Ronnie Harmon

Ronnie Keith Harmon (born May 7, 1964) is an American former professional football player who was a running back for 12 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) from 1986 to 1997.

Early life and college

Harmon was born in Queens, New York and played scholastically at Bayside High School in Queens, where he was a consensus all-city selection.^[1]

He played college football for the Iowa Hawkeyes, twice earning first-team all-conference honors in the Big Ten. As a senior, he was selected as a second-team All-American by the Newspaper Enterprise Association.^[2]

Harmon was better known for his receiving rather than his rushing capabilities, a reputation he earned after committing four fumbles, all of which resulted in turnovers, in a 45–28 loss for Iowa against UCLA in the 1986 Rose Bowl Game. It was a disappointing end to an otherwise superb season for Harmon, who rushed for 1,111 yards, caught 49 passes for 597 yards, and scored 10 touchdowns. Harmon finished his four seasons at Iowa with 4,028 yards from scrimmage, 126 receptions, 30 touchdowns, and 626 return yards on special teams.^[3]

Ronnie's brother Kevin replaced him at running back after his graduation from Iowa.

Professional career

A 6 foot tall, 220-lb. running back, Harmon was selected by the Buffalo Bills in the first round (16th overall) of the 1986 NFL draft.^[4]

Harmon played four seasons with the Buffalo Bills. In his final game with Buffalo, a 1989 AFC Divisional Playoff game at the Cleveland Browns, Harmon dropped a potential game-winning touchdown pass from Jim Kelly with :09 left in the fourth quarter.^[5] Harmon publicly stated that his failure was Kelly's fault because the QB didn't throw the ball early enough. Probably not coincidentally, Harmon was not re-signed by Buffalo before the 1990 season.

Harmon also played in Super Bowl XXIX for the San Diego Chargers in their 49–26 loss against the 49ers, a game in which he led his team in receiving with 8 receptions for 68 yards. Ronnie's brothers Kevin and Derrick also played in the NFL.

Harmon is the only player in NFL history to average 4.5 yards per carry on 600 rushing attempts AND 10 yards per catch on 550 receptions. He is also one of only five running backs to ever gain over 10,000 all-purpose yards and have fewer than 20 fumbles, the other four players being Charlie Garner, Brian Westbrook, Priest Holmes and DeAngelo Williams.

NFL career statistics

References