Tim Tebow, Alex Smith, Ryan Leaf highlight first-time nominees on College Football Hall of Fame ballot
Tim Tebow, Alex Smith and Ryan Leaf highlight the candidates for the first time on the ballot for the College Football Hall of Fame, it was announced Monday.
In total, there are 80 players and 9 coaches from FBS, 96 players and 33 coaches from divisional levels.
Ballots were emailed Monday to more than 12,000 members of the National Football Association and the current Council of Famers, who have voting rights through June 30. Those ballots then. will be tabulated and submitted to the NFF Honor Court, where the class will be selected. The Honor Court is chaired by NFF board member and College Football Hall of Famer Archie Griffin.
The newest ones will be announced in early 2023.
Tebow led Florida to two national championships and became the first sophomore to win the Heisman Trophy in 2007. He was three-times SEC Offensive Player of the Year and set 28 records in the event. his career.
Smith, a former Utah quarterback, led the Utes to a 12-0 debut in 2004 and was all-American that year. He retired from the NFL in 2021 after returning from a serious leg injury to be named NFL Returning Player of the Year in 2020.
Leaf was the 1997 Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year at Washington State, leading the Cougars to the first league championship in school history and the first Rose Bowl landing in 67 years.
Other notable names as first-time contenders: Justin Blackmon, Oklahoma State linebacker, Rocky Calmus, Penn State backrunner Ki-Jana Carter, Oregon backrunner LaMichael James, University linebacker Luke Kuechly Boston, Oklahoma defensive midfielder Dewey Selmon and Memphis run back DeAngelo Williams.
USC runs after Reggie Bush, Kentucky quarterback Tim Couch, Florida State re-run Warrick Dunn, Syracuse fullback Dwight Freeney and Miami defender Ray Lewis were among supporters from the ballots in other years.
Players qualify if they have completed 10 seasons out of their senior year of college football and have received all-American first-team honors from an organization recognized by the NCAA.
Coaches are eligible for three seasons after retirement or immediately after retirement if they are at least 70 years old. A coach must also be a head coach for at least 10 years and have coached at least 100 games with a win rate of .600 or more.
