Courtesy SWAC.org
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NEW YORK, N.Y. -- The 2014 Pro Football Hall of Fame class was announced Saturday at "NFL Honors," as seven all-time greats including two Southwestern Athletic Conference Hall of Fame enshrinees are to be inducted.
This was the first time the Hall of Famers were announced at the show.
Michael Strahan (Texas Southern) and Aeneas Williams (Southern) will join Andre Reed, Walter Jones, Derrick Brooks, Claude Humphrey (Tennessee State) and Ray Guy for enshrinement in Canton.
As a senior at Texas Southern, Strahan was selected All-America first team by The Sheridan Network, Edd Hayes Black College Sports Report and the Associated Press. He recorded 62 tackles with a school-record 19 quarterback sacks and 32 tackles, totaling 142 yards in losses.
He was also selected Division I-AA Defensive Player of the Year and was named first team All-Southwestern Athletic Conference and the SWAC's Player of the Year for a consecutive season. He was also named Black College Defensive Player of the Year. As a junior in 1991, Strahan led the SWAC with 14.5 quarterback sacks. His 41.5 career sacks is a Texas Southern record.
In 1993, he was selected in the second round by the New York Giants. During his tenure with the Giants, Strahan set a record for the most sacks in a single season in 2001 (22.5), and won a Super Bowl in his final season in 2007.
His resume consists of seven pro bowl appearances, four first-team All-Pro selections, two NFC Defensive Player of the Year awards, and Giants career sack record (141.5). Strahan was selected NFL Defensive MVP in 2001 and is currently listed fifth on the league's all-time career sack list. He helped the Giants capture Super Bowl XLII.
Williams did not play football until his senior and graduate-student year. That season, he tied the FCS (formerly NCAA Division I-AA) record for most interceptions.
He was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the third round and led the NFL in interceptions twice, was tabbed to eight Pro Bowls and was a first-team All Pro selection four times. He was traded to the St. Louis Rams in 2001 and helped guide the organization to Super Bowl XXXVI.
Strahan and Williams were finalists last season for the NFL Hall of Fame but were not selected. Their induction now move the SWAC's all-time count of players in the Pro Football Hall of Fame to 14 including 23 from the HBCU ranks overall.
The 2014 Class will be formally enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, Aug. 2, 2014. The Enshrinement Ceremony takes place at Fawcett Stadium in Canton, Ohio and will be televised nationally by NFL Network.
The annual NFL/Hall of Fame Game which kicks off the NFL’s preseason will be played on Sunday, Aug. 3. Teams have not yet been announced. The Enshrinement Ceremony is the marquee event of the annual Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Festival which features 24 events over two and a half weeks.
| SWAC Players Enshrined in the Pro Football of Hame | |||
| PLAYER | SWAC | POS | HOF CLASS |
| Lem Barney | Jackson State | CB | 1992 |
| Mel Blount | Southern | CB | 1989 |
| Willie Brown | Grambling State | DB | 1984 |
| Buck Buchanan | Grambling State | DT | 1990 |
| Willie Davis | Grambling State | DE | 1981 |
| Ken Houston | Prairie View A&M | SS | 1986 |
| Charlie Joiner | Grambling State | WR | 1996 |
| Deacon Jones | Mississippi Valley State | DE | 1980 |
| Walter Payton | Jackson State | RB | 1993 |
| Jackie Slater | Jackson State | OT | 2001 |
| John Stallworth | Alabama A&M | WR | 2002 |
| Emmitt Thomas | Bishop | CB | 2008 |
| Jerry Rice | Mississippi Valley State | WR | 2010 |
COURTESY SWAC.ORG
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