Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska Among Colleges with Most PF HoFers
The 2023 Pro Football Hall of Fame finalists have been announced, and it got me to wondering about which colleges are most represented in Canton.
The 2023 Finalists are Jared Allen, Willie Anderson, Ronde Barber, Dwight Freeney, Devin Hester, Torry Holt, Andre Johnson, Albert Lewis, Darrelle Revis, Joe Thomas, Zach Thomas, DeMarcus Ware, Reggie Wayne, Patrick Willis, and Darren Woodson.
It's an extremely strong potential class and will definitely make a 2000s era football fans feel their age.
Not including the yet-to-be-announced 2023 class, here is a look at what colleges and universities have the most players in the Hall of Fame as it currently stands:
USC, Notre Dame - 14
Michigan - 11
Ohio State - 10
Pittsburgh, Miami - 9
Syracuse, Alabama - 8
Minnesota - 7
Illinois, LSU, Oregon, Penn State, UCLA - 6
Florida State, Iowa, Nebraska, Oklahoma, San Francisco, S Methodist, Texas - 5
Here's the list from each area school:
Minnesota: Bobby Bell, Tony Dungy, Carl Eller, Bud Grant, Bronko Nagurski, Leo Nomellini, Charlie Sanders
Iowa: Alex Karras, Paul Krause, Duke Slater, Andre Tippett, Emlen Tunnell
Nebraska: Bob Brown, Guy Chamberlin, William Roy Lyman, Will Shields, Mick Tingelhoff
We'll see just how the 2023 Class shakes out and how it impacts the list, but the Big Ten is very well represented in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Of course, we can't talk Hall of Fame without the lone SDSU or USD football alum to call Canton home. That honor belongs to Jim Langer, a 1987 enshrinee that played his college football in Brookings for South Dakota State. View his complete profile here.
Sources: ProFootballHoF.com, Jim Langer PFHoF Profile