All for Tennessee
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Tennessee football’s top 10 NFL WRs of all time

By Caleb Calhoun

14 Oct 1979: Wide receiver Stanley Morgan of the New England Patriots runs down the field during a game against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field in Chicago Illinois. The Patriots won the game 27 - 7.
14 Oct 1979: Wide receiver Stanley Morgan of the New England Patriots runs down the field during a game against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field in Chicago Illinois. The Patriots won the game 27 - 7. /
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Photo by George Rose/Getty Images
Photo by George Rose/Getty Images /

Pick Analysis. Years in NFL: 8. Alvin Harper. 9. Scouting Report. 1991-1997. player. 839

Teams played for:

  • Dallas Cowboys, 1991-1994
  • Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 1995-1996
  • Washington Redskins, 1997
  • Dallas Cowboys, 1999

When he played for Tennessee football, Alvin Harper was part of Johnny Majors’ first 10-win team and then back to back SEC Championship teams. He had 1,547 career receiving yards and 16 touchdowns, but he never got the chance to be the No. 1 receiver on Rocky Top. That didn’t matter, as the Dallas Cowboys still took him with the first pick in the 1991 NFL Draft.

Playing as the No. 2 wideout to Michael Irvin, Harper was the perfect complement with his 6’3″ 210-pound frame. He helped the Cowboys get back to the playoffs with Troy Aikman and Emmitt Smith under head coach Jimmy Johnson as a rookie, and 1992 was when he became a full-time starter. That was when his career took off.

Harper had 562 yards and four touchdowns and then 777 yards and five touchdowns in 1992 and 1993, helping the Cowboys win back to back Super Bowls. He had a touchdown catch in their first Super Bowl win over the Buffalo Bills. In 1994, when Barry Switzer arrived, Harper had 33 receptions for 821 yards and eight touchdowns, leading the league with 24.9 yards per catch.

After that, Harper went to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and had over 600 yards with two touchdowns in 1995. However, his production began to dip after that, and he joined the Washington Redskins in 1997 before going back to the Cowboys in 1999, seeing limited action both years. Still, he finished his career with 191 catches for 3,473 yards and 21 touchdowns.

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