LaVar Arrington, 3 Steelers among Western Pa. stars nominated for College Football Hall of Fame

Jerry DiPaola, The Tribune-Review, Greensburg
·3 min read

Jun. 2—Nominees for the 2022 College Football Hall of Fame class include several Western Pennsylvania stars with roots in Bethel Park, Slippery Rock and many places in between. Plus, there are three who made their mark with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The ballot was emailed Wednesday to more than 12,000 NFF members and current Hall of Famers, whose votes will be counted and submitted to the NFF's Honors Court, which will select the class.

The class will be inducted during the 64th National Football Foundation annual awards dinner Dec. 6, 2022, and permanently enshrined at the Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta.

Among the nominees are:

—LaVar Arrington, North Hills and Penn State linebacker — Two-time, first-team All-American, winner of the Butkus and Bednarik awards in 1999.

—Aaron Beasley, West Virginia defensive back — Consensus first-team All-American in 1995 and led nation in interceptions (10) in 1994.

—Matt Cavanaugh, Pitt quarterback — First-team All-American in 1977 after leading the Panthers to the 1976 national championship.

—Craig Heyward, Pitt running back — Consensus first-team All-American in 1987, left Pitt as the second-leading rusher in school history (behind Tony Dorsett) with 3,086 career yards.

—Levon Kirkland, Clemson linebacker — Consensus first-team All-American in 1991, helped lead Steelers to Super Bowl XXX.

—Paul Posluszny, Hopewell and Penn State linebacker — Two-time, first-team All-American (consensus in 2005) and one of only two two-time winners of the Bednarik Award.

—Antwaan Randle El, Indiana quarterback — First-team All-American in 2001, first player in FBS history to pass for 6,000 yards and rush for 3,000 yards. Played wide receiver and threw a touchdown pass for Steelers in Super Bowl XL.

—Steve Wisniewski, Penn State guard — First-team All-American in 1988, played on Penn State's 1986 12-0 national championship team.

—Jim Carlen, coach at West Virginia (1966-69), Texas Tech (1970-74) and South Carolina (1975-81) — Led teams to eight bowl games and 13 winning seasons in 16 years.

—Lynn Hieber, IUP quarterback — Two-time, first-team NAIA All-American (1974-75).

—Gary McCauley, Clarion tight end — Two-time, first-team All-American (1980-81).

—Kenneth Murawski, Carnegie Mellon linebacker — First-team All-American in 1981.

—Ted Petersen, Eastern Illinois center — First-team All-American in 1976, played for the Steelers in Super Bowl XIII and XIV.

—Joe Skladany, Bethel Park and Lafayette linebacker — First-team All-American in 1981, four-year starter who never missed a game.

—Brad Tokar, Fort Cherry and Westminster running back — First-team Little All-American in 1990 and two-time first-team NAIA All-American (1988, '90). Led Westminster to two NAIA Division II national championships.

—John Luckhardt, coach Washington & Jefferson (1982-98) and Cal (Pa.) (2002-11) — Led teams to 14 conference titles and 16 NCAA playoff appearances.

—George Mihalik, coach Slippery Rock (1988-2015) — Most victories in school history (197), 22 winning seasons in 28 years.

Jerry DiPaola is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Jerry by email at jdipaola@triblive.com or via Twitter .