Attending Detroit Mackenzie High School, Bettis was a standout running back and
Linebacker . As a senior, he was rated the top player in the state by the ''
Detroit Free Press '', and was the
Gatorade Circle of Champions Player of the Year award winner.
At the
University Of Notre Dame , Bettis finished his career with 337 rushing attempts for 1912 yards (5.7 yards per rushing attempt avg.), and made 32 receptions for 429 yards (13.4 yards per reception). In his last game as a senior, a 28-3 win by Notre Dame over Texas A&M in the
Cotton Bowl , he rushed 20 times for 75 yards.
Bettis was picked in the first round (10th overall) of the
1993 Draft by the
Los Angeles Rams . A star even in his rookie year, he rushed for 1429 yards in 1993, and was named
Offensive Rookie Of The Year . He rushed for over 1,000 in his second season with the Rams but his carries declined as he fell out of favor with the team.
during an American Lung Association event in
May 2005 .]]
After Rams
Head Coach Chuck Knox retired and was replaced by
Rich Brooks , Bettis no longer fit into the team's plans. He was traded to the Steelers in
1996 along with a third round draft pick in exchange for a second round pick in 1996 and a fourth round draft pick in 1997.
His career took an up turn when he was traded to the
Pittsburgh Steelers . He had been an integral part of the Steelers offense since that time, and until
2001 was a dependable 1,000-yard rusher. Although age had slightly reduced his role, he remained important to the Steelers and was the NFL's 5th leading all-time
Rusher . He was named to the
Pro Bowl in
1993 ,
1994 ,
1996 ,
1997 ,
2001 , and
2004 . In
2002 Bettis was the recipient of the
Walter Payton Man Of The Year Award .
During the 2004 season, Bettis and
New York Jets running back
Curtis Martin dueled for position on the all-time rushing yards leaderboard. Bettis entered the season in 6th place all-time and 684 yards ahead of Martin in 9th place. Due to Bettis being the backup in Pittsburgh for the start of the season, Martin was able to pass Bettis in week 13 until the Steelers played their game later in the day and Bettis retook the lead by 6 yards. When the Jets traveled to Martin's home town of Pittsburgh to play the Steelers the following week, both backs would cross the 13,000 yard mark, making this the first time two players crossed the 13,000 yard mark (or other similarly high yardage milestones) in the same game. Their combined career totals were also one of the biggest combined career totals for opposing running backs in history. At the end of the game, Martin would lead Bettis by 9 yards. Two weeks later in week 16, Bettis would again pass Martin and establish himself with a lead of 81 yards. In doing so, Bettis passed
Eric Dickerson for 4th place on the all-time list. Bettis sat out the final week of the season, and when Martin rushed for 153 yards that week he passed Dickerson and Bettis for the final time.
After the Steelers' defeat in the 2004
AFC Championship Game on
January 23 ,
2005 , Bettis announced that he was considering retirement, but would not make a final decision for several months to prevent the sting of the defeat from clouding his judgement. Later, Bettis agreed to stay with the Steelers for another season. He stated he would love to play in the
Super Bowl in 2006 since it was to be played in his hometown of Detroit. His wish came true as the Steelers played in, and won,
Super Bowl XL (40) against the
Seattle Seahawks on February 5th, 2006.
Most people think Bettis acquired the nickname from legendary Steelers radio color commentator
Myron Cope ; but Myron only popularized the nickname after hearing a brother of a fellow Notre Dame alumni call Jerome "Bussy" in Green Bay. It was during the Green Bay broadcast that Cope starting using the nick name "The Bus." Jerome credits someone at the Notre Dame school newspaper with first using the now famous nick name.
Off the field, Bettis hosts a Pittsburgh-based television sports and entertainment program called ''The Jerome Bettis Show''. He began a charity called the ''Bus Stops Here Foundation'' to aid underprivileged children in
1997 . He plans on doing some development on the Detroit River and has also indicated that he may open a chicken farm in the Metro-Detroit area.
Shortly after the Steelers lost the 2004-2005 AFC Championship game to the eventual
Super Bowl XXXIX champion
New England Patriots ,
Ben Roethlisberger approached Bettis. He promised Bettis that if he came back for one last season, he would get him to the Super Bowl. Apparently, it was this promise that got Jerome Bettis to play one last season.
In week 17 of the 2005 NFL season, Bettis rushed for 41 yards and three touchdowns against the
Detroit Lions . The Steelers won 35-21 and thanks to Bettis' three touchdowns, they clinched a playoff berth. When
Bill Cowher pulled Bettis from the game late in the fourth quarter, he was given a standing ovation from the Steeler fans. This game would be the last home game (not including the neutral-site
Super Bowl ) for Jerome Bettis.
Bettis contributed 52 yards and a touchdown in the Steelers' wildcard playoff victory over the
Cincinnati Bengals on January 8. After their wildcard win, Ben Roethlisberger revealed to the team that he promised to Bettis that he would get him to the Super Bowl, in order to get him to come back for the 2005 season.
On popped the ball out of Jerome's hands, where it was picked up by cornerback
Nick Harper , who was
Stopped From Returning The Fumble All The Way For A Touchdown by Steelers quarterback
Ben Roethlisberger . Ultimately, however, Bettis's mistake did not result in a Steelers loss, as Colts kicker
Mike Vanderjagt missed a 46-yard game-tying field goal, ending the game with a 21-18 Steelers victory.
The next week, the Steelers were set to face off against the
Denver Broncos in the AFC Championship game. Bettis, who had never been to a Super Bowl in his storied career, delivered a rousing speech to his teammates the day before the game, asking them to "Just get me to Detroit," his hometown, where
Super Bowl XL was to be played. Bettis's wish was granted, as he and the Steelers advanced to
Super Bowl XL with a 34-17 win over the Broncos, led by
Ben Roethlisberger 's arm and Bettis's 39 yards on 15 carries, including a touchdown. After the game was over, Bettis found his parents in the crowd and mouthed the words "We're going home" to them.
In front of a crowd that was estimated by NFL analysts in attendance to be "80% - 90% Steeler fans" (as evident by the influx of "
Terrible Towel s" seen waving in the crowd), Pittsburgh would go on to defeat the
Seattle Seahawks in
Super Bowl XL , 21-10. Bettis rushed for 43 yards on 14 carries; an average of 3.1 yards per carry.
Asked about the possibility of retirement, Bettis announced, "It's been an incredible ride. I played this game to win a championship. I'm a champion
{Link without Title} , and I think the Bus' last stop is here in Detroit." Thus, Jerome Bettis officially announced his retirement standing on the champions' podium, holding the
Vince Lombardi Trophy .
Hines Ward , the MVP of the game, said during the Super Bowl commercial; "
I'm Going To Disney World and I'm taking !"
For his long career in the NFL, and his status as a native of Detroit, Jerome Bettis was awarded the key to the city of Detroit.
During post-game celebrations on
Ford Field , Bettis was given a
Gatorade shower by some of his teammates. While the tradition of dunking a head coach has become commonplace, this may have been the first such shower of a player in NFL and Super Bowl history.
In February 2006,
NBC Sports announced that Bettis had been signed as a studio commentator for NBC's new
Football Night In America Sunday night pregame show.
On Tuesday, April 18, 2006, Bettis teamed up with Don Barden, chairman and chief executive officer of PITG Gaming LLC, in order to help the
NHL 's
Pittsburgh Penguins get enough money for a new ice arena. Barden said that he would give $7.5 million a year for 30 years to help build a new stadium
{Link without Title} .
- Bettis' parents, Gladys and Johnnie, have amazingly only missed two football games of his career: one in Mexico and one in Japan. Both games were unimportant preseason matchups. A shot at the end of Super Bowl XL showed his mother, Gladys, in tears because the Steelers had won.
- As a child, Bettis suffered greatly from asthma, and still does to some extent.
- Bettis is an avid Bowler and has several perfect (300) games to his credit. In April, the International Bowling Museum & Hall Of Fame announced Bettis would be the first inductee into its Celebrities Bowling Hall of Fame, according to the Associated Press .
- He is the 5th leading rusher in NFL history.
