Former Ohio State running back Ezekiel Elliott and linebacker Ryan Shazier were named to the Big Ten Network’s All-Decade second team at their respective positions on Monday afternoon.
Eat, Zeke.
It's official, former @OhioStateFB star RB @EzekielElliott is a member of the #BTNAllDecade 2nd Team.
More ➡️ https://t.co/6JM815E36S pic.twitter.com/XHEokHSlIv
— Ohio State on BTN (@OhioStateOnBTN) June 29, 2020
A former four-star prospect from St. Louis John Burroughs, Elliott rushed for 3,961 yards and 43 touchdowns in his three-year career with the Buckeyes. That includes 696 yards and eight scores in three straight wins over Wisconsin in the Big Ten championship, Alabama in the Sugar Bowl and Oregon in the inaugural College Football Playoff national championship.
Elliott was selected by the Dallas Cowboys with the No. 4 overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft. He’s led the league in rushing twice (2016 and 2018) and has been named to the Pro Bowl three times (2016, 2018-19).
Former Penn State running back Saquon Barkley and Wisconsin running back Jonathan Taylor were the first-team recipients.
✅ First-team All-American
✅ First-team All-B1G
✅ Second-team #BTNAllDecade
Congrats, @OhioStateFB great @RyanShazier!
More ➡️ https://t.co/6JM815E36S pic.twitter.com/FFMYjTH8kQ
— Ohio State on BTN (@OhioStateOnBTN) June 29, 2020
Shazier also came to Ohio State as a four-star prospect from Plantation, Fla. He finished his college career with 317 tackles, 15 sacks, 4 pass break ups and one interception, which he returned for a touchdown in a 2012 win at Penn State. He was then named an All-American following his junior year, during which he recorded a Big Ten-leading 143 tackles, including a school-record 16 solo tackles in his final game in Ohio Stadium.
A first-round selection (No. 15 overall) of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2014 NFL Draft, Shazier was a two-time Pro Bowler (2016-17). He unfortunately suffered a career-ending spinal injury during a Monday Night Football game against the Cincinnati Bengals in 2017 and was given a 20 percent chance of walking again. Despite those odds, he was able to dance at his wedding just 17 months after the injury.
Iowa’s Jose Jewell, Michigan’s Devin Bush and Wisconsin’s Chris Borland were tabbed as first-team linebackers by the Big Ten Network, meanwhile.
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