Director John W. Stephenson Jr. Website www.cfbhall.com | Curator Kent Stephens Phone +1 404-880-4800 | |
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Location 250 Marietta St. NW
Atlanta, Georgia 30313 Type College sports hall of fame Address 250 Marietta St NW, Atlanta, GA 30313, USA Hours Closed now Wednesday10AM–5PMThursday10AM–5PMFriday10AM–5PMSaturday9AM–6PMSunday10AM–5PMMonday10AM–5PMTuesday10AM–5PM Similar Pro Football Hall of Fa, World of Coca‑Cola, Centennial Olympic Park, Georgia Aquarium, CNN Center Profiles | ||
The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum devoted to college football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) launched the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players and coaches of college football.
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From 1995 to 2012, the Hall was located in South Bend, Indiana. It was connected to a convention center and situated in the city's renovated downtown district, 2 miles (3.2 km) south of the University of Notre Dame campus.
In August 2014, the College Football Hall of Fame and Chick-fil-A Fan Experience opened in downtown Atlanta, Georgia. The facility is a 94,256 square feet (8,756.7 m2) attraction located in the heart of Atlanta’s sports, entertainment and tourism district, and is adjacent to the Georgia World Congress Center and Centennial Olympic Park.
Early plans and locations
Original plans in 1967 called for the Hall of Fame to be located at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey, the location of the first contest under rules now considered to be those of modern football, between teams from Rutgers and the College of New Jersey, now Princeton University; Rutgers won 6–4. Rutgers donated land near its football stadium, office space, and administrative support. After years of collecting donations for the construction of the building with ground not having been broken and no plans to do so, the New Jersey Attorney General began an investigation of the finances of the Hall of Fame's foundation, the National Football Foundation. In response, the Foundation moved its operations to New York City, where it continued to collect donations for several years.
When the New York Attorney General's office began its own investigation, the foundation moved to Kings Mills, Ohio, where a building finally was constructed adjacent to Kings Island in 1978. The Hall opened with good attendance figures early on, but visitation dwindled dramatically as time went on, and the facility closed in 1992. Nearby Galbraith field remained open as the home of Moeller High School Football until 2003.
A new building was opened in South Bend, Indiana on August 25, 1995. Despite estimates that the South Bend location would attract more than 150,000 visitors a year, the Hall of Fame drew about 115,000 people the first year, and about 80,000 annually after that. It closed in 2012.
Move to Atlanta
In 2009, the National Football Foundation decided to move the College Football Hall of Fame to Atlanta, Georgia. The possibility of moving the museum has been brought up in other cities, including Dallas, which had the financial backing of billionaire T. Boone Pickens. However, the National Football Foundation ultimately decided on Atlanta for the next site. The new $68.5 million museum opened on August 23, 2014. It is located next to Centennial Olympic Park, which is near other attractions such as the Georgia Aquarium, the World of Coca-Cola, CNN Center, and the National Center for Civil and Human Rights. The Hall of Fame is located near the Georgia Institute of Technology of the ACC and roughly 70 miles (110 km) from the University of Georgia of the SEC. The new building broke ground on January 28, 2013. Sections of the architecture are reminiscent of a football in shape.
The facility is 94,256 square feet (8,756.7 m2) and contains approximately 50,000 square feet (4,600 m2) of exhibit and event space, interactive displays and a 45-yard indoor football field. Atlanta Hall Management operates the College Football Hall of Fame.
Inductees
As of 2017, there are 987 players and 214 coaches enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame, representing 306 schools.
Criteria for induction
The National Football Foundation outlines specific criteria that may be used for evaluating a possible candidate for induction into the Hall of Fame.
- A player must have received major first team All-America recognition.
- A player becomes eligible for consideration 10 years after his last year of intercollegiate football played.
- Football achievements are considered first, but the post-football record as a citizen is also weighed.
- Players must have played their last year of intercollegiate football within the last 50 years.
- The nominee must have ended his professional athletic career prior to the time of the nomination.
- Coaches must have at least 10 years of heading coaching experience, coached 100 games, and had at least a .600 winning percentage.
The eligibility criteria have changed over time, and have occasionally led to criticism. Dennis Dodd of CBSSports.com has said,
"The NFF election process is arcane and confusing. Based on current rules, Notre Dame's Joe Montana will never be in the College Football Hall of Fame. He was never an All-American on a team recognized by the NCAA. If that sounds outrageous, consider that at one time hall of famers had to actually graduate." (emphasis in original)