New Hall of Fame Class

I was unable to attend the announcement ceremonies for the newest class--well the fbs portion anyway--of College Football Hall of Famers and maybe it was for the best as I really do not like Jimmy Johnson.  That said, I am sure the National Football Foundation did a great job of hosting the event.
As for the voters, well all I can say is that they have a difficult job.  Although lacking headliners (four different teases for the class mentioned four different inductees), the class certainly has some fine players and coaches.  And it is a typical class in which stars from one generation ago, like Jonathan Ogden are joined by very good players from the generation prior, like Charles Alexander.  How Art Monk, who was never a national name while at a rebuilding Syracuse and was stuck in a running offense his junior and senior seasons, got it is a head scratcher as too the rush to put in Greg Myers, a very good safety from the 1990s.  He probably got a boost from his excellent academic work, but that adds a measure of confusion for the public.
As for coaches, well they all seem to get in.  Both Phil Fulmer and R.C. Slocum were fine coaches, but Hall of Famers?  Neither was hired by anyone after being fired from the schools that they are most associated with, despite still being young enough to run a team.  But I really do not have a problem with either.  My beef with Johnson is as a Notre Dame and Giants fan.  But he really only won when having a great advantage in talent, but that describes a lot of top names in the industry.

More Hall of Fame Ramblings

I wanted to wrap up my reflections on the latest class of players and coaches elected to the College Football Hall of Fame with some additional coverage of last week's press conference in New York City.

Fourteen players were elected to the Hall including one each from the three Florida-based powers including Deion Sanders from Florida State and Russell Maryland of Miami. With the Florida schools now recognized as national power programs--something that was not true back when Florida inductee Carlos Alvarez played wide receiver for the Gators from 1969 through 1971--their numbers will increase over time. And it is interesting in how the voting works in that Alvarez was helped by his brilliant academic work and subsequently impressive law career, while Sanders, for one, had to be so brilliant as a player that voters overlooked his infamous stoppage of his academic pursuit mid-year when he had reached eligibility for FSU's bowl game. I am not sure if Sanders has subsequently returned to school to get his degree, although I would bet that he did so. As for Maryland, his induction was meant to reward him for his excellent play on the field during the brilliant run by the Canes in the late 1980s, early '90s and, I guess, for his being one of the team's "good guys." Maryland played the "lovable bear of a man" role perfectly at the press conference, getting laughs by recounting his humble beginnings with Miami and for thinking the call from the Hall was a joke by former teammate Cortez Kennedy.

The Big Ten has always been a dominant force with electors, thanks in part to the large numbers of Big Ten grads peppering foundation chapters throughout the Midwest and sunnier places down South. And so three graduates of Big Ten schools, Sandy Stephens of Minnesota, Gene Washington of Michigan State and Eddie George of Ohio State were elected while one of two coaches, Lloyd Carr of Michigan, earned a spot. That that group is not an overwhelming one--sure George is a former Heisman winner but he is getting in before many stars from the 1980s and early '90s--is more proof that it helps to be a Big Ten grad.

That may change a bit when the Hall moves to Atlanta. While I am not accusing the Foundation of fixing anything, it will help attendance to start including more players from the Deep South. In addition to the three Florida players mentioned, Jake Scott of Georgia and Alabama's Marty Lyons are also heading to the Hall--all in time for next fall's enshrinement festivities in...Atlanta.

Hopefully there will be some love that weekend for the others to be enshrined, Doug English of Texas, Bill Enyart as a rare Oregon State inductee, Will Shields of Nebraska (to help welcome them to the Big Ten!), Darryl Talley of West Virginia, Clendon Thomas of OU and Rob Waldrop of Arizona. The other coach elected in was Fisher DeBerry of Air Force. The National Football Foundation always treats its people right and all of the former players and coaches will all feel welcome at the induction ceremonies in New York in December and then at the Enshrinement Festival.

National Football Foundation Press Conference

I attended the National Football Foundation press conference for the annual awards ceremonies and Hall of Fame inductions yesterday, which went well despite the frenetic pace of the morning. I do not envy the media relations staff of the NFF as there is a lot to do in a limited amount of time. Phil Marwill and his crew do a great job keeping the flow going and balancing the needs of the media with the needs of the honorees. I was fortunate to not only get a great deal of material from comments made by the next class of Hall of Famers and the current student athletes honored for their current ability to excel at school and football while also contributing community work, but through interviews with some of the honorees in attendance. Most importantly I laid the groundwork for a future book, but more on that at a later date.
The event began with a presentation on the future 50,000 square foot home of the Hall of Fame, which is scheduled to break ground in downtown Atlanta in August of 2011 with a March 2013 scheduled opening date. The building certainly looks impressive and the ability to pair future inductions ceremonies with the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Classic every late summer make the decision to move the Hall from South Bend to Atlanta a brilliant one.
Next up, the next class of Hall of Famers plus special award winners Bill Cosby and Tom Brokaw. Two members of the class are no longer with us and North Carolina State great DT Dennis Byrd was represented by his son David and Arizona State's (and the country's) Pat Tillman was represented by his wife Marie. The others all expressed their humility and sense of joy at being honored, with former Arkansas lineman Ronnie Caveness, whose hat was bigger than former Navy DB Chet Moeller, getting the biggest laugh (not really for what he said but his general good-ol'-boy demeanor). Many of those being inducted stressed the importance of teammates, family and coaches, while former Colorado LB Alfred Williams, one of the youngest of the group, admitted that he broke down on his radio show when told that he made the Hall of Fame. Gene Stallings also got a laugh for knocking today's cream puff scheduling mentioning that while at Texas A&M his non conference schedule was LSU at Baton Rouge, Ohio State in Columbus and Michigan in Ann Arbor (I looked it up in The USA TODAY College football Encyclopedia--makes a great Christmas gift!--and the year was 1970 and is Aggies did beat LSU that season). Bill Cosby then went on a comic rant making fun of his playing days before Tom Brokaw finished that portion of the morning in his usual style.
I have to get to the library now but will delve into some of the interviews I conducted and mention the scholar-athletes honored yesterday.