BATON ROUGE – Former LSU All-America linebacker Bradie James is one of 80 players from the Football Bowl Subdivision who have been selected to appear on the 2023 ballot for induction into the College Football Hall of Fame, the National Football Foundation announced on Monday.
James, who combined elite athletic ability with outstanding accomplishments in the classroom, holds the LSU single-season record for tackles (154) and ranks No. 2 in school history in career tackles with 418. He was twice named first-team All-SEC and earned first-team All-America honors in 2002.
In 2001, James helped lead LSU to the SEC Championship, the first for the Tigers since the late 1980s.
In addition to his on-field success, James was selected to the prestigious National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete Class in 2002, becoming only the eighth player in LSU history with that distinction. James graduated from LSU in May of 2003 with a degree in sociology.
A fourth-round draft pick of the Dallas Cowboys in 2003, James spent 10 years in the NFL, appearing in 157 games.
LSU currently has 10 players and five coaches in the College Football Hall of Fame. Kevin Faulk will become LSU’s 16th College Football Hall of Famer when he’s inducted in December of this year.
“It’s an enormous honor to just be on the College Football Hall of Fame ballot considering more than 5.54 million people have played college football and only 1,056 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 2023 College Football Hall of Fame Class early next year.”
The 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 Court, which will deliberate and select the class. The Honors Court, chaired by NFF Board Member and College Football Hall of Famer Archie Griffin from Ohio State, includes an elite and geographically diverse pool of athletic administrators, Hall of Famers and members of the media.
“Having a ballot and a voice in the selection of the College Football Hall of Fame inductees is one of the most cherished NFF member benefits,” said NFF Chairman Archie Manning, a 1989 Hall of Fame inductee from Mississippi. “There is no group more knowledgeable or passionate about college football than our membership, and the tradition of the ballot helps us engage them in the lofty responsibility of selecting those who have reached the pinnacle of achievement in our sport.”
The announcement of the 2023 College Football Hall of Fame Class will be made in early 2023, with specific details to be announced in the future.
The 2023 College Football Hall of Fame Class will be officially inducted during the 65th NFF Annual Awards Dinner on Dec. 5, 2023, and permanently immortalized at the Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta. They will also be honored at their respective schools with an NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salute, presented by Fidelity Investments, during the 2023 season.
The criteria for Hall of Fame consideration include:
- First and foremost, a player must have received First-Team All-America recognition by a selector that is recognized by the NCAA and utilized to comprise its consensus All-America teams.
- A player becomes eligible for consideration by the Foundation’s Honors Courts 10 full seasons after his final year of intercollegiate football played.
- 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. Consideration may also be given for academic honors and whether the candidate earned a college degree.
- Players must have played their last year of intercollegiate football within the last 50 years.* For example, to be eligible for the 2023 ballot, the player must have played his last year in 1973 or thereafter. In addition, players who are playing professionally and coaches who are coaching on the professional level are not eligible until after they retire.
- A coach becomes eligible three full seasons after retirement or immediately following retirement provided he is at least 70 years of age. Active coaches become eligible at 75 years of age. He must have been a head football coach for a minimum of 10 years and coached at least 100 games with a .600 winning percentage.
- Nominations may only be submitted by the current athletics director, head coach or sports information director (SID) of a potential candidate’s collegiate institution. Nominations may also be submitted by the president/executive director of a dues-paying chapter of the National Football Foundation.
Once nominated for consideration, all FBS 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 but received significant votes in the final selection, 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. The Honors Court annually reviews the Hall of Fame criteria to ensure a fair and streamlined process.
Of the 5.54 million individuals who have played college football since Princeton first battled Rutgers on Nov. 6, 1869, only 1,056 players have earned induction into the College Football Hall of Fame, or less than two one-hundredths of a percent (.02%)of those who have played the game during the past 152 years. From the coaching ranks, 226 individuals have achieved Hall of Fame distinction.
The 2023 voting deadline is June 30. If you would like to become a member and receive this year’s ballot, please contact NFF Director of Membership Ron Dilatush at rdilatush@footballfoundation.com.
LSU’s College Football Hall of Fame Members
Year Inducted Name (Pos.)
1957 Gaynell “Gus” Tinsley (End)
1963 Ken Kavanaugh Sr. (End)
1967 Abe Mickal (HB)
1971 G.E. “Doc” Fenton (QB)
1995 Tommy Casanova (S)
2008 Billy Cannon (HB)
2010 Jerry Stovall (HB)
2012 Charles Alexander (RB)
2016 Bert Jones (QB)
2020 Glenn Dorsey (DT)
2022 Kevin Faulk (RB)
Coaches
1951 Dana Bible
Mike Donahue
1954 Lawrence “Biff” Jones
Bernie Moore
1986 Charles McClendon
(LSU Athletics Press Release)