Auburn Football: Top 25 Best Former Auburn Tigers in NFL History
9. Joe Cribbs, RB
From 1976-79, Joe Cribbs ran for 3,368 yards for the Auburn Tigers, making him the school’s all-time leading rusher when he left campus. The impressive total still ranks fourth in the Auburn football record books and his 34 touchdown runs rank third behind Bo Jackson and Cadillac Williams.
A second round pick (29th overall) of the Buffalo Bills in the 1980 NFL Draft, Cribbs started all 16 games as a rookie and ran for 1,185 yards and 11 touchdowns on 306 carries to earn AFC Rookie of the Year honors. He also caught 52 passes for 415 yards and another score.
Though he never had a better season running the football than his debut year, Cribbs was a three-time Pro Bowler (1980, 1981 and 1983), and had at least 1,000 rushing yards, 40 receptions and 400 receiving yards in those three seasons. In 1982, Cribbs led the NFL with 90.4 yards per game, but played just seven contests in the strike-shortened season and finished with 633 yards and three TDs.
In an eight-year NFL career with the Bills, San Francisco 49ers, Indianapolis Colts and Miami Dolphins, Cribbs ran for 5,356 yards and 27 touchdowns and added 2,199 receiving yards and 15 scores.
Next: 7. James Brooks