IRVING, Texas (Oct. 25, 2022) – Penn State and The National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame announced today that they will jointly honor 2022 College Football Hall of Fame electee LaVar Arrington with an NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salute, presented by Fidelity Investments®. The Salute will take place this Saturday, Oct. 29, during the Nittany Lions' home football game against Ohio State, which will kick off at Noon ET on FOX.
 
"First and foremost, I want to give a sincere thank you to my family because without them, I would have come up short," Arrington said in a Penn State press release. "My parents, brothers and sister instilled in me a mindset that was built so deep and so strong. Next, I want to thank Coach Paterno, my coaches and my teammates. They all played a big part in my development...To my teammates, if it wasn't for some of the greatest players ever to play college football, I would not have been the player I was able to be…
 
"A big thank you to my wife, Trishia, and to my kids, Keeno, Marlee, LaVar, Laila and Penn, who is named after Penn State…I certainly want to send a much deserved thank you to Penn State for supporting me. I also appreciate the support from all the fans. They have always been the greatest fans in the world. The love I feel even to this day is just unmatched."
 
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.
 
"LaVar Arrington was one of the most feared linebackers of the late 1990s, becoming famous for the 'LaVar Leap,'" said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. "We are thrilled to honor him in Happy Valley for his upcoming College Football Hall of Fame induction."
 
The 12th Nittany Lion ever selected as a two-time First Team All-American, Arrington earned unanimous honors in 1999. In 1999, he was the recipient of the Butkus Award as the nation's top linebacker and the Bednarik Award as the country's top defensive player.
 
A finalist for the Nagurski and Lombardi awards, Arrington finished ninth in the 1999 Heisman Trophy voting. A two-time First Team All-Big Ten honoree, Arrington became the first sophomore to ever be named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year when he received the honor in 1998.
 
The 1999 Jack Lambert Award recipient led the Nittany Lions to three bowl games, including wins in the 1999 Outback Bowl and the 1999 Alamo Bowl. Penn State finished with top 20 national rankings all three years of his career, highlighted by a No. 11 finish in 1999.
 
Arrington racked up 173 tackles, 39 tackles for loss, 19 sacks and three interceptions while playing for College Football Hall of Fame coach Joe Paterno. The Big Ten Network named him to its "Mount Rushmore of Penn State Football," and he was elected to the WPIAL Hall of Fame in 2011 for his excellence at North Hills High School in Pittsburgh.
 
The second overall pick in the 2000 NFL Draft by Washington, Arrington played for Washington from 2000-05 and then for the New York Giants in 2006. He was a three-time Pro Bowl selection.
 
Following his NFL career, Arrington began a successful broadcasting career. Currently working for FOX Sports Radio, he is the co-host of the network's weekday morning show "2 Pro's and a Cup of Joe" alongside Brady Quinn and Jonas Knox.
 
He is also co-host of the nationally-syndicated weekend program/podcast "Up On Game" with TJ Houshmandzadeh and Plaxico Burress. Arrington has also been featured on FOX Sports television programs, including FS1's "Speak for Yourself."
 
Arrington becomes the 19th Nittany Lion player in the College Football Hall of Fame, joining John Cappelletti (1971-73), Kerry Collins (1991-94), Shane Conlan (1983-86), Keith Dorney (1975-78), Jack Ham (1968-70), Glenn Killinger (1918-21), Ted Kwalick (1966-68), Richie Lucas (1957-59), Pete Mauthe (1909-12), Shorty Miller (1910-13), Lydell Mitchell (1969-71), Dennis Onkotz (1967-69), Mike Reid (1966, 1968-69), Glenn Ressler (1962-64), Dave Robinson (1960-62), Steve Suhey (1942, 1946-47), Dexter Very (1909-12) and Curt Warner (1979-82).
 
Five former Penn State coaches are also in the Hall: Hugo Bezdek (1918-29), Rip Engle (1950-65), Dick Harlow (1915-17), Bob Higgins (1930-48) and Joe Paterno (1966-2011).
 
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.
 
   
Date – Honoree – School (Opponent)

• Oct. 29 – LaVar Arrington – Penn State (vs. Ohio State)
• Oct. 29 – Mark Messner – Michigan (vs. Michigan State)
• Nov. 5 – Champ Bailey – Georgia (vs. Tennessee)
• Nov. 5 – Moe Gardner – Illinois (vs. Michigan State)
• Nov. 5 – Coach Billy Jack Murphy* – Memphis (vs. UCF)
• Nov. 5 – Roy Williams – Oklahoma (vs. Baylor)

* Deceased
 
Fidelity Investments has served as the national presenting sponsor of the NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salutes since 2010. The salutes are one component of a multi-year initiative between the two organizations to celebrate the scholar-athlete ideal and a joint commitment to higher education. Fidelity is also the presenting sponsor of the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards, and it helped launch the NFF Faculty Salutes in 2011, which recognize the contributions of the faculty athletics representatives around the country.
 
 
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About The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame
Founded in 1947 with early leadership from General Douglas MacArthur, legendary Army coach Earl "Red" Blaik and immortal journalist Grantland Rice, The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame is a non-profit educational organization that runs programs designed to use the power of amateur football in developing scholarship, citizenship and athletic achievement in young people. With 120 chapters in 47 states, NFF programs include the selection and induction of members of the College Football Hall of Fame; the Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta; Future For Football; The William V. Campbell Trophy®; the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class Presented by Fidelity Investments; the NFF National High School Academic Excellence Award; and a series of initiatives to honor the legends of the past and inspire the leaders of the future. NFF corporate partners include Catapult, Delta Air Lines, Fidelity Investments, Jostens, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, the New York Athletic Club, the Rose Bowl Legacy Foundation and the Sports Business Journal. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @NFFNetwork and learn more at footballfoundation.org.