To commemorate the 100th anniversary of the first-ever AP All-American Team, the Associated Press unveiled its All-Time All-America first and second teams, which include ten Heisman Trophy winners.
A panel of 12 AP sportswriters who cover college football made the selections for the first team and the second team. In order for a player to qualify for one of the teams, he must have been named an AP first-team All-American at least once.
The Big Ten conference led the way with seven player selections, two more than the Southeastern Conference. Four total players from the Independent conference were selected. The ACC, Big East, and Big Eight each had two player selections apiece. The Big 12, MAC, and PAC-10 each had one representative on the teams.
Former Florida Gator Tim Tebow was named the starting quarterback for the AP All-Time All-American First-Team. Lining up behind him at the tailback spots were Barry Sanders and Herschel Walker. The wide receiving corps was made up of Randy Moss, Larry Fitzgerald, and the Las Vegas Raiders’ Brock Bowers, who played his college ball for the Georgia Bulldogs.
1997 Heisman winner Charles Woodson led the First-Team defense alongside Deion Sanders. Ronnie Lott and Ed Reed were named the starting safeties, while Dick Butkus, Chris Spielman, and Derrick Thomas made up the linebacking corps. The defensive line consists of Ndamukong Suh, Bronko Nagurski, Randy White, and former Pitt Panther Hugh Green.
The full list of All-Time First-Team All-Americans is as follows:
Offense
- QB: Tim Tebow, Florida
- RB: Barry Sanders, Oklahoma State; Herschel Walker, Georgia
- WR: Randy Moss, Marshall; Larry Fitzgerald, Pittsburgh
- TE: Brock Bowers, Georgia
- OT: Orlando Pace, Ohio State; Bill Fralic, Pittsburgh
- OG: John Hannah, Alabama; Jim Parker, Ohio State
- C: Chuck Bednarik, Penn
- All-Purpose: Johnny Rodgers, Nebraska
Defense
- DE: Hugh Green, Pittsburgh; Randy White, Maryland
- DT: Ndamukong Suh, Nebraska; Bronko Nagurski, Minnesota
- LB: Dick Butkus, Illinois; Derrick Thomas, Alabama; Chris Spielman, Ohio State
- CB: Charles Woodson, Michigan; Deion Sanders, Florida State
- S: Ronnie Lott, USC; Ed Reed, Miami
Special Teams
- K: Sebastian Janikowski, Florida State
- P: Tory Taylor, Iowa
Former New York Giants Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor highlights the Second-Team defense. He, UCLA’s Jerry Robinson, and Brian Bosworth made up the Second-Team linebacking corps. At defensive end were Bruce Smith and former Michigan State Spartan Bubba Smith, while Lee Roy Selmon and Warren Sapp manned the middle of the d-line. In the secondary were Champ Bailey and Tyrann Mathieu, as well as safeties Bennie Blades from Miami and Al Brosky from Illinois.
Heisman Trophy winners DeVonta Smith and Desmond Howard join former Oklahoma Sooner tight end Keith Jackson to make up the Second-Team receiving corps. They’ll be catching passes from Vince Young. Meanwhile, Archie Griffin and Tony Dorsett will be splitting carries in the backfield.
The full list of All-Time Second-Team All-Americans is as follows:
Offense
- QB: Vince Young, Texas
- RB: Archie Griffin, Ohio State; Tony Dorsett, Pittsburgh
- WR: DeVonta Smith, Alabama; Desmond Howard, Michigan
- TE: Keith Jackson, Oklahoma
- OT: Jonathan Ogden, UCLA; Bryant McKinnie, Miami
- OG: Brad Budde, USC; John Smith, Notre Dame
- C: Dave Rimington, Nebraska
- All-Purpose: Tim Brown, Notre Dame
Defense
- DE: Bubba Smith, Michigan State; Bruce Smith, Virginia Tech
- DT: Lee Roy Selmon, Oklahoma; Warren Sapp, Miami
- LB: Jerry Robinson, UCLA; Brian Bosworth, Oklahoma; Lawrence Taylor, UNC
- CB: Champ Bailey, Georgia; Tyrann Mathieu, LSU
- S: Bennie Blades, Miami; Al Brosky, Illinois
Special Teams
- K: Martin Gramatica, Kansas State
- P: Reggie Roby, Iowa
