Mike Doss Set for Oct. 22 NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salute
10/19/2022 12:29:28 PM | Football
IRVING, Texas (Oct. 19, 2022) – Ohio State University and The National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame announced today that they will jointly honor 2022 College Football Hall of Fame electee Mike Doss with an NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salute. The Salute will take place this Saturday, Oct. 22, during the Buckeyes’ home football game against Iowa. The game will kick off at Noon ET on FOX.
“Blessed!” Doss tweeted after the announcement in January. “Thank you to all my coaches and teammates at The DBU!!! Can’t wait to celebrate this honor and our 2002 National Championship!”
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 the Hall of Fame experience.
During the NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salutes, each electee returns to his respective school to accept a Hall of Fame plaque that will stay on permanent display at the institution. The events take place on the field during a home game, and many Hall of Famers cite the experience as the ultimate capstone to their careers, providing them one more chance to take the field and be recognized in front of their home crowd.
The 2022 College Football Hall of Fame Class will be officially inducted during the 64th NFF Annual Awards Dinner Presented by Las Vegas on Dec. 6 at Bellagio Resort & Casino in Las Vegas. Click here for more information on the Awards Dinner, including options to purchase tickets online, special travel rates to the event from Delta Air Lines and Bellagio and a concierge service provided by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.
“Mike Doss was one of just eight three-time All-Americans in Ohio State history, and he capped his remarkable career by leading the Buckeyes to a national championship,” said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. “We are thrilled to honor him at ‘The Shoe’ for his upcoming College Football Hall of Fame induction.”
A First Team All-American during his last three seasons at Ohio State, Doss earned unanimous honors following his stellar senior campaign in 2002 in which he recorded a personal best 107 tackles.
That season, the team captain and Thorpe Award finalist led the Buckeyes to a perfect 14-0 record, the Big Ten title, the No. 1 final ranking and the BCS National Championship following a victory over Miami (FL) in the Fiesta Bowl.
Doss was named the Defensive MVP of that 31-24 double-overtime victory after recording nine tackles and a 35-yard interception return that led to Ohio State’s first touchdown of the game on its ensuing possession. The 2002 season was the Buckeyes’ first 14-0 season in school history and their first undefeated season since 1973.
The 2002 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, Doss was a three-time First Team All-Big Ten selection. Boasting the most career tackles by a defensive back in school history (331), he led Ohio State in tackles as a sophomore and junior. His 228 career solo tackles are the fifth most in Buckeyes history.
A 2011 Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame inductee, Doss played for College Football Hall of Fame Coaches John Cooper and Jim Tressel.
A second-round pick by the Indianapolis Colts in the 2003 NFL Draft, Doss played six seasons for the Colts (2003-06), Minnesota Vikings (2007) and Cincinnati Bengals (2008). He won Super Bowl XLI as a member of the Colts.
In 2005, he founded the Michael A. Doss Foundation, which focuses on education and social welfare. He has also hosted “Make a Difference” youth camps. In 2019, Doss earned a master’s in business operational excellence from Ohio State, and he is now a licensed real estate agent for the Robert Weiler Company in Columbus, Ohio.
Doss becomes the 27th Buckeye player in the College Football Hall of Fame, joining Warren Amling (1944-46), Keith Byars (1982-85), Howard “Hopalong” Cassady (1952-55), Tom Cousineau (1975-78), Jim Daniell (1939-41), Bob Ferguson (1959-61), Wes Fesler (1928-30), Eddie George (1992-95), Randy Gradishar (1971-73), Archie Griffin (1972-75), Chic Harley (1916-17, 1919), John Hicks (1970, 1972-73), Les Horvath (1940-42, 1944), Jim Houston (1957-59), Vic Janowicz (1949-51), Gomer Jones (1933-35), Rex Kern (1968-70), Orlando Pace (1994-96), Jim Parker (1954-56), Chris Spielman (1984-87), Jim Stillwagon (1968-70), Gaylord Stinchcomb (1917, 1919-20), Jack Tatum (1968-70), Aurealius Thomas (1955-57), Bill Willis (1942-44) and Gust Zarnas (1935-37).
Seven former Ohio State coaches are also in the Hall: Earle Bruce (1979-87), John Cooper (1988-2000), Woody Hayes (1951-78), Howard Jones (1910), Francis Schmidt (1934-40), Jim Tressel (2001-10) and John Wilce (1913-28).
The 2022 College Football Hall of Fame Class includes LaVar Arrington (Penn State), Champ Bailey (Georgia), Michael Crabtree (Texas Tech), Sylvester Croom (Alabama), Mike Doss (Ohio State), Chuck Ealey (Toledo), Kevin Faulk (LSU), Moe Gardner (Illinois), Boomer Grigsby (Illinois State), Mike Hass (Oregon State), Marvin Jones (Florida State), Andrew Luck (Stanford), Mark Messner (Michigan), Terry Miller (Oklahoma State), Rashaan Salaam (Colorado), Dennis Thomas (Alcorn State), Zach Wiegert (Nebraska), Roy Williams (Oklahoma) and coaches John Luckhardt (Washington & Jefferson [PA], California [PA]), Billy Jack Murphy (Memphis) and Gary Pinkel (Toledo, Missouri).
The accomplishments of the 2022 Class will be forever immortalized at the Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta, and each inductee will receive a custom ring created by Jostens, the official and exclusive supplier of NFF rings.
Including the 2022 Hall of Fame Class, only 1,056 players and 226 coaches have been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame from the nearly 5.62 million who have played or coached the game during the past 153 years. In other words, less than two one-hundredths of a percent (.02%) of the individuals who have played the game have earned this distinction.
