Hall Headliners

My favorite football player of all time, Troy Aikman, was among those enshrined in South Bend, Indiana’s College Football Hall of Fame class yesterday. The evening ceremony honored 21 college football greats, including former legendary Notre Dame coach, Lou Holtz and Ohio State success, John Cooper.
Holtz is a fascinating character in my opinion. I read his autobiography last year and learned a lot about the man who led the Fighting Irish to their last national title in 1988. Holtz was successful at five other colleges, but his achievements at Notre Dame are his most notable. He began at William and Mary college and then spent three years leading N.C. State. He took over a struggling Arkansas program before accepting an offer to coach in the Big 10 at Minnesota. I remember reading how Holtz hesitated to move from warm weather to the coldest of cold winters in Minnesota. Lou survived one year as the Gophers’ instructor before taking the big time job at prestigious Notre Dame. After a decade of helping the Fighting Irish become a renowned football team, he left for the South Carolina Gamecocks position.
Cooper is a character in his own right, but nothing compared to the man he was an assistant under at Ohio State, Woody Hayes. Cooper coached the Buckeyes from 1988 through 2000 before Jim Tressel took over. He started his coaching career in Tulsa and moved on to Arizona State before leading the Big Ten’s Buckeyes to the Rose Bowl. Cooper is the first Hall-of-Fame coach to lead both a Big Ten and a Pac-10 team to the Rose Bowl. Cooper was blessed with great players during his coaching days and many Ohio State fans still knock his efforts behind the headset. I did not begin following the Buckeyes until the final two years of Cooper’s tenure there. I do remember him though, and I think the reason fans dislike him is because he never did beat Michigan.
Troy Aikman quarterbacked the UCLA Bruins before becoming the number draft pick in 1989 with the Dallas Cowboys. Prior to his two seasons in California, Aikman played for the Oklahoma Sooners in the Big 12. One of the best college players ever, Aikman is well-deserving of the hall honor. His former Cowboys teammate, Jay Novacek, was also inducted Saturday night. Novacek was a talented tight end even before the Superball-winning Cowboys made him famous. He was a smashing success from 1982-1984 at Wyoming.
The Buffalo Bills’ tailback and Hall of Famer, Thurman Thomas, was part of the 21 players on the College Hall’s list also. Thomas still holds the record for career rushing yards with 4,595 at Oklahoma State. The former thumping and cruiser as a Cowboy claimed triumph when he went to four straight SuperBowls with Buffalo. Former Army quarterback, Arnold Tucker and Syracuse signal-caller, Don McPherson, were also honored. McPherson was the 1987 Heisman Trophy runner-up and Tucker, who played in the 1940’s, was the oldest inductee. Tucker went undefeated at Army with a 27-0-1 record from 1944-1946.
Two Bayou State talents were part of the ceremonies. LSU tailback and defensive back, Billy Cannon, and Louisiana Tech’s Fred Dean, were enshrined in history. Cannon was elected in 1983, and 26 years later, was selected to join the Hall. Cannon played in the national championship game of 1958 and won the Heisman a year later, but was arrested for federal counterfeiting charges in 1983. Pat Fitzgerald, Sam Mills and Wilbur Marshall highlight the linebackers selected for the 2009 class. Roger Brown, Jim Dombrowski, Rueben Mayes, Randall McDaniel, Dave Parks, Ron Simmons, and Rod Smith round out the players list. Former Marshall and Georgia head coach, Jim Donnan and Missouri Valley’s Volney Ashford complete the list of coaches.

Parting points: Song of the day- R.E.M.’s “Bad Day”

Today is Old Timer’s Day at the stadium. Can’t wait to see Mike Mussina!