IRVING, Texas (Sept. 27, 2018) – Penn State and The National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame announced today that they will jointly honor 2018 electee Kerry Collins with an NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salute, presented by Fidelity Investments. The Salute will take place this Saturday, Sept. 29, during the Nittany Lions' game against Ohio State. Coverage of the game will start at 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC.
 
"I am extremely honored to be included in the College Football Hall of Fame Class of 2018," Collins said in a Penn State release in January. "I was surrounded by great players and coaches during my time at Penn State, and was fortunate to have been part of an unbelievably talented undefeated 1994 Big Ten Championship team. My years at Penn State were special, and I am eternally grateful for the support and guidance I received there as a student-athlete. I would like to congratulate the other members of this year's class, and to also thank the National Football Foundation for the privilege of joining the long list of Nittany Lions previously inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame."
 
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.
 
"Kerry Collins was the leader of one of the most prolific offenses college football has ever seen," said NFF President and CEO Steve Hatchell. "He will always be remembered as one of the greatest quarterbacks in Penn State history, and we are thrilled to honor him in Happy Valley."
 
The recipient of the 1994 Maxwell and Davey O'Brien awards, Collins also finished fourth in the Heisman voting following his stellar senior campaign. That season, he earned consensus First Team All-America honors while leading Penn State to a perfect 12-0 record, its first-ever Big Ten title and the No. 2 final ranking.
 
The 1994 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year and Big Ten Silver Football Award recipient under College Football Hall of Fame coach Joe Paterno, Collins broke nine single-season school records that year and guided the Nittany Lions to a win over Oregon in the 1995 Rose Bowl.
 
Collins led the nation in passing efficiency in 1994 with a 172.9 rating, the fourth-highest all-time in a single season, while quarterbacking a prolific offense that led the nation in scoring and total offense. The 1994 First Team All-Big Ten selection led the conference in passing, passing efficiency and total offense while the Nittany Lions offensive unit broke seven conference records.
 
Overall, Collins quarterbacked Penn State to a 40-9 record and four straight bowl games during his time in Happy Valley, including an upset over No. 6 Tennessee in the 1994 Citrus Bowl that vaulted the Nittany Lions to a top 10 finish following the 1993 season. The 1994 team MVP and captain still holds the single-season school records for completion percentage (66.7) and pass efficiency (172.9). The 1994 Chevrolet Offensive Player of the Year and UPI Back of the Year, Collins finished his career with 5,304 passing yards and 39 touchdowns, and both marks remain in the top 10 in school annals. 
 
Collins was the fifth overall pick in the 1995 NFL Draft by the Carolina Panthers, becoming the team's first-ever draft pick. The two-time Pro Bowl selection played 17 years in the NFL with the Panthers, New Orleans Saints, New York Giants, Oakland Raiders, Tennessee Titans and Indianapolis Colts. In 2000, Collins led the Giants to the NFC championship and a berth in Super Bowl XXXV. The Lebanon, Pa., native ranks in the top 20 in NFL history in both career passing yards and completions.
 
Collins has continuously given back to the community, donating more than $2 million to charities through the Kerry Collins Foundation. Ever loyal to his alma mater, Collins donated $250,000 to permanently endow Penn State's quarterback position. Since his retirement from the NFL, Collins has owned a ranch in North Carolina and has added a few songwriting credits.
 
Collins becomes the 18th Nittany Lion player to be inducted, joining John Cappelletti (1971-73), Shane Conlan (1983-86), Keith Dorney (1975-78), Jack Ham (1968-70), Glenn Killinger (1918-21), Ted Kwalick (1966-68), Richie Lucas (1957-59), Pete Mauthe (1909-12), Shorty Miller (1910-13), Lydell Mitchell (1969-71), Dennis Onkotz (1967-69), Mike Reid (1966, 1968-69), Glenn Ressler (1962-64), Dave Robinson (1960-62), Steve Suhey (1942, 1946-47), Dexter Very (1909-12) and Curt Warner (1979-82).
 
Five former Penn State coaches are also in the Hall: Hugo Bezdek (1918-29), Rip Engle (1950-65), Dick Harlow (1915-17), Bob Higgins (1930-48) and Joe Paterno (1966-2011).
 
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. Click here for a complete list of players and coaches in the Hall.
 
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
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

 
The 2018 season marks the ninth season that Fidelity Investments, a leading provider of workplace savings plans in higher education, is serving as the national presenting sponsor of the NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salutes. The salutes are one component of a multi-year initiative between the two organizations to celebrate the scholar-athlete ideal and a joint commitment to higher education.
 
Fidelity is a proud partner of The William V. Campbell Trophy^®, college football's premier scholar-athlete award, and the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards. Fidelity also helped launch the NFF Faculty Salutes in 2011, which recognizes the contributions of the faculty athletics representatives around the country.
 
 
About Fidelity Investments
Fidelity's mission is to inspire better futures and deliver better outcomes for the customers and businesses we serve. With assets under administration of $7.2 trillion, including managed assets of $2.6 trillion as of July 31, 2018, we focus on meeting the unique needs of a diverse set of customers: helping more than 27 million people invest their own life savings, 23,000 businesses manage employee benefit programs, as well as providing more than 12,500 financial advisory firms with investment and technology solutions to invest their own clients' money. Privately held for 70 years, Fidelity employs more than 40,000 associates who are focused on the long-term success of our customers. For more information about Fidelity Investments, visit https://www.fidelity.com/about.
 
About The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame
Founded in 1947 with early leadership from General Douglas MacArthur, legendary Army coach Earl "Red" Blaik and immortal journalist Grantland Rice, The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame is a non-profit educational organization that runs programs designed to use the power of amateur football in developing scholarship, citizenship and athletic achievement in young people. With 120 chapters and 12,000 members nationwide, NFF programs include Football Matters^®, the Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta, The William V. Campbell Trophy^®, annual scholarships of more than $1.3 million and a series of initiatives to honor the legends of the past and inspire the leaders of the future. NFF corporate partners include Delta Air Lines, Fidelity Investments – a proud partner of the Campbell Trophy^®, Herff Jones, New York Athletic Club, the Pasadena Tournament of Roses, the Sports Business Journal, SportsManias, Under Armour and VICIS. Learn more at footballfoundation.org.