Biggest Locks and Top Contenders to Make the 2017 College Football Hall of Fame
Steve Spurrier and Peyton Manning highlight the 2017 College Football Hall of Fame ballot, and several former stars will eventually join the duo in Atlanta.
The National Football Foundation unveiled the complete list, which includes 16 first-time Football Bowl Subdivision players, Spurrier, seven lower-division talents and four coaches in addition to names from previous ballots.
Although the new class will be officially announced on Jan. 6, 2017, this is an early look at some of the likely names to join the Hall.
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Biggest Locks
Spurrier, 71, is immediately eligible for the Hall of Fame because he's at least 70 years old.
In 26 seasons at Duke, Florida and South Carolina, Spurrier tallied a 228-89-2 record and left the latter two as the program's winningest head coach.
| Duke | 3 | 20-13-1 | Two-time ACC Coach of the Year, 1 ACC title |
| Florida | 12 | 122-27-1 | 5 SEC COY, 1 national title, 6 SEC titles |
| South Carolina | 11 | 86-49 | 2 SEC COY, 1 division title |
He's already a member of the Hall of Fame as a player, so Spurrier could join the unique company of Bobby Dodd, Amos Alonzo Stagg and Bowden Wyatt as two-time inductees.
Spurrier is famous for one-liners like "You can't spell Citrus without UT." Tennessee's quarterback at the time of that message? Peyton Manning. College football writer Bryan Fischer shared his feelings about the pair's inclusion on the ballot:
The NFL legend is now eligible following the end of his professional career. During four seasons in Knoxville, Manning threw for 11,201 yards and 89 touchdowns to just 33 interceptions.
In 1997, he won the Maxwell, Davey O'Brien and Johnny Unitas Golden Arm awards, was a consensus All-American, the SEC Player of the Year and the Heisman Trophy runner-up. Manning was a top-10 Heisman finisher three times.
So was Marshall Faulk.
Miami wanted him to play defensive back in college, according to Scott Miller of the Los Angeles Times. This was one instance where the player ended up knowing best.
Faulk racked up 4,589 rushing yards and 57 touchdowns during three seasons at San Diego State. The two-time consensus All-American added 82 receptions for 973 yards and five more scores. He finished ninth, second and fourth in Heisman voting, respectively.
As if that's not impressive enough, head coach Larry Kehres came close to winning a national championship every other year and averaged fewer than one loss per season, according to ESPN 680's Mark Ennis. He coached for 27 years.
He turned Division III Mount Union into a powerhouse, winning 23 conference titles. The Raiders posted 21 undefeated regular seasons, won 11 national championships—including a pair of three-peats—and appeared in five other championship games.
Kehres ended his coaching days with a college-record .929 winning percentage, amassing a 332-24-3 mark.
Top Contenders
In each of Dat Nguyen's four seasons with Texas A&M, the linebacker led the team in tackles. He finished with 517, tallying a career-best 147 in 1998. That season, he was the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, winner of the Bednarik and Lombardi Awards and a consensus All-American.
Ray Lewis starred on a few Miami defenses in the early 1990s. The big-hitting linebacker accumulated 394 stops and a pair of All-American nods over a three-season career.
Neither Nguyen nor Lewis matched what Vincent Brown accomplished at Mississippi Valley State, though. The linebacker set an NCAA record with 570 tackles and was an All-American in 1997.
Eric Crouch claimed both the Heisman Trophy and Davey O'Brien Award in 2001. The triple-option quarterback scampered for 3,434 yards and 59 touchdowns and tossed 29 more. Crouch also earned Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year honors twice.
However, the Nebraska quarterback wasn't the best runner of that time. Adrian Peterson—the Georgia Southern product—shredded defenses for 7,590 yards and 93 touchdowns, securing All-American honors in each year from 1998-2001.
Danny Ford coached Clemson for 11 full seasons, winning the 1981 national championship after finishing 12-0. He was 96-29-4 overall, won five ACC titles and notched a 6-2 postseason record at the school before capping his coaching career at Arkansas.
Eric Dickerson remains on the ballot. Perhaps the 24th try will be a charm for the former SMU running back, who amassed 4,450 yards and 47 touchdowns. He was third in the Heisman Trophy voting and a consensus All-American in 1982.
Follow Bleacher Report CFB Writer David Kenyon on Twitter @Kenyon19_BR.
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