Robert Lee Lavette (born September 8, 1963) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...

in the

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(NFL) for the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...

and

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...

. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

Georgia Institute of Technology The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...

Early years

Lavette attended Cartersville High School, where he played as a

, rushing for 2,103 yards and 19

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Ameri ...

s as a senior, while receiving Georgia Class AA back of the year honors. He gained 5,870 career rushing yards and 49

s. He set 9 career records, 7 season marks and three-single-game records.

College career

Lavette accepted a football scholarship from

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...

. As a freshman, he was the

ACC ACC most often refers to: * Atlantic Coast Conference, an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic conference located in the US *American College of Cardiology, A US-based nonprofit medical association that bestows credentials upon cardiovascular spec ...

third leading rusher (866 yards), third in receiving (45 receptions), first in all purpose yards and first in kickoff returns. His 307 receiving yards led the team. Against the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and la ...

, Lavette's fourth quarter touchdown (his second of the game) capped of an 80-yard touchdown drive. The Yellow Jackets would go on to lose the remainder of their games and finish 1-10 on the year. It was also Georgia Tech's first football win over the Tide since 1962. He registered 188 carries for 866 yards, 7 rushing

s and 45 catches for 307 yards. As a sophomore, he led the

in rushing (1,208 yards),

s (19) also a school and conference record, all-purpose yards (1,570 yards) and scoring average (10.4) points. His

total was a school record and he was second in the nation in scoring. Against the number one ranked

University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...

, he rushed for a career-high 203 yards on 38 carries, outgaining

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard ...

winner

Herschel Walker Herschel Junior Walker (born March 3, 1962) is an American former football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons. He was also the Republican nominee in the 2022 United States Senate election in Georgia. ...

by 40 yards. He posted 280 carries for 1208 yards, 19 rushing

s and 25 catches for 286 yards. As a junior, he missed all or parts of four games because of injuries, collecting 186 carries for 803 yards, 5 rushing

s. 21 catches for 123 yards and one receiving

. As a senior, he finished ninth nationally in rushing with 1,189 yards and a 108.1 yards-per-game average, while also collecting 260 carries, 14 rushing

s and 23 catches for 146 yards. In 1990, he was inducted into the Georgia Tech Sports Hall of Fame. In 2013, he received the honor of being and ACC Legend.

Records/ Accomplishments

Lavette finished his career as the school's all-time leading rusher, receiver and scorer. He finished with 4,066 rushing yards, 114 receptions for 862 yards and scored 46 touchdowns for 276 points. He had 18 100-yard games and accounted for 5,393 total yards, with an average of 125.5 total yards per game. At the time he ranked number 17th on the NCAA's all-time rushing list and set 19 school records. To this day is considered by many to be one of the top running backs in Georgia Tech's history. He still maintains many career yardage records and is a member of the Georgia Tech Athletics Hall of Fame and was named an ACC Legend. *Georgia Tech career rushing yards- 4,066 (1981–1984) *Georgia Tech career all-purpose- 5,393 *Georgia Tech (non-kicker) scoring leader- 46 touchdowns, 276 total points *Georgia Tech Athletics Hall of Fame (1990) * Most career rushing touchdowns (45) * Most career touchdowns (46) * Most total points (276). * Most 100-yard rushing games (18) * Single-season rushing touchdowns (19) * Most career carries (914) * Most carries in a game (39) * Most career receptions (114)

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys

Lavette was selected by the

in the fourth round (103rd overall) of the

1985 NFL Draft The 1985 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. The draft was held April 30 and May 1, 1985, at the Omni Park Central Hotel in New York City, New York. The league also hel ...

. He was also selected by the

Jacksonville Bulls The Jacksonville Bulls were a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. They were members of the United States Football League (USFL) during its final two seasons, 1984 and 1985. They played their home games in the Gator ...

in the 1985 USFL Territorial Draft. As a rookie, he backed up

Tony Dorsett Anthony Drew Dorsett Sr. (born April 7, 1954) is a former American football running back who played professionally in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys and Denver Broncos. From Western Pennsylvania, Dorsett attended the ...

and was the team's top kickoff return player, making 34 returns for 682 yards. On December 4, he was placed on the

injured reserve list The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...

after spraining his knee while covering a Kickoff against the

on November 24. In

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal ente ...

, with the addition of

to the Cowboys team, it was difficult for him find playing time at

. He began to return punts as well as kickoffs during the regular season. In

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...

, after the players went on a strike on the third week of the season, those contests were canceled (reducing the 16-game season to 15) and the

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...

decided that the games would be played with replacement players. He crossed the picket line on October 7 and appeared in 2 games as the third-string

. He had one reception for 6 yards against the

and 2 kickoff returns for 32 yards against the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

. He played a total of 4 games in the season, before being waived on November 3. Lavette had some great training camp performances, but he never developed as a consistent

Philadelphia Eagles

On November 4,

, he was claimed off waivers by the

. After being declared inactive in two games, he played in just one game against the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals hav ...

, returning 2 kickoffs for 37 yards. He was released on December 11.

Atlanta Falcons

On March 22,

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...

, he signed as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

with the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...

. He was cut on August 29.

Personal life

His cousin

Ray Donaldson Raymond Canute Donaldson (born May 18, 1958) is a former American football Center in the National Football League for the Baltimore/Indianapolis Colts, Seattle Seahawks and Dallas Cowboys. He played college football at the University of Georgia ...

was an

All-Pro All-Pro is an honor bestowed upon professional American football players that designates the best player at each position during a given season. All-Pro players are typically selected by press organizations, who select an "All-Pro team," a list th ...

center.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lavette, Robert 1963 births Living people People from Cartersville, Georgia Players of American football from Bartow County, Georgia American football running backs Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football players Dallas Cowboys players Philadelphia Eagles players