Multiple football greats with ties to the state of Oregon are on the ballot for the 2026 College Football Hall of Fame class.
The National Football Foundation released the ballot Monday for the class that will be announced in January. It includes 79 players and nine coaches from the Football Bowl Subdivision and 100 players and 35 coaches from lower levels.
The ballot includes former Grant High School standout and AP National Player of the Year Ndamukong Suh. Suh was a force for Nebraska in 2009 and became the first defensive lineman in 15 seasons to be named a finalist for the Heisman Trophy. He finished fourth in voting but was honored as the nation’s top player by The Associated Press.
Former Oregon running backs Kenjon Barner and Jonathan Stewart also made the ballot.
Barner’s senior season in 2012 saw him earn consensus first team All-American honors and become a Doak Walker Award finalist. He had 1,767 rushing yards and 21 touchdowns, with 20 receptions for 256 yards and two receiving scores. He holds the Ducks’ record for rushing yards in a single game and is the third all-time in program history for rushing touchdowns (41) and career all-purpose yards (5,848).
Jonathan Stewart set Oregon’s single-season rushing record with 1,722 yards while earning first team All-American and Sun Bowl MVP honors in 2007. He also established the all-time standard for single-season all-purpose yards with 2,481. He finished his collegiate career as the second-leading rusher in program history with 2,891 yards.
Among the coaches on the ballot is former Linfield coach Paul Durham. Durham won seven conference championships from 1948-67. While coaching, Durham also acted as Linfield’s athletic director. He was named the 1962 NAIA Coach of the Year and is a member of the Oregon Sports, Helms Athletic and NAIA Football Coaches halls of fame.
Other coaches featured on the ballot include Larry Coker, Gary Patterson and Chris Petersen. Other players include Oklahoma’s Josh Heupel, Ohio State’s James Laurinaitis, Washington State’s Ryan Leaf, California’s Marshawn Lynch, Illinois’ Simeon Rice and Florida State’s Peter Warrick, along with Heisman Trophy winners Mark Ingram, Cam Newton and Robert Griffin III.
The NFF also announced an adjustment to the eligibility criteria for coaches to be considered for induction. The minimum career winning percentage required for coaching eligibility will go from .600 to .595 beginning in 2027.
The change would make Mike Leach eligible. Leach, who died in 2022, had a .596 winning percentage with a 158-107 record over 21 seasons at Texas Tech, Washington State and Mississippi State.
Leach was known for his innovative wide-open offenses and his knack for pulling upsets. He won 18 games against Top 25 opponents when his team was unranked.
— Staff and wire reports
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