George Arthur Amundson (born March 31, 1951) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player who was a

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He was selected by the

Houston Oilers The Houston Oilers were a professional American football team that played in Houston, Texas, from its founding in 1960 Houston Oilers season, 1960 to 1996 Houston Oilers season, 1996. The Houston Oilers began play as a charter member of the Ame ...

in the first round of the

1973 NFL draft The 1973 NFL draft was held January 30–31, 1973, at the Americana Hotel in New York City, New York. With the first overall pick of the draft, the Houston Oilers selected defensive end John Matuszak. Player selections Round one ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Iowa State Cyclones The Iowa State Cyclones are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Iowa State University, located in Ames. The university is a member of the Big 12 Conference and competes in NCAA Division I, fielding 16 varsity teams (6 men's and 1 ...

, both at

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

and running back. He has been inducted into both the

South Dakota Sports Hall of Fame The South Dakota Sports Hall of Fame is a sports hall of fame honoring individuals associated with the U.S. state of South Dakota. It is "dedicated to the preservation, documentation and display of South Dakota's sports history." As of 2017, the ha ...

and Iowa State Hall of Fame.

Early life

Amundson was born in

Pendleton, Oregon Pendleton is a city in and the county seat of Umatilla County, Oregon, Umatilla County, Oregon, United States. The population was 17,107 at the time of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, which includes approximately 1,600 people who are ...

but grew up in

Aberdeen, South Dakota Aberdeen () is a city in and the county seat of Brown County, South Dakota, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 28,495. making it the third-most populous city in the state. Aberdeen is home of Northern State University. ...

. At Aberdeen Central he excelled in football, basketball, baseball, and track & field. As a high schooler Amundson set the state record in shot put and discus, the latter of which he still holds. In football he was selected to the ''

Argus Leader The ''Argus Leader'' is the daily newspaper of Sioux Falls, South Dakota. It is the largest newspaper by total circulation in South Dakota. It is owned by Gannett and part of the USA Today Network. History The ''Argus Leader'' traces its h ...

'' all-state first-team both as a linebacker and quarterback.

College career

Amundson was recruited to Iowa State both as a track & field athlete and as a football player. He would ultimately become a seven time letter winner, four in track & field and three in football. The football field is where Amundson truly excelled and gained most of his recognition. He was recruited as a quarterback but had to play tailback his junior season due to several injuries on the team. He led the Cyclones to their first ever bowl berth in the 1971 Sun Bowl. That season he rushed for a then-record 1,260 yards and 15 touchdowns. His senior season he was able to switch back to his natural position of quarterback where he became the first Cyclone to top 2,000 yards of total offense in a season. His 2,387 yards set a

Big Eight Conference The Big Eight Conference was a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)-affiliated Division I-A college athletic association that sponsored American football, football. It was formed in January 1907 as the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate ...

mark and earned him Big Eight Player of the Year honors, beating out Nebraska's

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy ( ; also known simply as the Heisman) is awarded annually since 1935 to the top player in college football. It is considered the most prestigious award in the sport and is presented by the Heisman Trophy Trust followin ...

winner

Johnny Rodgers Johnny Steven Rodgers (born July 5, 1951) is an American former professional football player. He played college football for the Nebraska Cornhuskers and won the Heisman Trophy in 1972. Rodgers played in the Canadian Football League (CFL) w ...

Statistics

Professional career

At the conclusion of his collegiate career, Amundson was drafted by the

with the 14th overall pick in the

. He was the only first round NFL draft pick in Iowa State history until

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

. Amundson would play the following two seasons with the Oilers and his final NFL season with the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

. His career stats are 74 rushes for 194 yards and four touchdowns, three of them coming in one game. Amundson tried out for the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Centra ...

as a

tight end The tight end (TE) is an offense (sports), offensive position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football. It is a hybrid that combines the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a receiver (football), receiv ...

in 1977 and 1978 but suffered a knee injury during the 1978 training camp, ending his football career. After recovering from knee surgery, he moved to

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

to work as a construction equipment salesman.

References

External links

Iowa State profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Amundson, George 1951 births Living people American football quarterbacks American football running backs Iowa State Cyclones football players Houston Oilers players Philadelphia Eagles players Sportspeople from Pendleton, Oregon Players of American football from South Dakota Sportspeople from Aberdeen, South Dakota