Two former Alabama stars included on Hall of Fame ballot

Former Alabama stars Chris Samuels and Antonio Langham are on the 2023 ballot to be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame, it was announced Monday. The voting results will be announced in early 2023 and the class is set to officially be inducted during the 65th National Football Foundation Annual Awards Dinner on Dec. 5, 2023.

Samuels is a native of Mobile, Alabama who played offensive tackle for the Crimson Tide from 1996-99. He did not allow a single sack during his senior season, in which he was also a unanimous first team All-America selection and winner of the Outland Trophy, awarded annually to college football’s best interior lineman. That performance led Washington to select him third overall in the 2000 NFL draft, and he played in the league until 2009.

Langham was a member of Alabama’s 1992 national championship team and played cornerback for the Tide from 1990-93. He finished as the school’s career leader with 19 interceptions, a record that he still holds to this day. He was also a first team All-American in 1993 and went on to enjoy seven-year NFL career.

Other notable names on the ballot include former Oklahoma quarterback and current Tennessee coach Josh Heupel, former Florida quarterback Tim Tebow and former Miami linebacker Ray Lewis. You can view the full list of candidates — which features plenty of other stars — via NFF’s website.

Ballots were emailed Monday to more than 12,000 NFF members as well as current Hall of Fame members. If you would like to become a member and receive a vote, you can do so here. Voting will officially conclude on June 30.

“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 Ole Miss. “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.”

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.

Alabama will hope to add both Langham and Samuels to that Hall of Fame group next year.