(Atlanta, GA) – Eleven individuals have been selected for induction into the Black College Football Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame’s third annual class of inductees will be honored on February 18, 2012 at the Priority Payment Systems Third Annual Enshrinement Ceremony, taking place in conjunction with Black History Month. The event will be held at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis.

The class of 2012 includes nine players, one coach and one contributor. A Selection Committee comprised of prominent journalists and football executives chose the inductees from a field of more than 230 nominees. All living inductees from the previous Hall of Fame classes also submitted their vote on the class of 2012 as well.

The inductees for 2012 are:
Players
Willie Brown (DB, Grambling State University, 1959-1963)
Harry Carson (DE, South Carolina State University, 1972-1975)
Eldridge Dickey (QB, Tennessee State University, 1964-1967)
James “Shack” Harris (QB, Grambling State University, 1965-1968)
Claude Humphrey (DE, Tennessee State University, 1964-1967)
Steve McNair (QB, Alcorn State University, 1991-1994)
Willie Richardson (WR, Jackson State University, 1959-1962)
Johnny Sample (DB/RB, Maryland Eastern Shore, 1954-1958)
Rayfield Wright (OL, Fort Valley State, 1963-1966)

Coach
Cleve Abbot (Head Coach, Tuskegee, 1923-1954)

Contributor
Jackie Graves (NFL Scout, former director of personnel for the Philadelphia Eagles)

The Black College Football Hall of Fame was established in October 2009 to honor the greatest football players and coaches from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). The first two induction classes are listed below.

Class of 2011
Lem Barney (DB, Jackson State University, 1963-1966)
Mel Blount (DB, Southern University, 1966-1970)
Roosevelt Brown (OL, Morgan State University, 1949-1952)
Willie Davis (DL, Grambling State University, 1952-1956)
“Bullet” Bob Hayes (WR/RB/KR, Florida A&M University, 1960-1964)
Joe Kendall (QB, Kentucky State, 1934-1936)
Art Shell (OL, University of Maryland-Eastern Shore, 1964-1967)
Doug Williams (QB, Grambling State University, 1974-1977)
Earl Banks (Head Coach, Morgan State University, 1960-1973)
Willie Jeffries (Head Coach, South Carolina State University, 1973-2001)
Collie J. Nicholson (Sports Information Director, Grambling State University)

Class of 2010
Buck Buchanan (DE, Grambling State University, 1959-1963)
Willie “Gallopin’ Gal” Galimore (RB, Florida A&M University, 1953-1956)
David “Deacon” Jones (DE, S.C. State & Mississippi Valley State, 1958-1960)
Willie “Honey Bear” Lanier (LB, Morgan State University, 1963-1967)
Walter “Sweetness” Payton (RB, Jackson State University, 1971-1974)
Jerry Rice (WR, Mississippi Valley State University, 1981-1984)
Ben “Big Ben” Stevenson (RB, Tuskegee University, 1923-1930)
Paul "Tank" Younger (RB/DB, Grambling State University, 1945-1948)
Alonzo “Jake” Gaither (Head Coach, Florida A&M University, 1945-1969)
Eddie G. Robinson (Head Coach, Grambling State University, 1941-1997)
Bill Nunn, Jr. (Pittsburgh Courier Journalist and NFL Scout)

The Black College Football Hall of Fame is sponsored by The Shack Harris & Doug Williams Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit, tax-exempt organization. For more information, visit www.BlackCollegeFootballHOF.org.