Michigan State football: 15 greatest running backs in Spartans history
By John Buhler
Blake Ezor first came to East Lansing by way of Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas. Ezor played his high school ball in Nevada in the mid-1980s before parlaying that into a stellar NCAA career with Michigan State.
After playing sparingly as a freshman in 1986, Ezor saw his workload increase slightly in 1987 as a sophomore. He rushed for 617 yards and three touchdowns on 133 carries. It was a strong enough of a second-year campaign in East Lansing for Ezor that he became the Spartan’s bell-cow as an upperclassman before turning pro.
As a junior in 1988, Ezor had a heavy workload of 322 carries, accumulating 1,496 yards on the ground for 11 touchdowns. He also had six grabs for 67 yards as a receiver through the air. Ezor did all this in just 12 games, setting up what was another strong year for him as a Michigan State tailback as a senior in 1989.
Ezor went well over 1,000 yards rushing again but only appeared in 10 games in his final college season. He rushed for 1,299 yards on 267 carries for an impressive 19 touchdowns. As a receiver out of the backfield, Ezor had 11 catches for 118 yards.
Ezor would leave Michigan State with 800 career carries for 3,749 yards and 34 rushing touchdowns. It was a different era with the ground game being more prevalent in the 1980s than it is now. That being said, Ezor ranks fourth, fourth and sixth respectively in the Michigan State running backs record books.
He would go undrafted in 1990 before spending two years with the Denver Broncos in the NFL. Ezor’s last professional season came in 1992 when he played in the CFL for the Edmonton Eskimos. While his pro career was largely forgettable, Ezor’s time in college as not. He might not have been as flashy as other tailbacks to don the green and white, but his body of work means he’ll never be forgotten.