Rose Bowl Hall of Fame
1961 and 1962 Rose Bowl Games
1997 Inductee
There are great football players, and there are great athletes who play football. Sandy Stephens was the rare combination of both. The four-sport superstar in high school turned down professional baseball to play quarterback at Minnesota. He earned two trips to the Rose Bowl Game and a national championship ring during his career with the Gophers.
The feared triple-threat performer led the Gophers to the 1961 Rose Bowl Game against Washington. Minnesota lost 17–7, but the Gophers already were national champions. In the 1962 Rose Bowl Game, the Gophers methodically defeated UCLA 21–3. Stephens turned in the performance of the day by completing 7 of 11 passes for 75 yards, running for 46 yards and scoring two touchdowns. He was voted Player of the Game.
Stephens went on to a seven-year career in the Canadian Football League and the NFL. He was inducted into the Minnesota Sports Hall of Fame, the Western Pennsylvania All Sports Hall of Fame and the College Football Hall of Fame. Stephens died in 2000.
