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We promise that this is not going to be the University of Texas Hall of Fame, but you have to admit that there were two incredibly gifted players who occupied different places in the Longhorns' backfield over the space of less than a decade: Our first quarterback inductee (Vince Young) and our first running back inductee, 1998 Heisman Trophy winner Ricky Williams.
Williams helped lead the Longhorns to high-profile bowls in three of his four years on campus -- losses in the Sugar after the 1995 season and the Fiesta after the 1996, as well as a Cotton Bowl win after his Heisman campaign -- and was hardly responsible for the disappointing 4-7 season in 1997; he ran for 1,893 yards and 25 touchdowns. Barking Carnival adds a bit of knowledge:
No. 1 All-Time NCAA Total Yardage list (7,206 yards), 2nd All-Time NCAA rushing list (6,279), 2nd All-Time NCAA scoring list, 2nd NCAA All-Time TDs list. 1998 Heisman Trophy Winner. 2 Time Big 12 Offensive POY. 2 Time Doak Walker Award winner. 3 Time First Team All Big 12. 2 Time Consensus All-American. 2 Time NCAA Rushing Champion. Too much random award hardware to list. The most decorated player in Texas history.
There are plenty of running backs with an argument here -- Williams was one of two unanimous choices by our committee and won on a tiebreaker vote -- but if we have to choose a single player for our Hall of Fame backfield, it's Williams.
For more on Horns football, visit Texas blogs Burnt Orange Nation and Barking Carnival, plus SB Nation Dallas.
The SB Nation College Football Hall of Fame is a summer project involving all of the network's excellent college football blogs. Each community nominated five of its own for inclusion, with 10 of those nominees being inducted by our selection committee, which included reps from most FBS conferences. The inaugural class' first 10 will be revealed Monday and Tuesday, while the remaining 10 will be chosen by public vote Wednesday and Thursday.
