IRVING, Texas (Sept. 22, 2022) – Alcorn State University and The National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame announced today that they will jointly honor 2022 College Football Hall of Fame electee
Dennis Thomas with an NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salute, presented by Fidelity Investments®. The Salute will take place this Saturday, Sept. 24, during the Braves' home football game against Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Coverage of the game will start at 6 p.m. CT on HBCU Go.
The NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salute program, which began with the inaugural College Football Hall of Fame Class in 1951, has become a hallowed tradition, and to this day the singular events remain the first of numerous activities in the Hall of Fame experience.
During the NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salutes, each electee returns to his respective school to accept a Hall of Fame plaque that will stay on permanent display at the institution. The events take place on the field during a home game, and many Hall of Famers cite the experience as the ultimate capstone to their careers, providing them one more chance to take the field and be recognized in front of their home crowd.
The 2022 College Football Hall of Fame Class will be officially inducted during the 64th NFF Annual Awards Dinner Presented by Las Vegas on Dec. 6 at the Bellagio Resort & Casino in Las Vegas.
Click here for more information on the Awards Dinner, including options to purchase tickets online, special travel rates to the event from Delta Air Lines and Bellagio and a concierge service provided by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.
"A looming force on Alcorn State's offensive line, Dennis Thomas beat out the legendary Walter Payton for the SWAC Offensive Player of the Year as a center," said NFF President & CEO
Steve Hatchell. "We are thrilled to honor him at Spinks-Casem Stadium for his upcoming College Football Hall of Fame induction."
A two-time First Team All-American, Thomas earned the honor from the Pittsburgh Courier in 1972 and 1973 and from the Black Mutual Sports Network in 1973. The only offensive lineman to ever win SWAC Offensive Player of the Year honors, he put together such an impressive 1973 season that he beat out legendary College Football Hall of Fame running back
Walter Payton (Jackson State) for the award.
That season, Thomas was a First Team All-SWAC selection and received Alcorn State's outstanding offensive lineman award. He also blocked for freshman running back
Augusta Lee, who would go on to become the school's all-time leading rusher (currently ranks second).
Thomas lettered three seasons and started two years at center for Hall of Fame Coach
Marino Casem. In 1970, he was redshirted on the Braves' SWAC championship team. In 1973, Thomas was named to the "Who's Who in America Colleges and Universities," and he was a member of the dean's list all four years of college. In 1974, the state of Mississippi declared April 15 as Dennis and Johnny Thomas Day.
Following his collegiate career at Alcorn State, Thomas joined the Braves' coaching staff, and he helped Casem's teams win SWAC football championships in 1976, 1979 and 1984. He then served as the head football coach at South Carolina State from 1986-88. After earning his bachelor's degree from Alcorn State, Thomas later earned his master's from the University of Louisiana at Monroe and his doctorate from the State University of New York at Buffalo.
From 1990-2002, he served as the athletics director at Hampton University, where he oversaw the school's transition from NCAA Division II to the Division I level. In 2002, Thomas was named NACDA's Athletics Director of the Year for the Southeast Region.
Thomas served as the commissioner of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference from 2002 until his retirement in December 2021. As MEAC commissioner, he negotiated a multi-million dollar TV contract with ESPN and was instrumental in the creation of the Celebration Bowl, the annual game between the MEAC and SWAC champions.
A 2020 Black College Football Hall of Fame inductee, Thomas also serves on the NFF Board of Directors.
Thomas becomes the second Braves player in the College Football Hall of Fame, joining
Steve McNair (1991-94). Former Alcorn State head coach
Marino Casem, who led the Braves from 1964-85, is also in the Hall.
The 2022 College Football Hall of Fame Class includes
LaVar Arrington (Penn State),
Champ Bailey (Georgia),
Michael Crabtree (Texas Tech),
Sylvester Croom (Alabama),
Mike Doss (Ohio State),
Chuck Ealey (Toledo),
Kevin Faulk (LSU),
Moe Gardner (Illinois),
Boomer Grigsby (Illinois State),
Mike Hass (Oregon State),
Marvin Jones (Florida State),
Andrew Luck (Stanford),
Mark Messner (Michigan),
Terry Miller (Oklahoma State),
Rashaan Salaam (Colorado),
Dennis Thomas (Alcorn State),
Zach Wiegert (Nebraska),
Roy Williams (Oklahoma) and coaches
John Luckhardt (Washington & Jefferson [PA], California [PA]),
Billy Jack Murphy (Memphis) and
Gary Pinkel (Toledo, Missouri).
The accomplishments of the 2022 Class will be forever immortalized at the Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta, and each inductee will receive a custom ring created by Jostens, the official and exclusive supplier of NFF rings.
Including the 2022 Hall of Fame Class, only 1,056 players and 226 coaches have been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame from the nearly 5.62 million who have played or coached the game during the past 153 years. In other words, less than two one-hundredths of a percent (.02%) of the individuals who have played the game have earned this distinction.
Currently Scheduled NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salutes,
Presented by Fidelity Investments
(Chronological Order)
Date – Honoree – School (Opponent)
- Sept. 24 – Rashaan Salaam* – Colorado (vs. UCLA)
- Sept. 24 – Dennis Thomas – Alcorn State (vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff)
- Oct. 1 – Boomer Grigsby – Illinois State (vs. Southern Illinois)
- Oct. 1 – Coach Gary Pinkel – Missouri (vs. Georgia)
- Oct. 8 – Coach John Luckhardt – California [PA] (vs. Indiana [PA])
- Oct. 15 – Mike Hass – Oregon State (vs. Washington State)
- Oct. 15 – Coach John Luckhardt - Washington & Jefferson [PA] (vs. Carnegie Mellon [PA])
- Oct. 22 – Sylvester Croom – Alabama (vs. Mississippi State)
- Oct. 22 – Mike Doss – Ohio State (vs. Iowa)
- Oct. 22 – Kevin Faulk – LSU (vs. Mississippi)
- Oct. 29 – LaVar Arrington – Penn State (vs. Ohio State)
- Oct. 29 – Mark Messner – Michigan (vs. Michigan State)
- Nov. 5 – Champ Bailey – Georgia (vs. Tennessee)
- Nov. 5 – Coach Billy Jack Murphy* – Memphis (vs. UCF)
- Nov. 5 – Roy Williams – Oklahoma (vs. Baylor)
- TBD – Michael Crabtree – Texas Tech
- TBD – Moe Gardner – Illinois
- TBD – Marvin Jones – Florida State
* Deceased
Fidelity Investments has served as the national presenting sponsor of the NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salutes since 2010. The salutes are one component of a multi-year initiative between the two organizations to celebrate the scholar-athlete ideal and a joint commitment to higher education. Fidelity is also the presenting sponsor of the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards, and it helped launch the NFF Faculty Salutes in 2011, which recognize the contributions of the faculty athletics representatives around the country.
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About The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame
Founded in 1947 with early leadership from General Douglas MacArthur, legendary Army coach Earl "Red" Blaik and immortal journalist Grantland Rice, The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame is a non-profit educational organization that runs programs designed to use the power of amateur football in developing scholarship, citizenship and athletic achievement in young people. With 120 chapters in 47 states, NFF programs include the selection and induction of members of the College Football Hall of Fame; the Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta; Future For Football; The William V. Campbell Trophy®; the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class Presented by Fidelity Investments; the NFF National High School Academic Excellence Award; and a series of initiatives to honor the legends of the past and inspire the leaders of the future. NFF corporate partners include Catapult, Delta Air Lines, Fidelity Investments, Jostens, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, the New York Athletic Club, the Rose Bowl Legacy Foundation and the Sports Business Journal. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @NFFNetwork and learn more at footballfoundation.org.