The Nebraska Football Hall of Fame 2022 class was announced on Monday, and this year’s class features a group of six former Huskers and a pair of state college standouts.
Four former Nebraska players were chosen in the class via Hall of Fame membership balloting: Cornerbacks Prince Amukamara (2007-12) and Bruce Pickens (19902) headline the class in addition to defensive back Ric Lindquist (1980s) and offensive guard Toniu Fonoti (2000-06). Offensive tackle Ron McDole (1958-60) and linebacker Lee Kunz (1976-78) were also elected to this year’s group out of the Legends category.
The class also features Darrell Morris, who was the head coach of Nebraska-Kearney from 2000-2014, and Ross Wurdeman, an All-American tight end at Concordia.
Amukamara remains one of the most successful defensive backs in program history after he earned a unanimous All-American nod, the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year and being named a Thorpe Award finalist in 2010. He also earned a pair of of first-team All-Big 12 selections after playing in 49 games (31 starts) while tallying 181 career tackles, 27 pass breakups and five interceptions prior to becoming a first-round NFL Draft pick.
Pickens is also one of the Huskers’ top all-time defensive backs after he earned two All-Big Eight first-team honors, helped them to a Big Eight championship and amassed four interceptions, 13 pass breakups and 84 career tackles prior to becoming the No. 3 overall NFL Draft pick in 1991.
Lindquist was an All-Big Eight honoree as well in 1981, his final season at Nebraska. He was a three-year letterwinner and finished his career with nine interceptions, 11 breakups and nearly 100 tackles.
Fonoti was a first-team All-American and an Outland Trophy finalist in 2001 and helped lead Nebraska’s offense to NCAA rushing titles in two straight seasons (2000, 2001). In his final season (2001) with the Huskers, Fonoti recorded a school-record 379 pancakes and did not allow a sack or receive a penalty prior to a five-year NFL career.
McDole was a three-year letterwinner and was a team captain in 1960. He went on to have an 18-year career in the professional ranks (240 career games) and was a five-time first-team All-AFL honoree.
Kunz led the Huskers in tackles in 1977 and 1978, and one of his career highlights was a second-team All-Big Eight selection in 1978. He still holds the Huskers’ school record with 95 solo tackles in 1977, and he ranks sixth on their all-time list with 276 career tackles.
Morris posted a 101-63 career record in 15 career seasons with Nebraska-Kearney, guiding the program to four Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference championships and four NCAA Division II playoff berths.
Wurdeman has been hailed as arguably the top tight end in Concordia program history, and he held many of the program’s receiving records at the completion of his career. He was a two-time NAIA All-American and was named to the NAIA All-Decade team for the 2000s after he finished with 168 career receptions, 2,458 receiving yards and 24 touchdowns.
In addition to the eight members of this year’s class, the Nebraska Football Hall of Fame will present the Clarence E. Swanson Meritorious Service Award to Marlene Ricketts of Omaha, and the Lyell Bremser Special Merit Award to long-time athletic department employees Dr. Lonnie Albers and Mike Arthur.
The 2022 inductees were chosen by the Nebraska Football Hall of Fame, which is sponsored by the Nebraska Chapter of the National Football Foundation and the College Football Hall of Fame. The 2022 Hall of Fame class will be officially inducted at a Sept. 9 banquet in Lincoln and recognized the following day at the Huskers’ home game against Georgia Southern.
Prior to 2015, players must have been either an All-American or first-team all-conference selection to make the Nebraska Football Hall of Fame ballot. Beginning in 2015, Huskers who earned second-team all-conference honors dating back to the expansion of the Big Eight to the Big 12 (1996) and now the 14-team Big Ten, are eligible. Players are not eligible for the ballot until after a 10-year waiting period from the end of their collegiate careers. Major national award winners earn automatic induction. Active NFL players are not on the ballot.
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