WATCH: Joe Haden reflects on career, UF Athletic Hall of Fame induction

On3 imageby:Zach Abolverdi•10/07/22•

ZachAbolverdi

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Fresh off his retirement from the NFL, Gator Great Joe Haden was inducted Friday into the UF Athletic Hall of Fame.

Haden starred in his three seasons at Florida, becoming the first true freshman cornerback to start on opening day in school history in 2007. He won the national championship with the Gators in 2008 and was a unanimous first-team All-American as a junior.

Haden, 33, was selected No. 7 overall in the 2010 NFL Draft and had a 12-year career with the Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers, earning Pro Bowl honors twice (2013-14) and tallying at least three interceptions in a season five times.

Haden earned several accolades during his college and pro career, but the Hall of Fame honor from UF stands out.

“This one means the most, honestly. This is where I grew up,” Haden said Friday night prior to his induction ceremony. “This is where I came — me, Major Wright, Chris Rainey and all of the boys — with a dream. No money, no nothing. Just out here trying to be the best that we could be, trying to win national championships and trying to make it pro. Trying to live our dreams out.

“So being able to go here with all of the history, everybody that’s been playing since I’ve been here and being able to make it to the Hall of Fame is something that I am very humbled about. And I’m so happy I can have my kids come here and see it. I’m so grateful. It feels like home.”

Haden finished his three years at UF with 218 total tackles, 157 solo, 34 pass breakups, eight interceptions and 3.5 sacks, forgoing his senior season to turn pro.

“It was an amazing time to be a Gator. I don’t think we knew when we were here what we had going on,” he said. “Coming in with the draft classes and just everybody being so competitive and wanting to be the best. It’s something that me in the NFL, I played on an NFL team in college because everybody was just grinding and so good. Guarding Percy [Harvin] got me to be able to play against AJ [Green] and all of those dudes in the league. So just the competitive nature of the coaching staff, Urban Meyer, Dan Mullen and Charlie Strong, you were just surrounded by greatness. You had no choice but to be good.”

Check out more below in the video interview with Haden, who also discussed the highlight of his Florida career.

Joe Haden one of 2022 nine inductees

Haden was one of nine 2022 inductees into the UF Athletic Hall of Fame.

His class also included college teammate Jeff Demps (Men’s Track & Field & Football), Conor Dwyer (Men’s Swimming), Michelle Moultrie (Softball), Chandler Parsons (Men’s Basketball), Christian Taylor (Men’s Track & Field) and Mike Zunino (Baseball). Additionally, Steve Beeland (Men’s & Women’s Tennis) was inducted to the Hall of Fame as a Distinguished Letterwinner, while former athletics director Jeremy Foley entered as an Honorary Letterwinner.

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