WVU Sports Hall of Fame

Inducted: 2015

Written by Bryan Messerly

Amos Zereoue played football from 1996-98, leaving WVU as one of the top running backs in school history.

A native of Hempstead, New York, Zereoue finished his career ranked first in rushing yards with 4,086 (now fourth all-time) and second in career rushing attempts with 786. He finished his career ranked second in all-purpose yards with 4,628 (now fifth) and second in rushing touchdowns with 42 (now third).

Zereoue became the first player in school history to have 1,000 yards rushing in three consecutive seasons (1,035 in 1996, 1,589 in 1997 and 1,462 in 1998). For his career, he averaged 5.2 yards per carry and averaged 123.8 yards rushing per contest. Zereoue caught 55 passes for 374 yards and two touchdowns and returned eight kickoffs for 168 yards (all in 1998).

He set a then-WVU record for freshman rushing yards with 1,035 in 1996. Zereoue set the school record with 21 100-yard rushing games (now tied for second), with WVU posting a 21-4 record in those 100-yard games.

Zereoue rushed for a career-high 234 yards at Notre Dame in 1997, which now stands as the seventh-most rushing yards in a game at WVU. He ranks third and fifth in single-season rushing yards (1,589 in 1997 and 1,462 in 1998). Zereoue’s 283 rushing attempts in 1998 are still the second-most rushing attempts in school history. He and Pat White hold the school record for rushing touchdowns in a season (18), and his 252 career points rank fifth among non-kickers.

Zereoue earned multiple awards and honors at WVU: All-Big East First Team in 1996, 1997 and 1998, Big East and ECAC Rookie of the Year in 1996, one of 12 players to be named to the All-Big East first team three times, was a Heisman finalist in 1997, 1997 ECAC Player of the Year, Sporting News All-American Third Team in 1997, semifinalist for the Doak Walker Award, eight times named Big East Player of the Week and a member of the WVU all-time team for 1990-99.

He left WVU after his junior season for the NFL Draft as the Big East’s all-time leading rusher. A member of the 1997 Gator Bowl, 1997 Carquest Bowl and 1998 Insight.com Bowl teams, Zereoue was drafted with the 34th pick in the third round, 95th overall, by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1999 NFL Draft.

Zereoue played for the Steelers from 1999-2003 and rushed for a career-high 762 yards and four touchdowns with the Steelers in 2002. He spent a year with the Oakland Raiders in 2004 and with the New England Patriots in 2005. For his career, he had 2,137 yards on 553 carries with 10 touchdowns.

Before coming to WVU, Zereoue was the first-ever two-time Thorpe Award winner as the top prep player on Long Island. He held Long Island records with 5,369 yards and 59 touchdowns through 1994.

Following his NFL career, he owned a restaurant in Manhattan, and came back to WVU to finish what he started in the classroom. On one of the proudest days of his life, he received his Regents Bachelor of Arts degree on May 17, 2015, as part of the student-athlete degree completion program.