Indiana University Athletics
Randle El and Smith to Attend MDA Muscle Team Gala
2/1/2001 12:00:00 AM | Football
February 1, 2000
Bloomington, Ind. -- The Indiana University athletic department today announced that senior quarterback Antwaan Randle El, a frontrunner for the 2001 Heisman Trophy, and senior linebacker Justin Smith, a Butkus Award candidate, will be attending the Muscular Dystrophy Association of Central Indiana's third annual Muscle Team Gala to benefit area patients. The gala will be held at the Westin in Indianapolis on March 3, 2001. In 1999, current Miami Dolphins defensive end and former IU standout Adewale Ogunleye represented IU as a Muscle Team member. Other celebrities who have attended the benefit include Ken Dilger, Kenny Irwin, Jr., Jay Leeuwenberg, Mauricio Gugelmin, Tony Stewart, Kim Seybold and Chris Mullin.
A frontrunner for the 2001 Heisman Trophy and widely regarded as the most exciting player in college football, Randle El is on pace to rush for more yards than any quarterback in NCAA Division I-A history. Needing only 681 more rushing yards to achieve this mark, his 1,270 rushing yards in 2000 paced all I-A quarterbacks. With only 69 more rushing yards and 195 additional passing yards, he would become the only player in college football history to pass for 6,000 yards and rush for 3,000 yards in a career. Randle El has also led an Indiana offense that has scored at a prolific pace as the Hoosiers averaged 30.5 points per game in 2000, the second highest total in school history. Randle El is one of only two players in college football history to score 200 career points and to account for 200 career points passing and now has the seemingly unattainable 300/300 plateau in his sights.
In 2000, Randle El completed 133 of 277 passes for 1,783 yards and 10 touchdowns. He also rushed for 1,270 yards and 13 scores.
A multi-sport athlete, Randle El has also played basketball and baseball during his college career. He will graduate this summer and will play the 2001 season as an Indiana University graduate.
A Butkus Award nominee and a second-team All-Big Ten selection at linebacker following the 2000 campaign, Smith has emerged as one of the top linebackers in the country. After beginning his career as a safety, he moved to linebacker as a sophomore in 1999 and this past season finished second on the team in tackles with 74. In 2000, he led the Hoosiers in tackles for loss (14-68) and sacks (6-44) and also recorded four pass deflections and two forced fumbles. Versus Penn State, in a game played at the RCA Dome, Smith forced a fumble at the goal line that was recovered by Sharrod Wallace. In a home win over Minnesota, Smith forced a fourth quarter fumble by quarterback Travis Cole that helped seal an IU victory. Earlier in the season, he was named Big Ten Defensive Player-of-the-Week for his performance in a win vs. Iowa as he recorded 13 tackles, including 6 tackles for loss (-35 yards) and 4 sacks (-31 yards). He also broke up a pass.
In three season, Smith has played in 31 games (31 starts) and has recorded 227 tackles, including 22 for loss and 8 sacks.
An excellent student, Smith has earned Academic All-Big Ten honors following each of the past three seasons. He will play the 2001 season as an Indiana University graduate and will begin work on an advanced degree.
