1981 All-America college football team


The 1981 All-America college football team is composed of college football players who were selected as All-Americans by various organizations and writers that chose College Football All-America Teams in 1981. The National Collegiate Athletic Association recognizes four selectors as "official" for the 1981 season. They are: the American Football Coaches Association based on the input of more than 2,000 voting members; the Associated Press selected based on the votes of sports writers at AP newspapers; the Football Writers Association of America selected by the nation's football writers; and the United Press International selected based on the votes of sports writers at UPI newspapers. Other selectors included Football News, Gannett News Service, the Newspaper Enterprise Association, The Sporting News, and the Walter Camp Football Foundation.
Nine players were unanimously selected as first-team All-Americans by all four official selectors. They were:
  1. Marcus Allen, running back for [1981 1981 USC Trojans football team|USC Trojans football team|USC], who won the 1981 Heisman Trophy, Maxwell Award, and Walter Camp Award after becoming the first player to rush for more than 2,000 yards in a season;
  2. Anthony Carter, wider receiver for [1981 1981 Michigan Wolverines football team|Michigan Wolverines football team|Michigan], consensus first-team All-American in both 1981 and 1982 who caught 50 passes for 952 yards during the 1981 season;
  3. Sean Farrell, offensive guard who helped lead [1981 1981 Penn State Nittany Lions football team|Penn State Nittany Lions football team|Penn State] to a 10–2 record and a #3 ranking in the final AP Poll;
  4. Jim McMahon, quarterback for [1981 1981 BYU Cougars football team|BYU Cougars football team|BYU] and winner of the 1981 Davey O'Brien Award and Sammy Baugh Trophy;
  5. Dave Rimington, center for [1981 1981 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team|Nebraska Cornhuskers football team|Nebraska], two-time winner of the Outland Trophy and the namesake of the Rimington Trophy, which is awarded annually to the nation's top collegiate center.
  6. Kenneth Sims, defensive tackle who helped lead [1981 1981 Texas Longhorns football team|Texas Longhorns football team|Texas] to a 10–1–1 record and #2 ranking in the final AP Poll, and who became the #1 pick in the 1982 NFL draft;
  7. Billy Ray Smith, Jr., defensive end for [1981 1981 Arkansas Razorbacks football team|Arkansas Razorbacks football team|Arkansas] and who was a consensus first-team All-American in both 1981 and 1982;
  8. Herschel Walker, running back for [1981 1981 Georgia Bulldogs football team|Georgia Bulldogs football team|Georgia], a three-time consensus first-team All-American who finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting in 1981 and won the award in 1982; and
  9. Tim Wrightman, tight end for [1981 1981 UCLA Bruins football team|UCLA Bruins football team|UCLA] who caught 28 passes for 308 yards in 1981.
Allen, Carter, McMahon, Rimington, Smith, and Walker have been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
The 1981 Michigan Wolverines football team led the nation with five of its players, all on offense, receiving first-team honors from one or more of the selectors. In addition to Anthony Carter, Michigan's honorees were offensive tackles Ed Muransky and Bubba Paris, offensive guard Kurt Becker, and running back Butch Woolfolk.

Consensus All-Americans

The following charts identify the NCAA-recognized consensus All-Americans for the year 1981 and displays which first-team designations they received.

Offensive selections

Receivers

Anthony Carter, Michigan

Tight ends

Tim Wrightman, UCLA

Tackles

Terry Tausch, Texas Terry Crouch, Oklahoma Ed Muransky, Michigan

Guards

Sean Farrell, Penn State Roy Foster, USC Kurt Becker, Michigan

Centers

Dave Rimington, Nebraska

Quarterbacks

Jim McMahon, BYU

Running backs

Marcus Allen, USC Herschel Walker, Georgia

Defensive selections

Defensive ends

Billy Ray Smith Jr., Arkansas Andre Tippett, Iowa

Defensive tackles

Kenneth Sims, Texas

Middle guards

Tim Krumrie, Wisconsin

Linebackers

Bob Crable, Notre Dame Jeff Davis, Clemson Sal Sunseri, Pittsburgh

Defensive backs

Mike Richardson, Arizona State Tommy Wilcox, Alabama Terry Kinard, Clemson Fred Marion, Miami

Special teams

Kickers

Punters

Reggie Roby, Iowa