Gordon Bell

Gordon Granville Bell (born December 25, 1953) is an American former professional football player who was a running back, kickoff returner and punt returner who played for the Michigan Wolverines from 1973 to 1975, and professionally for the New York Giants (1976-1977) and St. Louis Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL).

Bell was a two-time All-Ohio running back in high school and led Ohio's Troy High School to undefeated seasons in 1970 and 1971. As a 16-year-old junior, he rushed for 324 yards in a single game; for the year he had 1,593 yards rushing and scored 146 points. As a senior in 1971, he lost the Ohio AAA high school back of the year award to Archie Griffin.

Bell played tailback for Michigan teams that had a combined record of 28-3-3 from 1973 to 1975. As a junior in 1974, Bell was a part-time player who started only three of Michigan's eleven games, but he still managed to become only the third player in school history to rush for 1,000 yards in a season. In 1975, he set several single-season school records, including most all-purpose yards (1,714 yards), most 100-yard rushing games (eight), and most rushing attempts (273). At the time of his graduation from Michigan, Bell also ranked second in school history in career rushing yards and third in all-purpose yards. Though Bell's records have been surpassed in more recent years, he remains one of the all-time rushing leaders in Michigan history. Despite his accomplishments, Bell played in the shadow of Big Ten Conference rival, Archie Griffin, who won back-to-back Heisman Trophies. In some respects, Bell exceeded even Griffin's accomplishments, as Bell won the 1975 Big Ten rushing championship.

Bell played three years of professional football, but never made it into the starting lineup for an NFL team. In three NFL seasons, he had 1,444 all-purpose yards. His best NFL season was 1976, when he had 784 all-purpose yards.

Youth A native of Troy, Ohio, Bell had attended Ohio State Buckeyes games with his father from the age of six. In the 1970 season opener, 16-year-old Bell rushed for 324 yards and scored four touchdowns in a 54–6 win over Piqua High School. Afterward, Bell said, "All I can say is that my line was tremendous." Piqua's coach said, "Our kids were on Bell from the start, but they just couldn't bring him down." The Beavercreek coach said afterward that the game's turning point came the moment Bell walked onto the field. In the season opener, Bell broke off tackle and rushed 70 yards for a touchdown the first time he got the ball. He scored touchdowns in three of his first four carries, though one was nullified by a penalty. Bell rushed for 190 yards and three touchdowns in the season opener. but he lost the Associated Press 1971 Ohio AAA high school back of the year award. The award instead went to a high school senior from Columbus, Archie Griffin. Bell and Griffin would continue their rivalry in college.

In 1971, Bell also won the Piqua YMCA high school weight-lifting contest in the 165-pound class.

University of Michigan

Overview Bell was recruited to the University of Michigan by assistant coach Gary Moeller. In addition to his speed, what set him apart from other backs was his ability to cut and find the smallest of holes. Bo Schembechler called Bell "the greatest cutback runner I've ever coached." In 1975, the Associated Press noted: "Bell is noted for his ability to cut on a dime, spurt through holes and hurdle tacklers. He's got fine speed and he's durable. Bell seems to get -- pardon the expression -- his bell rung on many tackles, only to bounce up as if nothing happened."

1973 season As a sophomore in 1973, Bell saw his first action against Iowa. He was given five carries and gained 50 yards (including a 24-yard gain) for a ten-yard per carry average. Despite tying for the Big Ten Conference championship, Big Ten athletic directors decided to send Ohio State to the Rose Bowl, and conference rules did not permit Michigan to play in another bowl game. Michigan ended up ranked number 6 in the final Associated Press poll. although Bell outrushed Lytle 1048 yards to 802. Bell had lost about in the summer before the 1974 season, dropping to . He said, "I did it on my own to help me run, to make me quicker." Bell said at the time that he did not mind sharing playing time with Lytle because "we're both pretty fair backs. It's only fair that we share it."

In Michigan's 51–0 victory over Purdue in November 1974, Bell rushed for 166 yards in 22 carries for a 7.2 yards per carry average. He also set up a field goal and another touchdown with runs of 32 and 39 yards.

1975 season In both 1975, Bell again shared the Michigan backfield duties with Rob Lytle. Bell was a senior in 1975 on a Michigan team that went 8–2–2 and finished the season ranked #8 in the final Associated Press poll. Bell rushed for 1,390 yards, added 314 yards on kickoff returns, and was voted the team's Most Valuable Player.

Michigan started the 1975 season ranked #3 in the country, and moved into the #2 spot with a 23–6 win over Wisconsin in the season opener.

After the opener against Wisconsin, Bell and the Wolverines tied games against Stanford (19–19) and Baylor (14–14). Despite being favored by 18 points over Baylor, the Wolverines nearly lost and fell out of the top 10 in national ranking for the first time since September 1972. After the Baylor game, Schembechler said the team lacked leadership. Bell may have been the one player to whom Bo's criticism did not apply, as he had a career-long 64-yard kickoff return against Baylor, scored both of Michigan's touchdowns, and rushed for 89 yards in 26 carries. Bell's second touchdown against Baylor came with 6:50 remaining in the fourth quarter and saved the Wolverines from a defeat.

The Wolverines rebounded into the top 10 with a 31–7 victory over Missouri in the fourth game of the season and strung together seven straight wins before facing Ohio State. The Wolverines beat Northwestern Wildcats, 69–0, in week six. For the first time in Michigan history, the Wolverines had three backs who each rushed for at least 100 yards. As the starting back, Bell rushed for 100 yards and scored two touchdowns in the first quarter alone. With the game turning into a blowout, Schembechler pulled Bell after the first quarter, and Rob Lytle gained another 105 yards, before being replaced by Harlan Huckleby who gained 157 yards. Michigan tied the modern Big Ten record of 573 rushing yards in the game.

In a 28–21 win against Minnesota, Bell rushed for 174 yards on 31 carries for his fifth consecutive 100-yard game. He also scored two touchdowns, including a 23-yard run midway through the fourth quarter. The UPI noted: "Bell's clinching run came with 8:04 gone in the final quarter and saved Michigan from the embarrassment of a tie." Going into the Ohio State game, Bell was in a three-person contest for the Big Ten Conference rushing championship. Bell led with an average of 134.1 yards per conference game to 125.1 for Billy Marek of Wisconsin, and 123.7 for Archie Griffin.

Michigan ended the season with a 21–14 loss to Ohio State. Despite the loss, Bell won the battle of the backs, rushing for 124 yards on 21 carries and throwing for a touchdown pass, while Griffin was limited to 46 yards on 19 carries. Bell had 166 all-purpose yards against the Buckeyes, his last regular season game for Michigan. In 1975, Bell outgained Griffin 124 yards to 46 yards. Bell averaged 132.9 yards per game in 1975 to lead Griffin and the Big Ten Conference in conference game rushing. Even so, Griffin won the Heisman Trophy, and Bell finished eighth in the 1975 Heisman Trophy voting.

During the 1975 season, Bell was asked how he felt about all the publicity being received by Griffin. He replied: "All of the publicity in the world doesn't help you win. I don't feel slighted because Archie is in our conference. I feel I'm just as good as he is."

Lee Larkins, who played for Purdue and was one of the top defensive backs in the Big Ten, said in 1976 that Bell was the best running back he ever played against. As a senior, Larkins played against Gordon Bell, Archie Griffin, and Ricky Bell of USC. Larkins said: "Gordon Bell was the best of the three. He was a super tough runner and a tough guy to make a solid tackle on. Gordon has a lot more speed and more moves than Archie does, and I thought he was a better all around player."

Records and honors Bell finished the 1975 season as the Big Ten's leading rusher, was selected to the Associated Press All-Big Ten team, was chosen as Michigan's Most Valuable Player, and finished eighth in the Heisman Trophy voting. In a year with an abundance of strong running backs, Bell and Earl Campbell were relegated to the AP's third-team All-American, as Archie Griffin and Ricky Bell took first-team honors, and Tony Dorsett and Jimmy DuBose took second-team honors.

Bell's career at Michigan was among the best in school history to that point. His school records included: Bell set the single-season all-purpose yards record in 1975 with 1,714 yards. Bell's record stood until 1987 when it was broken by Jamie Morris. Bell's total ranked eighth on Michigan's all-time list at the end of 2006. Bell's 273 carries in 1975 broke Ron Johnson's record of 255 carries set in 1968. Bell's total remained the school record until 1987 when Jamie Morris carried the ball 282 times. Bell's 1975 performance now ranks eighth on the all-time Michigan list. In 1975, Bell set the Michigan record with eight 100-yard rushing games. That record stood for 12 years until Jamie Morris compiled ten in 1987. Bell did not get much playing time early in the 1976 season with the Giants. In late November, columnist David Bushnell wrote an article, "Are Giants missing the boat on Gordon Bell?," questioning the team's lack of utilization of Bell. Bushnell noted that Bell had "spent most of the season standing on the sideline waiting to be inserted into the lineup for a few plays." The backfield was led by Doug Kotar and Larry Csonka with Bell being the third leading rusher.

Having seen little playing time as a rookie in 1976, Bell played even less in 1977, as the Giants worked Bob Hammond and Willie Spencer into the rushing rotation. Bell rushed for 63 yards in 16 carries for the entire 1977 season. His main contribution to the 1977 Giants was as a kickoff returner, as he returned 12 kickoffs for 235 yards, second best on the Giants after Hammond.

St. Louis Cardinals During 1978, he was briefly on the Green Bay Packers roster during training camp, and he signed with the St. Louis Cardinals in November. In 1978, Bell had more kickoff returns (eight) than rushes (seven) with St. Louis.

Later life After retiring from football, Bell ran a barbecue restaurant in Dayton, Ohio. He later sold radio advertising in Detroit, Michigan and Chicago, Illinois.

Career statistics Year Team Games Rushes Yards Avg. TDs Rec. Yards Avg. TDs Kickoffs Yards Avg. TDs Punts Yards Avg. TDs 1976NYG14672333.52251987.901835219.601110 1977NYG1016633.904338.301223519.601000 1978 St. Louis67233.303289.30817722.10141017.20 TOTAL 30903193.52302598.103876420.10161026.40