Alan Ameche
- In full:
- Alan Dante Ameche
- Byname:
- The Horse
- Also Known As:
- Alan Dante Ameche
- The Horse
- Awards And Honors:
- Heisman Trophy (1954)
- 2 NFL championships
- 1 All-Pro selection
- 4 Pro Bowl selections
- Education:
- University of Wisconsin
- Height/Weight:
- 6 ft 0 inches, 218 lb (1.83 m, 98 kg)
- Position:
- fullback
- Jersey Number:
- 35 (Baltimore Colts, 1956–1960)
- 35 (Baltimore Colts, 1955)
- Draft:
- Drafted by the Baltimore Colts in the first round (third overall) of the 1955 NFL draft.
- Games Played:
- 70
- Rushing Attempts:
- 964
- Touchdowns:
- 40
- Yards Gained By Passing:
- 4045
- Yards Per Attempt:
- 4.2
Alan Ameche (born June 1, 1933, Kenosha, Wisconsin, U.S.—died August 8, 1988, Houston, Texas) was an American football player known for scoring the decisive one-yard touchdown that gave the Baltimore Colts a 23–17 sudden-death victory over the New York Giants for the 1958 National Football League title, an iconic moment in what came to be known as “The Greatest Game Ever Played.”
(Read Walter Camp’s 1903 Britannica essay on inventing American football.)
Ameche, who set a national record (since broken) by rushing for 3,212 yards while playing at the University of Wisconsin, won the 1954 Heisman Trophy as the most outstanding player in college football. During his six seasons (1955–60) with the Colts, he was voted rookie of the year (1955), was named All Pro (1955–58), and played in four Pro Bowl games (1956, 1957, 1958, and 1959); an acute Achilles tendon injury ended his career. An excellent blocker and a powerful runner, Ameche was given the nickname “The Horse” for the way he worked on the practice field. During his professional career, Ameche rushed for 4,045 yards in 964 carries for a 4.2-yard-per-carry average and scored 44 touchdowns. In 1975 he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
