From UmTerps.com
IRVING, Texas – University of Maryland football great E.J. Henderson has been named to the 2020 ballot for induction into the College Football Hall of Fame, the National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame announced on Monday.
Henderson, a two-time consensus First Team All-American, is one of 76 players and five coaches from the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) on the 2020 ballot. This marks Henderson’s second year on the ballot.
“It’s an enormous honor to just be on the College Football Hall of Fame ballot when you think that more than 5.33 million people have played college football and only 1,010 players have been inducted,” said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. “The Hall’s requirement of being a First-Team All-American creates a much smaller pool of about 1,500 individuals who are even eligible. Being in today’s elite group means an individual is truly among the greatest to have ever played the game, and we look forward to announcing the 2020 College Football Hall of Fame Class in January.”
Henderson was recognized as the 2002 Bednarik Award (nation’s best defensive player) and Butkus Award (nation’s top linebacker) winner, while helping Maryland earn an Orange Bowl berth and a No. 11 year-end national ranking. Henderson was also named the 2001 Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Player of the Year and was a two-time ACC Defensive Player of the Year, leading the Terps to the 2001 ACC title.
Henderson finished his Terrapin career second all-time with 472 tackles and first all-time with 62.5 tackles for loss. He also posted 18 sacks and three forced fumbles and was inducted into the University of Maryland Athletics Hall of Fame in 2016.
A second round draft selection by the Minnesota Vikings, Henderson played nine years in the NFL and was selected to the 2011 Pro Bowl. He was named the Minnesota Vikings Community Man of the Year in 2010 and he established the EJ Henderson Youth Foundation in 2007.
The College Football Hall of Fame ballot was emailed today to the more than 12,000 NFF members and current Hall of Famers whose votes will be tabulated and submitted to the NFF’s Honors Courts, which will deliberate and select the class. The FBS Honors Court, chaired by NFF Board Member and College Football Hall of Famer Archie Griffin from Ohio State, and the Divisional Honors Court, chaired by former Marshall head coach, longtime athletics director and NFF Board Member Jack Lengyel, include an elite and geographically diverse pool of athletic administrators, Hall of Famers and members of the media.
The announcement of the 2020 Class will be made in January 2020 in the days leading up to the College Football Playoff (CFP) National Championship in New Orleans. The January announcement will be televised and/or streamed live, and specific viewing information will be available as the date draws near. Several of the electees will also participate in the pregame festivities and the coin toss before the championship game.
The 2020 College Football Hall of Fame Class will officially be inducted during the 63rd NFF Annual Awards Dinner on Dec. 8, 2020, at the New York Hilton Midtown. They will also be honored at their respective schools with an NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salute, presented by Fidelity Investments, during the 2020 season.
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