Lorenzo White Elected to Michigan Sports Hall of Fame

EAST LANSING, Mich. – Former two-time All-America running back Lorenzo White has been elected to the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2023, the organization announced on Monday night.

A member of the College Football Hall of Fame, White is the leading rusher in the history of Michigan State football with 4,887 yards from 1984-87, including an MSU single-season record of 2,066 yards in 1985. He finished fourth in the Heisman Trophy balloting in 1985 and 1987 while also earning first-team All-America honors. White is also a member of the MSU Athletics Hall of Fame and the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame.

He was named the No. 1 running back in the Big Ten in the 1980s by the Big Ten Network and led the Spartans in rushing four consecutive seasons (1984-87).

As a sophomore in 1985, White rushed for a school record and then-Big Ten record 2,066 yards. His 1,908 yards during the regular season at the time was the fourth-best single-season rushing total in the history of college football and the highest by a sophomore. He rushed for 200 or more yards on four occasions, including a 286-yard effort against Indiana, and his 11 100-yard games in 1985 are still a school record. White was named the UPI Big Ten Co-MVP and also the college running back of the year by the Touchdown Club of Columbus and the Washington, D.C. Touchdown Club. He also earned MSU's George Alderton Award for male athlete of the year and the team's Governor's Award for Most Valuable Player.

During the 1987 season, White helped MSU to its first Rose Bowl since 1966 by rushing for 1,572 yards, second in school history at the time and still fifth in the Spartan record book. His 132.6 rushing yards per game during the regular season ranked No. 6 nationally. In the Rose Bowl win over USC, White ran for 113 yards and two touchdowns. White earned his second Big Ten MVP award from UPI in 1987 and was also named the Chicago Tribune Silver Football winner, which is given annually to the best player in the Big Ten. White led the Spartans to a 20-17 victory over USC in the 1988 Rose Bowl Game, rushing for 113 yards and two scores in the win. His first touchdown came in the first quarter and gave Michigan State a 7-3 lead, then he added another score in the second quarter to push the lead to 14-3. His 35 carries in the game ranks as the third most in Rose Bowl Game history.

Along the way to the Rose Bowl, White rushed for 100-plus yards seven times in 1987. His most remarkable performance fittingly came in his last home game at Spartan Stadium with the Big Ten title and a Rose Bowl berth on the line against No. 16 Indiana. He established a school record for attempts in a game with 56 against Indiana – one shy of the NCAA record – while finishing with a career-high 292 yards on the ground, which is the second-highest total by a Spartan. His dominating showing led MSU to a 27-3 victory over the Hoosiers to clinch the Big Ten Championship.

White is perhaps known most for his endurance he displayed throughout his career. He carried the ball 1,082 times while wearing the Green and White, which set a Big Ten record at the time and is still fourth most in conference history. His 419 carries in 1985 still stand as the most in a Big Ten single-season.

White went on to be drafted in the first round of the 1988 NFL Draft and played eight years in the NFL (Oilers, 1988-94; Browns, 1995). He ran for more than 1,200 yards in 1992 with the Oilers and was selected to the Pro Bowl.

White became the 10th former Michigan State player to be selected for the College Football Hall of Fame in 2019. As part of his College Football Hall of Fame recognition, his name was added to the Spartan Stadium "Ring of Fame" on Sept. 28, 2019.

The 2023 Michigan Sports Hall of Fame ceremony will take place on Sept. 14 in Detroit. Spartan hockey legends Ryan Miller and Rick Comley will also be inducted as part of the 2023 Class.

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