Ricky Watters

At 55 years old, Ricky Watters has this physical status:

Richard James Watters (born April 7, 1969) is a retired American football running back who competed for the San Francisco 49ers, Philadelphia Eagles, and Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League.

Watters played wide receiver on the school's 1988 national champion team while playing wide receiver at the University of Notre Dame.

He also won Super Bowl XXIX as a member of the 1994 49ers over the San Diego Chargers.

Watters was known throughout his playing career for his outstanding receiving abilities and his unique high-stepping running style, earning him the nickname Ricky "Running" Watters from ESPN sportcaster Chris Berman. Ricky Watters has appeared in the film Any Given Sunday.

In the final game of the film, he was running back for the Dallas Knights, a fictional team.

Watters is listed in the credits and is prominently displayed on the back of his Knights jersey #32. Currently Watters is a motivational speaker for children who are, like him, adopted.

He is also a musician, singer, engineer, president, and author, as well as a writer who has written the book entitled For Who For What, A Warrior's Journey.

He was the new head football coach at Oak Ridge High School in Orlando, Florida, before resigning on October 1, 2013.

He returned to Notre Dame in 2014 to complete the three final credits required for a graphic design degree, despite an architecture major.

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College career

Watters joined the University of Notre Dame in 1987 as a highly respected member of head coach Lou Holtz's second recruiting class. Following on the heels of the '86 class, which featured star quarterback Tony Rice, the Fighting Irish's second straight top-ten recruiting class took place. The Watters started the season off with back-up Mark Green and occasionally returning kickoffs. The team went 8-4 and competed in the Cotton Bowl Classic against Texas A&M behind Rice and an infusion of new talent.

Holtz shifted Watters to Brown's flanker position for the 1988 season after the departure of Heisman Trophy winner Tim Brown. Watters led the team in receiving, so the move paid dividends. Watters' service on special teams was equally impressive, as he returned two punts for touchdowns.

Holtz suspended Watters and running back Tony Brooks for disciplinary reasons ahead of the annual Notre Dame-USC match. Notre Dame defeated the #2 ranked Trojans, who were without a starting receiver and rusher, in their biggest road game of the season, defeating the #2 ranked Trojans.

Notre Dame defeated #3 ranked West Virginia 34-21 in the Fiesta Bowl to win the school's 11th national championship in a season full of victories over ranked opponents. The squad established itself as one of the best teams in college football history, with six All-Americans.

Notre Dame will again be competing for the national championship in 1989. Holtz sent Watters back to tailback after teammate Tony Brooks was suspended for the season for academic reasons. The Watters did not disappoint as Notre Dame spent 13 weeks ranked No. 1 before losing to Miami 27-10 in their regular season finale. The Irish won by 21-6 over #1 ranked Colorado in the Orange Bowl, and the Irish finished the year ranked second behind Miami. The Watters came in second second on the team in rushing behind quarterback Tony Rice for the second season.

Professional career

Watters played in the NFL for ten seasons with San Francisco, Philadelphia, and Seattle. In the second round of the 1991 NFL Draft, he was selected by San Francisco but he missed the entire 1991 season due to injuries. He played back for the 49ers for three seasons, and San Francisco's offense led the NFL in scoring and yardage each year. Both the Dallas Cowboys and the 49ers lost in the NFC Championship Game in 1992 and 1993, before finally defeating Dallas in the 1994 NFC championship game on their way to a Super Bowl championship. Watters beat the New York Giants 4-3 in a January 1994 divisional playoff, setting a new franchise record with five rushing touchdowns in the game. Watters scored three touchdowns in San Francisco's 49-26 victory over the San Diego Chargers, tying a Super Bowl record shared by fellow 49ers Roger Craig and Jerry Rice, and later matched by Terrell Davis of the Denver Broncos, tying a Super Bowl record for the Denver Broncos.

In 1995, Watters became a free agent with the Philadelphia Eagles. He came to notoriety in Philadelphia for his fabled expression, "For who?"

For what?"

On September 3, 1995 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, he played his first game as an Eagle. The line was an answer to a question about why he didn't stretch himself to catch a Randall Cunningham pass, which may have resulted in a big blow from a defender but instead gave him a "short armed" license to avoid contact in a 21-6 loss. But he quickly established himself as a top-five prospect for the Eagles, starting with scrimmage in 1996 and helping Philadelphia get to the playoffs twice. He appeared and started every game with 3,794 passing yards and 31 rushing TDs on 975 attempts in his three seasons with the Eagles. Watters joined the Seahawks in 1998 and spent time with them until his retirement in 2001. In regular season play, he had 10,643 yards passing and 4,248 yards receiving, with 91 total touchdowns. Watters, along with Willis McGahee, is one of only two NFL running backs to rush for over 1,000 yards in a season for three franchises. Watters, as well as Terrell Davis, former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue, and others were on the ballot for the Pro Football Hall of Fame picks on February 3, 2007.Watters, the NFL Network's documentary series that was released on the NFL Network in 2008, was ranked #7 out of the top ten players to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Despite his five Pro Bowl picks and his top scores in total rushing yards, rushing touchdowns, and total touchdowns, voters cited his lack of professional demeanor as a primary reason for his inability to be voted. By some commentators, he was regarded as a "loud mouth" who argued that it dominated his on-the-field accomplishments. Any of those interviewed said his behavior was no different from those arrested, including Joe Namath and Lawrence Taylor.

The "For Who, For What?"

Former voters say the event would be remembered as a negative by someone after Watters' name appeared up in the future. Despite scoring three touchdowns in Super Bowl XIX, quarterback Steve Young's play was overshadowed by his play, who threw for six touchdowns and received MVP honors. In 2020 and 2022, he was a semifinalist for the Hall of Fame.

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