Only Ki-Jana Carter Until Penn State Football

Ki-Jana Carter came to Penn State, one of many elite Ohioans in the 80s and 90s, as part of the very highly touted 1991 recruiting class for Joe Paterno. He redshirted his first season, but broke out in 1992 and played the next three years--culminating in a stellar, undefeated 1994 season which saw him as a Heisman finalist (he ended up second in voting) alongside teammate Kerry Collins and an All-American.

And also, this:

Carter was named the MVP of that Rose Bowl, and then was encouraged by Paterno to forego his senior season and turn pro. He did, having amassed 2,829 yards on 395 attempts at Penn State; he was drafted first overall by the Cincinnati Bengals in the 1995 draft. His NFL career, unfortunately, was marred by injury after injury, and he never really had the success at the next level that many had predicted for him, but he's still on the top ten career yardage list for Nittany Lions.

He will be recognized, along with the rest of the undefeated 1994 squad, at this year's home opener versus Akron, the 20th anniversary of that memorable season.