Two Mizzou Tigers and handful of former Chiefs on College Football Hall of Fame ballot
A pair of Missouri All-America players and several former Kansas City Chiefs are part of the College Football Hall of Fame ballot for the Class of 2023.
Wide receiver/all-purpose star Jeremy Maclin and defensive lineman Justin Smith are among the 80 players from the FBS division.
Maclin hit the ground running for the Tigers, setting the NCAA record for all-purpose yards in a season by a freshman in 2007, when he amassed 2,776 yards. He also scored 16 touchdowns.
He was named consensus All-America in 2007 and 2008, when led the NCAA in all-purpose yards and set the school record in receptions (102), yards (1,260) and receiving touchdowns (13). Maclin was the offensive MVP in Mizzou’s Alamo Bowl victory over Northwestern.
Maclin spent two of his eight NFL seasons with the Chiefs and had a career best 87 receptions in 2015.
In 1998, Smith became the first Missouri player in more than a decade to start every game as a freshman. He was an All-American in 2000 and finished as the program’s career sack leader with 22 1/2. He’s Mizzou’s career leader in tackles for loss (50).
In 14 NFL seasons, Smith was named to the Pro Bowl five times and was an All-Pro with the San Francisco 49ers in 2011. He finished with 87 career sacks.
Other former Chiefs on the ballot are safety Eric Berry, the former Tennessee star; tight end Tony Gonzalez, who was a standout at California; linebacker Derrick Johnson, who starred at Texas; and quarterback Alex Smith, the first overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft from Utah. Smith led the Chiefs’ offense from 2013-17.
The announcement of the class will be made in early 2023.