Eight players who would go on to become Pittsburgh Steelers made the initial 2026 College Football Hall of Fame ballot. The National Football Foundation released the initial list Monday with more than a half-dozen ex-Steelers populating it: OT Flozell Adams, WR Troy Edwards, OG Alan Faneca, NT Casey Hampton, WR Antwaan Randle El, DB Donnell Woolford, OL Ted Petersen, RB Rich Erenberg.
Adams spent his final NFL season with the Steelers, making the Super Bowl before falling to the Green Bay Packers. Flipping from left to right tackle, Adams started all 16 games that year, capping off an Ironman career in which he only missed time in one of his 13 NFL seasons. Before playing professionally, Adams played his college ball at Michigan State and was named All-American in 1997.
Edwards was a star receiver at Louisiana Tech and still holds the FBS single-game record for receiving yards, posting 405 against Nebraska in 1999. He finished his career with 280 receptions for 4,352 yards and 50 touchdowns, including 27 receiving and 30 total in his final season. He led college football in receptions and yards in 1997 and 1998 and touchdowns in 1998. A first-round pick of the Steelers in 1999, Edwards’ admitted immaturity prevented him from excelling in the NFL and he spent three years with the Steelers before bouncing around multiple teams for the rest of his career.
Faneca was the Steelers’ first-round pick the year before, a top lineman out of LSU. A star in college and the NFL, Faneca started 153 games over 10 years with Pittsburgh before spending three more spread across the New York Jets and Arizona Cardinals. A nine-time Pro Bowler and six-time All-Pro, Faneca is already inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. In college, he was a two-time All-SEC Selection and won the Outland Trophy in 1997 as college football’s best offensive lineman.
A few years later, Pittsburgh made Hampton the team’s first-round selection of 2001. A burly nose tackle from Texas, Hampton manned the middle of the Steelers’ defense in their 2005 and 2008 Super Bowl wins. His impact wasn’t felt in individual production but in the plays those around him made thanks to Hampton occupying two blockers. A three-time All-Conference selection, he was named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year in 2000.
Before he was a receiver in the NFL, Randle El was a star quarterback at Indiana. Totaling 87 career touchdowns (44 rushing, 42 passing, 1 receiving), he was a Heisman finalist in 2001. Per the NFF press release, he became the first player in FBS history to pass for 6,000 yards and rush for 3,000 more. Drafted in the second round of the 2002 draft, Randle El converted to receiver and spent nine years in the NFL, five of which came in Pittsburgh. He threw a touchdown pass to WR Hines Ward in Super XL to help beat the Seattle Seahawks.
Woolford played defensive back for the Steelers during his NFL season in 1997. Following a long career with the Chicago Bears, he picked off four passes with Pittsburgh, tying safety Darren Perry for the team lead. A Pro Bowler in 1993, he intercepted 36 career passes. In college at Clemson, he was a two-time All-American with 44 pass breakups and two punt return touchdowns.
Petersen was an All-American at Eastern Illinois in the mid-1970s. Drafted by Pittsburgh in the fourth round of 1977, he appeared in 85 games with 30 starts for the Steelers playing tackle and guard.
Finally, Erenberg was selected by the Steelers in the ninth round of the 1984 NFL Draft. He carried the ball 174 times for 642 yards and three touchdowns over that span, including 405 his rookie season. In college at Colgate, he broke a dozen FCS records.
The Class of 2026 will be announced early next year and inducted December 2026 in Las Vegas.
