IRVING, Texas (Aug. 24, 2018) – Tulane University and The National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame announced today that they will jointly honor 2018 electee Coach Mack Brown with an NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salute, presented by Fidelity Investments. The Salute will take place Thursday, Aug. 30, during the Green Wave's game against Wake Forest. Coverage of the game will start at 7 p.m. CT on CBS Sports Network.
 
"I am very honored and humbled," Brown said during the Jan. 8 announcement of the College Football Hall of Fame Class in Atlanta on ESPN. "It just gives you a chance to thank all the many people who through the 42 years that I coached and helped us win enough games to put my name in this position. Hopefully, they'll all share with that today."
 
The NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salute program, which began with the inaugural College Football Hall of Fame Class in 1951, has become a hallowed tradition, and to this day the singular events remain the first of numerous activities in each inductee's Hall of Fame experience. During the NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salutes, each inductee returns to his alma mater or college where he coached to accept a Hall of Fame plaque that will remain on permanent display at the institution. The events take place on the field during a home game, and many inductees cite the experience as the ultimate capstone to their careers, providing them one more chance to take the field and hear the crowd roar their name.
 
"Coach Brown clearly achieved legendary status based on his win-loss record alone," said NFF President and CEO Steve Hatchell. "But it's what he did as a mentor to his players and assistant coaches and the lives he touched that really sets him apart. We are forever grateful for his contributions to our sport, and we are extremely thrilled to salute him this weekend in New Orleans."
 
Brown led his teams to 22 bowl games during a remarkable 30-year career as a head coach. His 244 career victories are the 10th most by a coach in FBS history.
 
After a successful season as the offensive coordinator at Oklahoma under Hall of Fame coach Barry Switzer, Brown served as the head coach and athletics director at Tulane from 1985-87. He led the Green Wave to a 6-6 record in his final year in 1987 and a trip to the Independence Bowl, its first bowl appearance in seven years. During his final season in New Orleans, his team recorded signature victories against Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Vanderbilt, Virginia Tech and Iowa State.
 
Brown began his successful head-coaching career with a one-year stint at Appalachian State in 1983, leading the Mountaineers to a 6-5 record.
 
After leaving Tulane, Brown spent 10 seasons as the head coach at North Carolina from 1988-97, where he won 69 games – tied for the second most victories in school history. Brown's Tar Heels would post winning records in his final eight seasons and go to bowl games every year beginning in 1992, including a win in the 1993 Peach Bowl, the program's first bowl appearance since 1986. The 1996 ACC Coach of the Year led North Carolina to three 10-win seasons, and the team finished in the top 25 four times, including a No. 10 ranking in 1996 and the No. 4 spot in 1997.
 
It was at Texas from 1998-2013 where Brown would see his greatest success. Boasting the highest winning percentage (76.7%) in school history among coaches with at least 10 years at the helm, his 158 career wins are second only to Hall of Fame coach Darrell Royal in Longhorn history. During the 2005 season, Brown guided Texas to its first national championship in 35 years after defeating Southern California at the Rose Bowl in one of the greatest games in college football history.
 
The 2009 Big 12 Coach of the Year won two conference titles (2005, 2009), four Big 12 South Division titles and led the Longhorns to another appearance in the BCS National Championship following the 2009 season. A two-time National Coach of the Year at Texas, Brown won more than 10 games in nine consecutive seasons, and his teams posted 13 top 25 finishes, including seven in the top 10. He posted a Big 12 record 21 consecutive conference wins from 2004-06, and he led the Longhorns to bowl games in all but one season, winning 10.
 
Over his entire career, Brown coached 37 First Team All-Americans, six Academic All-Americans, 110 first team all-conference selections and 11 conference Players of the Year. He also coached two College Football Hall of Famers in Dre Bly (North Carolina) and Heisman Trophy winner Ricky Williams (Texas), and four NFF National Scholar-Athletes, including Campbell Trophy^® winners Sam Acho and Dallas Griffin at Texas. Brown posted 20 consecutive winning seasons from 1990-2009, and his 225 wins from 1990-2013 were the most among FBS coaches during that span. 
 
A native of Cookeville, Tenn., Brown played running back at Vanderbilt and Florida State. Before his first head coaching job at Appalachian State, he served as an assistant coach at Florida State, Southern Miss, Memphis, Iowa State and LSU. A member of the Texas Longhorns Hall of Honor, Brown is also enshrined in the Rose Bowl, State of Texas Sports, State of Tennessee Sports and Holiday Bowl halls of fame. He currently serves as a college football studio and game analyst at ESPN and as a special assistant at Texas.
 
Brown becomes the third Tulane coach to be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame, joining Bernie Bierman (1927-31) and Clark Shaughnessy (1915-20, 1922-26).
 
Five former Green Wave players are also in the Hall: Bill Banker (1927-29), Gerald Dalrymple (1929-31), Lester Lautenschlaeger (1922-25), Eddie Price (1946-49) and Monk Simons (1932-34).
 
Including the 2018 class, only 997 players and 217 coaches have been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame from the nearly 5.33 million people who have played or coached the game over the past 149 years. In other words, less than two one-hundredths of a percent (.02%) of those who have set foot on the gridiron have earned the distinction.
 
The 2018 College Football Hall of Fame Class will be officially inducted during the 61st NFF Annual Awards Dinner at the New York Hilton Midtown on Tuesday, Dec. 4. This year's College Football Hall of Fame Class includes: Trevor Cobb (Rice), Kerry Collins (Penn State), Dave Dickenson (Montana), Dana Howard (Illinois), Calvin Johnson (Georgia Tech), Paul Palmer (Temple), Ed Reed (Miami [Fla.]), Matt Stinchcomb (Georgia), Aaron Taylor (Nebraska), Charles Woodson (Michigan) and coaches Frank Beamer (Murray State, Virginia Tech), Mack Brown (Appalachian State, Tulane, North Carolina, Texas) and Mel Tjeerdsma (Austin College [Texas], Northwest Missouri State). For more information on the Dinner, please contact Will Rudd at wrudd@footballfoundation.com or by calling 972.556.1000.
 
The 2018 Class will also be forever immortalized at the Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta.
 

Remaining Scheduled 2018 NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salutes
Presented by Fidelity Investments

 

DATE	INDUCTEE	SCHOOL (YEARS PLAYED/COACHED)	OPPOSING TEAM
Aug. 30	Coach Mack Brown	Tulane (1985-87)	Wake Forest
Sept. 1	Trevor Cobb	Rice (1989-92)	Houston
Sept. 1	Dana Howard	Illinois (1991-94)	Kent State
Sept. 1	Paul Palmer	Temple (1983-86)	Villanova
Sept. 15	Coach Mel Tjeerdsma	Northwest Missouri State (1994-2010)	Missouri Southern
Sept. 22	Dave Dickenson	Montana (1992-95)	Sacramento State
Sept. 22	Coach Mel Tjeerdsma	Austin College [Texas] (1984-93)	Hendrix [Ark.]
Sept. 29	Kerry Collins	Penn State (1991-94)	Ohio State
Oct. 6	Coach Frank Beamer	Virginia Tech (1987-2015)	Notre Dame
Oct. 6	Ed Reed	Miami [Fla.] (1998-2001)	Florida State
Oct. 13	Coach Frank Beamer	Murray State (1981-86)	Tennessee State
Oct. 20	Aaron Taylor	Nebraska (1994-97)	Minnesota
Nov. 10	Calvin Johnson	Georgia Tech (2004-06)	Miami [Fla.]
Nov. 10	Matt Stinchcomb	Georgia (1995-98)	Auburn