3 former Chiefs players selected for College Football Hall of Fame’s 2023 class
The Kansas City Chiefs will be well-represented when the 2023 College Football Hall of Fame Class is officially inducted during the 65th National Football Foundation (NFF) Annual Awards Dinner next December.
The NFF officially announced the 18 players and four coaches set to be enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame in 2023. The group includes a trio of former Chiefs players, who all played with the team during the beginning of Andy Reid’s tenure as head coach.
“We are extremely proud to announce the 2023 College Football Hall of Fame Class,” NFF Chairman Archie Manning said, via press release. “Each of these men has established himself among the absolute best to have ever played or coached the game, and we look forward to immortalizing their incredible accomplishments.”
During their collegiate careers, this trio of former Chiefs players earned three unanimous First-Team All-American selections, two consensus First-Team All-American honors, three multi-year All-American selections, and two conference player of the year selections. All three players still hold records at their colleges to this day. Each player was made a first-round draft pick in the NFL, but only two were selected in the draft by Kansas City.
Without further ado, here are the latest Chiefs players heading into the College Football Hall of Fame:
S Eric Berry
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The No. 5 overall pick in the 2010 NFL draft out of the University of Tennessee, Berry is a revered Chiefs defender who saw his NFL career cut short by injury and ailments. He played in 89 regular-season games, amassing 440 total tackles, 5.5 sacks, 14 interceptions, 51 passes defended, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and five defensive touchdowns. He earned the NFL’s Comeback Player of the Year Award in 2015 after battling Hodgkin’s lymphoma the year prior. With the Volunteers, his football prowess was unrivaled earning SEC Defensive Player of the Year honors, two-time Jack Tatum trophy winner and a one-time winner of the Jim Thorpe Award.
LB Derrick Johnson
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A former first-round draft pick at No. 15 overall out of Texas in 2005, Johnson is one of the best linebackers in franchise history. He spent 13 seasons in Kansas City and is the franchise’s all-time tackle leader with 1,154 total tackles. Johnson was a first-ballot selection for the College Football Hall of Fame. He was inducted into the University of Texas Hall of Fame back in 2019. In 2004 with the Longhorns, Johnson was named the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year and took home both the Bronko Nagurski Trophy and the Dick Butkus Award.
WR Jeremy Maclin
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A former first-round draft pick out of Mizzou in 2009 by the Philadelphia Eagles, Maclin eventually followed Andy Reid to Kansas City. The Kirkwood, Missouri native played two seasons with the Chiefs in 2015 and 2016. He helped hold down the offense during the Alex Smith days, recording over 1,500 yards and 10 touchdowns in his two seasons with the team. At the University of Missouri, Maclin was a Big-12 Freshman of the Year in 2007 and twice named a consensus All-American.
