4 Former Spartans On Ballot For College Football Hall of Fame

The 2019 college football hall of fame nominee list has been unveiled and Michigan State finds four representatives eligible for enshrinement.

Flozell Adams, Tony Mandarich and Lorenzo White are on the players side, while Darryl Rogers is the lone Spartan on this year's coaches ballot.

To be eligible for the ballot, players must have been named first-team All-American by a major/national selector as recognized and utilized by the NCAA for its consensus All-America teams. They must also be out of college football for at least 10 years and not playing professional football.

Coaches must have coached a minimum of 10 years and 100 games as a head coach; won at least 60 percent of their games; and be retired from coaching for at least three years to be considered.

Adams was a four year letterwinner and three year starter at Michigan State and one of only three Spartans ever to be named Big Ten offensive lineman of the year. He won that award in 1997. He was a five time pro bowler with almost 200 NFL games under his belt at the next level.

Mandarich won the Big Ten offensive lineman of the year twice in his time at Michigan State (one of only five players ever to do that). He remains the only offensive tackle in MSU history to earn first team All-American honors twice in his career. A four year starter at MSU, Mandarich did not allow a single sack his senior season and finished 6th in the Heisman voting his senior year.

White was an integral member of Michigan State's 1988 Rose Bowl season. He was a two time All-American and in both of those All-American seasons he finished fourth in Heisman voting. White led the NCAA as a freshman in 1985 with almost 2,000 rushing yards in regular season games only. In the pros he was a first round draft pick of the Houston Oilers.

Rogers coached Michigan State for four years between 1976 and 1979. In that time he coached three first team All-Americans at Michigan State (Kirk Gibson, Mark Brammer and Ray Stachowicz) and had a record of 24-18-2 for MSU. Rogers won the 1978 Big Ten championship and was honored as the Big Ten coach of the year that same season.

Michigan State will look to add to their roster of 13 people (nine players, four coaches) in the college football hall of fame when the induction class is announced January 7 in Santa Clara.