Malcolm Jenkins, Nick Mangold, Rick Middleton earn spots in Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame
COLUMBUS — There will be 14 new inductees to the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame this year, including a trio of former Buckeyes football standouts: defensive back Malcolm Jenkins, center Nick Mangold and tight end/linebacker Rick Middleton.
Here’s Ohio State’s complete Hall of Fame class:
- Maureen Cogan (women’s cross country/track and field)
- Malcolm Jenkins (football)
- Miho Kowase (women’s tennis)
- Yesenia Luces (field hockey)
- Nick Mangold (football)
- Sean Melton (men’s gymnastics)
- Rick Middleton (football)
- Kelsey Mitchell (women’s basketball)
- Steven Moneke (men’s tennis)
- Renee Powell (women’s golf)
- Joe Roberts (men’s basketball)
- Tom Ryan (wrestling coach)
- Taylor Sandbothe (women’s volleyball)
- Nic Szerszen (men’s volleyball)
The class will be inducted into the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame in the Covelli Center on Oct. 6. Then the 14 members will be honored at Ohio Stadium on Oct. 7 when the Buckeyes host Maryland.
The department’s Hall of Fame was created in 1977. Before this year’s class, it included 473 athletes, coaches and administrators, including 132 football letterwinners.
That number is going up with Jenkins, Mangold and Middleton now being recognized. Lettermen Row is recapping each of their accomplishments.
Malcolm Jenkins (2005-08)
Jenkins put an exclamation point on his Ohio State career in 2008 when he took home the Jim Thorpe Award, given annually to the best defensive back in college football. During his four-year Buckeyes career, Jenkins won four Big Ten titles and played in two BCS Championship games. Before launching a 13-year NFL career, which included Super Bowl victories with the New Orleans Saints and Philadelphia Eagles, Jenkins started 45 of his 49 games in scarlet and gray. He amassed 196 total tackles, 18 passes defended, three blocked punts and four forced fumbles at Ohio State.
Nick Mangold (2002-05)
Mangold won a pair of Big Ten championships as well as a national title at Ohio State. He was part of the 2002 Buckeyes team that won the BCS Championship. The following season, he got his shot as Ohio State’s starting center, due to an injury to Alex Stepanovich, and he didn’t give up the job the rest of his time in Columbus. Stepanovich moved over to guard when he returned, and Mangold started a three-year run as the anchor of the Buckeyes’ offensive line. He earned first-team All-American honors in 2005 and wound up being a first-round pick of the New York Jets, with whom he spent his entire 11-year NFL career. Mangold was a seven-time Pro Bowler.
Rick Middleton (1971-73)
Middleton showcased his talent on both sides of the ball for the Buckeyes. First he was Ohio State’s second-leading receiver while playing tight end in 1971. Then, for his final two years with the program, he moved over to linebacker, where he led the team in tackles as a junior with 112. He was also third on the tackling leaderboard the next year with 92 tackles, contributing to a Buckeyes unit that allowed only 64 points in 11 games. In the process, Middleton — an Ohio State captain — was a first-team All-Big Ten selection in 1973. He went on to be the No. 13 overall pick in the 1974 NFL Draft. He spent a combined five years in the league with the New Orleans Saints and then-San Diego Chargers.
