View source for Bob Ferguson (fullback)

{{Short description|American football player (1939–2014)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2024}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| name          = Bob Ferguson
| image         = Bob Ferguson (1961).png
| caption       = Ferguson in 1961
| number        = 46, 35
| position      = [[Fullback (gridiron football)|Fullback]]
| birth_date    = {{Birth date|1939|8|29}}
| birth_place   = [[Troy, Ohio]], U.S.
| death_date    = {{Death date and age|2004|12|30|1939|8|29}}
| death_place   = [[Columbus, Ohio]], U.S.
| height_ft     = 5
| height_in     = 11
| weight_lb     = 220
| high_school   = [[Troy High School (Ohio)|Troy]]
| college       = [[Ohio State Buckeyes football|Ohio State]] (1959–1961)
| draftyear     = 1961
| draftround    = 1
| draftpick     = 5
| afldraftyear  = 1961
| afldraftround = 1
| afldraftpick  = 8
| pastteams     = * [[Pittsburgh Steelers]] ({{NFL Year|1962|1963}})
* [[Minnesota Vikings]] (1963)
* [[Dayton Colts]] (1965)
| highlights    = * [[College football national championships in NCAA Division I FBS|National champion]] ([[1961 Ohio State Buckeyes football team|1961]])
* [[Maxwell Award]] (1961)
* [[UPI College Football Player of the Year|UPI Player of the Year]] (1961)
* [[Sporting News College Football Player of the Year|''SN'' Player of the Year]] (1961)
* 2× [[List of unanimous All-Americans in college football|Unanimous All-American]] ([[1960 College Football All-America Team|1960]], [[1961 College Football All-America Team|1961]])
* 2× First-team [[List of All-Big Ten Conference football teams|All-Big Ten]] ([[1960 All-Big Ten Conference football team|1960]], [[1961 All-Big Ten Conference football team|1961]])
| statlabel1    = Rushing yards
| statvalue1    = 209
| statlabel2    = Rushing average
| statvalue2    = 3.2
| statlabel3    = Rushing [[touchdown]]s
| statvalue3    = 1
| statlabel4    = [[Reception (gridiron football)|Receptions]]
| statvalue4    = 4
| statlabel5    = Receiving yards
| statvalue5    = 13
| pfr           = FergBo00
| CollegeHOF    = 1919
}}

'''Robert Eugene Ferguson''' (August 29, 1939 – December 30, 2004) was an [[American football]] [[Fullback (gridiron football)|fullback]] who played in the [[National Football League]] (NFL) with the [[Pittsburgh Steelers]] and [[Minnesota Vikings]]. He played [[college football]] for the [[Ohio State Buckeyes football|Ohio State Buckeyes]], where he won the [[Maxwell Award]] in 1961. He was inducted into the [[College Football Hall of Fame]] in 1996.

==Playing career==
Ferguson attended [[Troy High School (Troy, Ohio)|Troy High School]] in [[Troy, Ohio]].  Ferguson's first year of eligibility at [[Ohio State University]] was 1959. The starting [[Fullback (American football)|fullback]] at the beginning of the season was the senior, and [[Heisman Trophy]] candidate, [[Bob White (fullback)|Bob White]].  Through the course of the season, however, Ferguson supplanted White as the starter and led the team in rushing that season, averaging 6.1 yards per carry.

Over the next two seasons, Ferguson continued to lead the Ohio State offensive attack.  In both 1960 and 1961 Ferguson was a unanimous [[All-America]]n selection.  In 1961, he won the [[UPI College Football Player of the Year]], the [[Maxwell Award]], and was the runner-up to [[Ernie Davis]] for the Heisman Trophy.  The 1961 Heisman vote was the second-closest in the history of the award, with Davis edging Ferguson by 53 points.

Ferguson shared the Ohio State backfield in 1961 with [[Running back|halfbacks]] [[Paul Warfield]] and [[Matt Snell]].  Ferguson was a power runner and Warfield was supplied speed.  The common description of the time said, "Warfield is the lightning, Ferguson is the thunder." The Buckeyes won the [[Big Ten Conference]] that year and were voted [[College football national championships in NCAA Division I FBS|national champions]] by the [[Football Writers Association of America]] (FWAA).

Ferguson finished his career at Ohio State with 2,162 rushing yards.  This rushing total was at the time second in team history behind [[Howard Cassady]].  Ferguson owns the distinction of never having been thrown for a loss during his college football career.  Ferguson was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1996, and into Ohio State's own Varsity O Hall of Fame in 1987.  He was selected to the [[Ohio State Football All-Century Team]] in 2000.

Ferguson was a first-round [[NFL draft|draft pick]] by both the [[Pittsburgh Steelers]] of the [[National Football League]] and the [[San Diego Chargers]] of the [[American Football League]].  Ferguson accepted the offer from the Steelers, but a head injury hampered his football career.  After two seasons, playing both for the Steelers and the [[Minnesota Vikings]], he joined the [[Dayton Colts]] of the [[Midwest Football League (1962–1978)|Midwest Football League]] in 1965.<ref>{{cite news |author=Carroll, Tom |title=Ferguson Menace to Own Colts Teammates in Drill |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/75038572/dayton-daily-news/ |newspaper=[[Dayton Daily News]] |via=Newspapers.com |date=September 10, 1965 |access-date=April 17, 2021}}</ref>

==Later life==
Ferguson returned to Ohio State University and earned a master's degree in [[sociology]].  He worked as a youth counselor in [[Columbus, Ohio]] until he was forced to retire in 1990 due to health problems.  Ferguson died in 2004 of complications due to diabetes.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{College Football HoF|1919}}
* {{Footballstats |nfl=bob-ferguson |espn= |cbs= |yahoo= |si= |pfr=F/FergBo00 |rotoworld= }}

{{Navboxes
| title = Bob Ferguson—championships, awards, and honors
| list1 =
{{1961 Ohio State Buckeyes football navbox}}
{{Maxwell Award Winners}}
{{Sporting News College Football Player of the Year}}
{{UPI College Football Player of the Year}}
{{1960 College Football Consensus All-Americans}}
{{1961 College Football Consensus All-Americans}}
{{1962 NFL Draft}}
{{San Diego Chargers 1962 draft navbox}}
{{Steelers1962DraftPicks}}
{{SteelersFirstPick}}
{{ChargersFirstPick}}
}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ferguson, Bob}}
[[Category:1939 births]]
[[Category:2004 deaths]]
[[Category:American football fullbacks]]
[[Category:Ohio State Buckeyes football players]]
[[Category:Pittsburgh Steelers players]]
[[Category:All-American college football players]]
[[Category:College Football Hall of Fame inductees]]
[[Category:Maxwell Award winners]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Troy, Ohio]]
[[Category:Players of American football from Miami County, Ohio]]
[[Category:Players of American football from Columbus, Ohio]]
[[Category:Deaths from diabetes in the United States]]
[[Category:Midwest Football League (1962–1978) players]]
[[Category:20th-century African-American sportsmen]]
[[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]]
[[Category:21st-century African-American sportsmen]]