Joining a star-studded cast that included Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk, future first ballot Hall of Famer Peyton Manning and two-time national champion Matt Leinart is none other than former superstar middle linebacker Brian Urlacher.
The CFB Hall of Fame Class of 2017 includes some pretty good players. pic.twitter.com/l9OpgMvB9F
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) January 9, 2017
Peyton Manning, Marshall Faulk and Steve Spurrier also in this year's loaded class. Here's the full list: pic.twitter.com/mogsYuH904
— Adam Hoge (@AdamHoge) January 9, 2017
Urlacher was a shooting star in college football. Few notable prospects had ever come out of the University of New Mexico by the late 1990s. Then word began to filter out about this young man playing on their defense. A physical freak of nature who played safety and linebacker and could do things athletically men 6’4″ and 250 lbs shouldn’t be able to.
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Not only did Urlacher finish his collegiate career with 447 tackles, 11 sacks, 11 forced fumbles and three interceptions. He also spent time on offense on special teams where he collected six touchdown passes and returned five kicks for scores. His versatility was evident every time he stepped on the field.
Even so his small school background caused some teams to hesitate during the 2000 draft, worrying he’d gobbled up weak competition. The Chicago Bears had no such misgivings. They made him the #9 overall pick in the draft. What they got in return was an eight-time Pro Bowler and 2005 NFL Defensive Player of the Year.
Just proof that players who are clearly gifted and insanely productive stand a good chance of having a pretty good professional career.
