Miami Hurricanes linebacker great Dan Morgan elected to College Football Hall of Fame
He never won a national championship, but he helped resurrect a University of Miami football program that would win its fifth title the season after he left.
Miami Hurricanes linebacker great Dan Morgan has been elected to the 2021 class of the College Football Hall of Fame — overseen by the National Football Foundation.
Morgan, 42, who came to UM out of Coral Springs Taravella High, joins an illustrious Miami Hurricanes College Football Hall of Fame player roster that includes Ted Hendricks, Don Bosseler, Arnold Tucker, Bennie Blades, Gino Torretta, Russell Maryland, Vinny Testaverde and Ed Reed.
“Honestly, out of all the players they could choose from, it’s obviously a great honor,’’ Morgan told the Miami Herald by phone on Monday. “I’m getting so many messages now that it’s overwhelming and humbling — just a really cool experience.
“It’s unreal to think about how many great players we had who could easily be in the College Football Hall of Fame. Even guys I loved as a little kid still aren’t in it.’’
Morgan, who arrived at UM in 1997 and played his last season there in 2000, now serves as the director of player personnel for the NFL’s Buffalo Bills.
In 2000, Morgan became the first player in college history to win the Butkus Award (top linebacker), Nagurski Award (defensive player of the year) and Bednarik Award (top defensive player) in the same season. He was coached at UM by Butch Davis.
The 6-3, 230-pound Morgan had 139 tackles his junior season, despite a broken thumb for much of it, and set a Miami record for tackles in a career with 532. He was the 11th overall pick by the Carolina Panthers in the 2001 Draft and played for seven seasons.
During his pro career, Morgan recorded a franchise-record 18 tackles in Super Bowl 38 and was named an All-Pro in 2004.
Morgan was inducted in the UM Sports Hall of Fame in 2011. He is one of a 2021 College Football Hall of Fame class with 11 players and two coaches. The other new inductees are tackle Harris Barton (North Carolina), defensive back David Fulcher (Arizona State), quarterback Carson Palmer (Southern Cal), quarterback Tony Romo (Eastern Illinois), defensive tackle Keith Sims (Texas), running back C.J. Spiller (Clemson), running back Darren Sproles (Kansas State), tackle Aaron Taylor (Notre Dame), defensive end Andre Tippett (Iowa) and linebacker Al Wilson (Tennessee), with Ruby Hubbard (FAMU) and Bob Stoops (Oklahoma) going in as coaches.
The UM coaches in the College Football Hall include Dennis Erickson, Andy Gustafson, Jack Harding and Jimmy Johnson.
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 and 2021 College Hall of Fame classes will be inducted together Dec. 7. An announcement as to the ceremony’s location (normally in New York City) will come this summer.
This story was originally published January 11, 2021 at 11:58 AM.
