10 SEC locks for the College Football Hall of Fame - AL.com

When the National Football Foundation revealed the Class of 2020 for the College Football Hall of Fame on Wednesday, the list of 19 new members included four former SEC standouts.

The addition of Florida offensive lineman Lomas Brown, LSU defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey, Alabama defensive end E.J. Junior and Georgia defensive end David Pollack brings to 96 the number of Hall of Famers who played in the SEC. The conference also has had 28 of its coaches reach the College Football Hall of Fame.

The four new enshrines came from the more than 200 SEC players eligible for consideration for the College Football Hall of Fame. All were first-team selections by organizations that the NCAA uses to choose the annual consensus All-American team and played their final games at least 10 seasons ago and not more than 50 seasons ago.

The waiting list and the rate of entry can result in long waits for enshrinement in the College Football Hall of Fame for the conference's former stars. Seven players from the SEC who were on the field since 1990 have reached the College Football Hall of Fame, including four in the past two classes – Dorsey and Pollack in 2020 and Arkansas running back Darren McFadden and Ole Miss linebacker Patrick Willis in 2019. The other three are Tennessee quarterback Peyton Manning, Georgia offensive tackle Matt Stinchcomb and Florida quarterback Danny Wuerffel from the 1990s.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME CLASS OF 2020 INCLUDES 4 FROM SEC

Despite the difficulties, many more SEC players and coaches are going to reach the College Football Hall of Fame eventually -- and some of them are virtually certain to get there because their accomplishments mirror those who've already been inducted. Here are 10 of the SEC's College Football Hall of Fame locks:

Tennessee safety Eric Berry intercepts a pass against UCLA on Sept. 1, 2008, in Pasadena, Calif.ASSOCIATED PRESS

Tennessee defensive back Eric Berry

Sixteen of the 20 SEC players who have been consensus All-Americans more than once and completed their college careers more than 10 seasons ago are in the College Football Hall of Fame. So that impressive credential doesn’t have a 100 percent success rate – yet -- as Alabama's Leroy Cook, Arkansas' Shawn Andrews and Tennessee's John Henderson and Larry Seivers can attest. With eight more SEC players becoming two-time consensus All-Americans over the past 10 seasons, this distinction is becoming less distinct. But Berry has something more: He was a two-time unanimous All-American -- one of two in the conference's history. If Berry does not return to the NFL this season, he would be eligible for consideration for the Class of 2021.

LSU quarterback Joe Burrow passes against Clemson during the CFP national championship game on Jan. 13, 2020, in New Orleans.AP

LSU quarterback Joe Burrow

It’s going to be a while for Burrow as he leaves the Tigers as the 2019 Heisman Trophy winner after a record-setting season (including the margin of his Heisman victory), likely to become the first player picked in 2020 NFL Draft. Every player who won the Heisman Trophy from the first one in 1935 through 2001 is a member of the College Football Hall of Fame, except for Colorado running back Rashaan Salaam, the 1994 winner. That's an entrance rate of 98.5 percent. Nebraska quarterback Eric Crouch, the 2001 Heisman winner, is a member of the Class of 2020, and one of the Heisman winners since Crouch already is in the Hall of Fame – Southern Cal quarterback Matt Leinart, the 2004 recipient.

Kentucky quarterback Tim Couch looks for a receiver against Eastern Kentucky on Sept. 12, 1998, in Lexington, Ky.AP

Kentucky quarterback Tim Couch

Couch has been on the Hall of Fame ballot for the past seven years and hasn’t gotten in yet, so how can he be considered a lock? Ten SEC players have finished fourth in the voting for the Heisman Trophy, as Couch did in 1998. He's the only one who isn't in the College Football Hall of Fame. Couch has a record-setting statistical resume, too, as his SEC single-season passing record stood until Joe Burrow broke it in the 2019 season. Being the first player picked in the NFL Draft won’t hurt Couch either. And until Josh Allen or Benny Snell Jr. completes his NFL career, Couch is going to carry the Hall of Fame focus for Kentucky and its supporters in the nomination process.

Alabama running back Derrick Henry carries the football during an SEC game against Auburn on Nov. 28, 2015, in Auburn, Ala.AP

Alabama running back Derrick Henry

Henry won the Heisman Trophy as he broke Herschel Walker’s SEC single-season rushing record in 2015. He also won the other two major player of the year awards – the Walter Camp and the Maxwell Award -- that season. The 17 eligible players who won the three awards in the same season are all in the College Football Hall of Fame.

Alabama running back Mark Ingram carries the football during an SEC game against Ole Miss on Oct. 10, 2009, in Oxford, Miss.ASSOCIATED PRESS

Alabama running back Mark Ingram

The seven SEC players who have won the Heisman Trophy and are eligible for the College Football Hall of Fame are enshrined -- 1942 winner Frank Sinkwich of Georgia, 1959 winner Billy Cannon of LSU, 1966 winner Steve Spurrier of Florida, 1971 winner Pat Sullivan of Auburn, 1982 winner Herschel Walker of Georgia, 1985 winner Bo Jackson of Auburn and 1996 winner Danny Wuerffel of Florida. Six more Heisman winners from the SEC are not yet eligible, but with that track record, it would seem they’re all getting in. Ingram won the Heisman Trophy in 2009.

Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel runs for a touchdown against SMU on Sept. 14, 2013, in College Station, Texas.AP

Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel

Could Manziel be this century’s Rashaan Salaam? Manziel won the Heisman Trophy in 2012, so that would seem to make him a virtual lock for enshrinement. However, the College Football Hall of Fame eligibility rules say: “While each nominee’s football achievements in college are of prime consideration, his post-football record as a citizen is also weighed. He must have proven himself worthy as a citizen, carrying the ideals of football forward into his relations with his community and his fellow man, with love of his country.” Is that going to make a difference for Johnny Football?

Auburn quarterback Cam Newton dives into the end zone during an SEC game against Arkansas on Oct. 16, 2010, in Auburn, Ala.AP

Auburn quarterback Cam Newton

Newton played one season at Auburn. The brevity of his career with the Tigers will not keep Newton out of the College Football Hall of Fame, because in that season, he won the Heisman Trophy in a landslide. And for icing on his Hall of Fame resume, Newton won college football's most prestigious award with an undefeated BCS national-championship team, had one of the greatest statistical single seasons in college football history and holds the Heisman-Maxwell-Camp membership card.

Georgia coach Mark Richt helps defensive lineman De’Andre Johnson adjust his helmet against Georgia Tech on Nov. 30, 2013, in Atlanta.AP

Georgia coach Mark Richt

If Richt can stay retired for two more seasons, he’ll be eligible for consideration for the College Football Hall of Fame. Richt has the requirements covered – a head coach for at least 10 years and a minimum of a .600 winning percentage in at least 100 games. Richt coached 15 of his 18 seasons at Georgia and has a career record of 171-64 – a winning percentage of .728. Richt never coached a national championship team, but that’s not a requirement. Two Georgia coaches are in the College Football Hall of Fame. Vince Dooley guided a national championship team; Wally Butts did not.

Alabama coach Nick Saban leads the Crimson Tide on the field for the CFP national championship game against Georgia on Jan. 8, 2018, in Atlanta.AP

LSU and Alabama coach Nick Saban

With six national championships – five at Alabama and one at LSU – on his coaching record, Saban would seem to be about as solid a sure thing for the College Football Hall of Fame as anyone has ever been. The good news for Alabama fans is that Saban doesn’t have to retire to be inducted. Active coaches become eligible at age 75. Saban is 68 years old.

Florida quarterback Tim Tebow scrambles during the BCS national championship game against Oklahoma on Jan. 8, 2009, in Miami.AP

Florida quarterback Tim Tebow

Tennessee quarterback Peyton Manning went into the College Football Hall of Fame as soon as he was eligible -- and he didn't win the Heisman Trophy or a national championship, as Tebow did. Tebow's final season at Florida was 2009, so he will be eligible for the Class of 2021. Lomas Brown represented Florida in the Class of 2020. The most recent instance of SEC players from the same school entering the College Football Hall of Fame in consecutive years occurred in 2000 and 2001, when Terry Hoage and Kevin Butler represented Georgia.

WHICH SEC MEMBER HAS PRODUCED THE MOST COLLEGE FOOTBALL HALL OF FAMERS?

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @AMarkG1.

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