as a junior, 1,357 as a senior. Griffin was the only back to lead the [[Big Ten Conference]] in rushing for three straight years until [[Jonathan Taylor (American football)|Jonathan Taylor]] did so from 2017 to 2019. Overall, Griffin rushed for 5,589&nbsp;yards on 924 carries in his four seasons with the Buckeyes (1972–1975), then an NCAA record. He had 6,559 all-purpose yards and scored 26 touchdowns. In their four seasons with Griffin as their starting running back, the Buckeyes posted a record of 40–5–1.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ohiostatebuckeyes.cstv.com/school-bio/osu-griffin.html |title=Archie Griffin: Associate Athletic Director |publisher=CSTV.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060814235010/http://ohiostatebuckeyes.cstv.com/school-bio/osu-griffin.html |archive-date=August 14, 2006 }}</ref> Griffin is one of only two players in collegiate football history to start four [[Rose Bowl game]]s, the other being [[Brian Cushing]].

Griffin introduced himself to OSU fans as a freshman by setting a school single-game rushing record of 239&nbsp;yards in the second game of the 1972 season, against [[North Carolina Tarheels|North Carolina]], breaking a team record that had stood for 27 seasons. His only carry in his first game had resulted in a fumble. He broke his own record as a sophomore with 246 rushing yards in a game against the [[Iowa Hawkeyes]]. Over his four-year collegiate career, Griffin rushed for at least 100&nbsp;yards in 34 games, including an NCAA record 31 consecutive games.

===College statistics===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
|-
! rowspan="2"| Season
! rowspan="2"| Team
! colspan="4"| Rushing
|-
! Att !! Yds !! Avg !! TD
|-
! [[1972 NCAA University Division football season|1972]] || [[1972 Ohio State Buckeyes football team|Ohio State]]
| 159 || 867 || 5.5 || 3
|-
! [[1973 NCAA Division I football season|1973]] || [[1973 Ohio State Buckeyes football team|Ohio State]]
| 247 || 1,577 || 6.4 || 7
|-
! [[1974 NCAA Division I football season|1974]] || [[1974 Ohio State Buckeyes football team|Ohio State]]
| 256 || 1,695 || 6.6 || 12
|-
! [[1975 NCAA Division I football season|1975]] || [[1975 Ohio State Buckeyes football team|Ohio State]]
| 262 || 1,450 || 5.5 || 4
|-
! colspan="2"|[https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/players/archie-griffin-1.html Career] !! 924 !! 5,589 !! 6.0 !! 26
|}

===Honors===
Griffin finished fifth in the Heisman vote in his sophomore year and won the award as a junior and senior.  He is the only NCAA football player to date to win the award twice.<ref>{{cite news| url= https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/12006604/ohio-state-two-heisman-winner-archie-griffin-remains-respected |title= Archie Griffin still Heisman standard |work= ESPN.com | date= December 10, 2014 | first= Ivan |last= Maise |access-date= December 11, 2014}}</ref> In addition to his two Heisman Trophies, Griffin won many other college awards. He is one of four players to win the [[Big Ten Most Valuable Player]] twice (1973–1974).<ref>{{cite news| url= http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/college/chi-silver-football-awards-htmlstory.html |title= Past Silver Football winners |publisher= Chicago Tribune | date= December 8, 2016 | access-date= October 25, 2017}}</ref> [[United Press International]] named him Player of the Year twice (1974–1975), [[Walter Camp Award|Walter Camp Foundation]] named him player of the year twice (1974–1975), he won the [[Maxwell Award]] (1975), and [[The Sporting News]] named him Man of the Year (1975).
The [[College Football Hall of Fame]] enshrined Griffin in 1986. Ohio State enshrined him in their own [[Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame]] in 1981 and officially retired his number, 45, in 1999. He was inducted into the [[Rose Bowl Hall of Fame]] in 1990. On January 1, 2014, Griffin was named the 1970s player of the decade in the [[Rose Bowl Game#All-Century Class|Rose Bowl All-Century Class]] during the celebration of the [[2014 Rose Bowl|100th Rose Bowl Game (2014)]].

In 2013, Griffin was inducted into the [[International Sports Hall of Fame]].<ref>{{cite web |title=2013 International Sports Hall of Fame Inductees |url=https://sportshof.org/2013-hall-of-fame/ |website=www.sportshof.org |author=Dr. Robert Goldman | date=March 12, 2013 | access-date=July 14, 2023}}</ref> In 2020, he was ranked No. 4 on ESPN's list of the Top 150 players in college football history.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/page/cfb150players/the-150-greatest-players-college-football-150-year-history|title= The 150 greatest players in college football's 150-year history|website=ESPN}}</ref>

On August 17, 2024, Griffin was honored with a statue and a legacy walk in the Rose Bowl.<ref>{{cite web |title=Media Advisory Archie Griffin Statue Unveiling and Legacy Walk Dedication |url=https://www.rosebowlstadium.com/news/191/media-advisory-archie-griffin-statue-unveiling-and-legacy-walk-dedication |website=Rose Bowl Stadium |publisher=Rose Bowl Stadium |access-date=17 August 2024}}</ref> On August 30, 2024, Griffin was honored with a statue outside 
Ohio Stadium.<ref>{{cite web |title=Statue of Archie Griffin at Ohio Stadium Unveiled, Dedicated |url=https://ohiostatebuckeyes.com/news/2024/8/30/football-statue-of-archie-griffin-at-ohio-stadium-unveiled-dedicated |website=ohiostatebuckeyes.com |date=30 August 2024}}</ref>

==Professional career==
In the [[1976 NFL draft]], Griffin was selected in the first round, 24th overall, by the [[Cincinnati Bengals]]. He played all seven seasons in the NFL with the Bengals, from 1976 to 1982. He was joined in the backfield by his college fullback teammate [[Pete Johnson (American football, born 1954)|Pete Johnson]], drafted by the Bengals in 1977, and his brother and Ohio State defensive back [[Ray Griffin]], drafted in 1978. Griffin rushed for 2808&nbsp;career yards and 7 touchdowns, and caught 192 passes for 1607&nbsp;yards and 6 touchdowns. He played in [[Super Bowl XVI]] with the Bengals in 1982. He finished the game with one carry for four yards, and muffed a kick return in the 26–21 loss.{{citation needed|date=November 2023}}

Following the end of his Bengals career, Griffin played very briefly with the [[Jacksonville Bulls]] of the [[United States Football League]] (USFL). He played in one game and had ten carries for 11 yards.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.usflsite.com/players/Archie_Griffin/p-griffarc001#google_vignette|title=Archie Griffin|website=USFL}}</ref>

==NFL career statistics==
{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible"
|-
! colspan="2"| Legend
|-
| '''Bold'''
| Career high
|}

===Regular season===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|-
! rowspan="2"| Year
! rowspan="2"| Team
! colspan="2"| Games
! colspan="5"| Rushing
! colspan="5"| Receiving
|-
! GP !! GS !! Att !! Yds !! Avg !! Lng !! TD !! Rec !! Yds !! Avg !! Lng !! TD
|-
! [[1976 NFL season|1976]] !! [[1976 Cincinnati Bengals season|CIN]]
| 14 || 14 || 138 || 625 || 4.5 || '''77''' || '''3''' || 16 || 138 || 8.6 || 23 || 0
|-
! [[1977 NFL season|1977]] !! [[1977 Cincinnati Bengals season|CIN]]
| 12 || 11 || 137 || 549 || 4.0 || 31 || 0 || 28 || 240 || 8.6 || 24 || 0
|-
! [[1978 NFL season|1978]] !! [[1978 Cincinnati Bengals season|CIN]]
| '''16''' || 8 || 132 || 484 || 3.7 || 30 || 0 || 35 || 284 || 8.1 || 27 || '''3'''
|-
! [[1979 NFL season|1979]] !! [[1979 Cincinnati Bengals season|CIN]]
| '''16''' || '''15''' || '''140''' || '''688''' || '''4.9''' || 63 || 0 || '''43''' || '''417''' || '''9.7''' || '''52''' || 2
|-
! [[1980 NFL season|1980]] !! [[1980 Cincinnati Bengals season|CIN]]
| 15 || 7 || 85 || 260 || 3.1 || 14 || 0 || 28 || 196 || 7.0 || 19 || 0
|-
! [[1981 NFL season|1981]] !! [[1981 Cincinnati Bengals season|CIN]]
| '''16''' || 2 || 47 || 163 || 3.5 || 23 || '''3''' || 20 || 160 || 8.0 || 17 || 1
|-
! [[1982 NFL season|1982]] !! [[1982 Cincinnati Bengals season|CIN]]
| 9 || 0 || 12 || 39 || 3.3 || 10 || 1 || 22 || 172 || 7.8 || 22 || 0
|-
! colspan="2"| !! 98 !! 57 !! 691 !! 2,808 !! 4.1 !! 77 !! 7 !! 192 !! 1,607 !! 8.4 !! 52 !! 6
|}

===Playoffs===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|-
! rowspan="2"| Year
! rowspan="2"| Team
! colspan="2"| Games
! colspan="5"| Rushing
! colspan="5"| Receiving
|-
! GP !! GS !! Att !! Yds !! Avg !! Lng !! TD !! Rec !! Yds !! Avg !! Lng !! TD
|-
! [[1981 NFL season|1981]] !! [[1981 Cincinnati Bengals season|CIN]]
| '''3''' || 0 || 2 || 8 || 4.0 || 4 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0.0 || 0 || 0
|-
! [[1982 NFL season|1982]] !! [[1982 Cincinnati Bengals season|CIN]]
| 1 || 0 || '''3''' || '''17''' || '''5.7''' || '''8''' || 0 || '''3''' || '''14''' || '''4.7''' || '''6''' || 0
|-
! colspan="2"| !! 4 !! 0 !! 5 !! 25 !! 5.0 !! 8 !! 0 !! 3 !! 14 !! 4.7 !! 6 !! 0
|}

==Post-football career==
[[File:Archie Griffin 2024.png|thumb|240x240px|Griffin in December 2024]]
Griffin is the former president and CEO of the Ohio State University Alumni Association. He is also the current{{when|date=November 2023}} spokesman for the [[Wendy's High School Heisman]] award program. Formerly, he served as assistant athletic director for the university and speaks to the football team before every game. He meets fans in the alumni suite, including opposing fans.

Griffin also serves on the board of directors for Motorists Insurance, which has offices in downtown Columbus, [[Abercrombie and Fitch]], and the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame, based in Irving, Texas.{{citation needed|date=November 2023}}

Along with former [[National Basketball Association]] basketball player [[Magic Johnson]], Griffin was one of the investors in Mandalay Baseball Properties LLC, which owned the [[Dayton Dragons]], a single-A Minor League affiliate of the [[Cincinnati Reds]], prior to the sale of the team in 2014 to Palisades Arcadia Baseball LLC.<ref>{{cite web|title=Single-A team celebrates 815th sellout|url=https://www.espn.com/minor-league-baseball/story/_/id/6796623/dayton-dragons-celebrate-record-sellout-streak|work=ESPN|date=July 24, 2011|publisher=ESPN.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Report: Deal to sell Dayton Dragons reached|url=http://www.daytondailynews.com/news/news/report-deal-reached-to-sell-dayton-dragons-reached/nfhmX/|publisher=daytondailynews.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Palisades Arcadia to acquire Dayton Dragons|url=https://www.milb.com/news/gcs-82713786|publisher=[[Minor League Baseball]]}}</ref>

On August 31, 2024, Griffin dotted the "i" during Ohio State's home opener.<ref>{{cite web|title=Archie Griffin dots the 'i' in Script Ohio during halftime of Ohio State season opener|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgCFp9Hi_G4|website=YouTube|date=August 31, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Buckeye legend Archie Griffin dots the "i" in Script Ohio during Ohio State halftime show|url=https://www.10tv.com/article/sports/football/ohio-state-football/ohio-state-marching-band/archie-griffin-dots-i-ohio-state-marching-band-script-ohio/530-b5398e93-58d9-4737-b899-a7c506ad9b6f|date=August 31, 2024|website=10TV}}</ref>

==Family==
Griffin is a son of Margaret and James Griffin. He has six brothers and a sister. His brothers include [[Ray Griffin|Raymond]],  a former NFL cornerback and a teammate with the Bengals, and [[Keith Griffin (American football)|Keith]] who also played in the NFL.

In 2024, Griffin's son Andre became the head football coach at [[Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin School]]<ref>{{cite web|url= https://ndclathletics.org/news/2024/1/24/ndcl-announces-andre-griffin-as-new-head-football-coach.aspx|title=ndclathletics.org NDCL Announces Andre Griffin as New Football Head Coach}}</ref> and was previously an assistant football coach at [[Ohio Northern University]]. Another son, Adam, played as a defensive back for Ohio State for three seasons until a shoulder injury ended his playing career.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/adam_griffin_753436.html|title=OhioStateBuckeyes.com Buckeye Biography - #11 Adam Griffin|access-date=September 17, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140420133424/http://www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/adam_griffin_753436.html|archive-date=April 20, 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> Griffin also has three grandsons.

==See also==
* [[List of NCAA major college football yearly rushing leaders]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons}}
* {{College Football HoF|1953}}
* {{Heisman|archie-griffin|Archie Griffin (1974)}}
* {{Heisman|archie-griffin-75|Archie Griffin (1975)}}
* {{Footballstats |nfl=archie-griffin |espn= |cbs= |yahoo= |si= |pfr=G/GrifAr00 |rotoworld= }}

{{s-start}}
{{succession box | title=NCAA Division I FBS career rushing yards record   | before=[[Ed Marinaro]]  | after=[[Tony Dorsett]] | years=1975–1976}}
{{S-end}}

{{Navboxes
| list1 =
{{1974 College Football Consensus All-Americans}}
{{1975 NCAA Division I FBS College Football Consensus All-Americans}}
{{Heisman Winners}}
{{Maxwell Award Winners}}
{{Walter Camp Award}}
{{Sporting News College Football Player of the Year}}
{{UPI College Football Player of the Year}}
{{Chicago Tribune Silver Football navbox}}
{{SN Sportsman of the Year}}
{{Walter Camp Alumni of the Year}}
{{1976 NFL Draft}}
{{Bengals1976DraftPicks}}
{{BengalsFirstPick}}
}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Griffin, Archie}}
[[Category:1954 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:All-American college football players]]
[[Category:American football running backs]]
[[Category:Cincinnati Bengals players]]
[[Category:College Football Hall of Fame inductees]]
[[Category:Heisman Trophy winners]]
[[Category:Jacksonville Bulls players]]
[[Category:Maxwell Award winners]]
[[Category:Ohio State Buckeyes football players]]
[[Category:Players of American football from Columbus, Ohio]]
[[Category:Walter Camp Award winners]]