Alabama’s Ozzie Newsome Inducted Into SB Nation College Football Hall Of Fame

Tight end is one of the least flashy positions on the football field, and it turned out to be the least-nominated in the SB Nation College Football Hall of Fame. But there were a couple of clear choices -- like Randy Moss, our tight end inductee won on a tiebreaker vote -- and the clearest was Alabama’s Ozzie Newsome.

Newsome helped lead Alabama to three SEC championships during his career and, despite not winning a national title in a decade that saw three such championships go to Tuscaloosa, was named Alabama Player of the Decade for the 1970s. (He was also named the Walter Camp Man of the Year for 2003.)

Newsome played in the SEC of the 1970s, but still caught 102 passes, piling up 2,070 yards and 16 touchdowns. He wasn’t just a blocker for Alabama’s powerful running game. In fact, the 20.3 yards per catch average is No. 2 on the all-time SEC career list for receivers with at least 100 receptions and was a record that stood for more than 20 years.

Tight end might be an odd way for a powerhouse program like Alabama to get on the board -- but sometimes the best programs are great because they’re good even at the least glamorous positions.

For more on Tide football, visit Alabama blog Roll Bama Roll, plus SEC blog Team Speed Kills.

The SB Nation College Football Hall of Fame is a summer project involving all of the network’s excellent college football blogs. Each community nominated five of its own for inclusion, with 10 of those nominees being inducted by our selection committee, which included reps from most FBS conferences. The inaugural class’ first 10 will be revealed Monday and Tuesday, while the remaining 10 will be chosen by public vote Wednesday and Thursday.