NFF and College Hall of Fame Ballot Includes Ken Norton, Jr.
IRVING, Texas – UCLA linebacker Ken Norton, Jr. was included on the list for the 2016 National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame ballot announced on Tuesday. The list includes 76 players and five coaches from the Football Bowl Subdivision and 92 players and 27 coaches from the divisional ranks.
Norton, Jr. played linebacker at UCLA in 1984-87 when the team posted a 36-10-2 record. He earned first-team All-America honors in 1987 and was the team's leading tackler in 1986 (106 tackles) and 1987 (125). Norton, Jr. was a finalist for the Butkus Award in 1987 and ranks eighth on the all-time school tackles list (339). He went on to enjoy a highly successful NFL career and played on three consecutive Super Bowl championship teams (1993 and 1994 - Dallas; 1995 with San Francisco).
The announcement of the 2016 Class will be made Friday, Jan. 8, 2016, at the JW Marriott Scottsdale Camelback Inn in Scottsdale, Ariz. The hotel is serving as the official media hotel for the College Football Playoff National Championship, which will be played Jan. 11 at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Ariz. The Jan. 8 event will be televised live, and more information will be available as the date draws near. Inductees will also participate in the pregame festivities and the coin toss on Jan. 11.
The tradition of announcing the College Football Hall of Fame inductees on the Friday before the national title game does not have an impact on the induction ceremonies, which continue to take place during the NFF Annual Awards Dinner in New York City at the Waldorf Astoria, and the 2016 Class will be inducted on Dec. 6, 2016.
To be eligible for the ballot, players must have been named a First Team All-American by a major/national selector as recognized and utilized by the NCAA for their consensus All-America teams; played their last year of intercollegiate football at least 10 years prior; played within the last 50 years and cannot be currently playing professional football. Coaches must have coached a minimum of 10 years and 100 games as a head coach; won at least 60 percent of their games; and be retired from coaching for at least three years. If a coach is retired and over the age of 70, there is no waiting period. If he is over the age of 75, he is eligible as an active coach. In both cases, the candidate’s post-football record as a citizen may also be weighed.
Once nominated for consideration, all player candidates are submitted to one of eight District Screening Committees, depending on their school’s geographic location, which conducts a vote to determine who will appear on the ballot and represent their respective districts. Each year, approximately 15 candidates, who are not selected for the Hall of Fame, will be named automatic holdovers and will bypass the district screening process and automatically appear on the ballot the following year. Additionally, the Veterans Committee may make recommendations to the Honors Court for exceptions that allow for the induction of players who played more than 50 years ago.
Of the 5.06 million individuals who have played college football since Princeton first battled Rutgers on Nov. 6, 1869, only 963 players, including the 2015 class, have earned induction into the College Football Hall of Fame, or less than two ten-thousandths (.0002) of one percent of those who have played the game during the past 146 years. From the coaching ranks, 209 individuals have achieved Hall of Fame distinction. Click here for a complete list of players and coaches in the Hall.