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November 1, 2006
GROSS, LANDETA AND
RANDLE COMPRISE CLASS OF 2006 FOR THE
DIVISION II FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME
FLORENCE, Ala. --
Three of the all-time greats of NCAA Division II football will be
honored on December 15 as the eighth class of inductees into the
Division II Football Hall of Fame in Florence, Ala.
Cody Gross of North
Alabama, Sean Landeta of Towson and John Randle of Texas A&M-Kingsville
comprise the 2006 class of inductees and will bring the total number of
inductees to 20.
The trio were chosen by
a 20-member selection committee and the selection was announced Tuesday
by Division II Football Hall of Fame voting coordinator Dee Corum.
Gross, Landeta and
Randle will be inducted on December 15 as part of a combined Harlon Hill
Trophy and Division II Football Hall of Fame Banquet at 6:30 p.m. at the
Florence Conference Center.
The initial class of
inductees in 1999 included running back Johnny Bailey of Texas A&I (now
Texas A&M-Kingsville), quarterback Jeff Bentrim of North Dakota State
and the late Walter Payton of Jackson State University.
In 2000, defensive
lineman Harry Carson of South Carolina State University, defensive
lineman Pierce Holt of Angelo State University, and wide receiver John
Stallworth of Alabama A&M were inducted.
In 2001 the third class
was comprised of tight end Brent Jones of Santa Clara University,
linebacker Greg Lloyd of Fort Valley State University and quarterback
Ken O'Brien of the University of California-Davis.
Quarterback Scott
Brunner of Delaware, receiver Andre Reed of Kutztown and linebacker
Jessie Tuggle of Valdosta State comprised the 2002 class.
Former Texas
A&M-Kingsville and Washington Redskins standout Darrell Green was
inducted in 2003, and former North Dakota State and Buffalo Bills
standout Phil Hansen was inducted in 2004.
The 2005 class included
Chris Hatcher of Valdosta State, Ronald Moore of Pittsburg State and
Donnie Shell of South Carolina State.
The Division II
Football Hall of Fame is housed at Braly Municipal Stadium, which has
hosted the Division II Football Championship Game since 1986.
The 34th annual
Division II Football Championship Game will be played at Braly Stadium
at 11 a.m. on December 16, 2006, and the Harlon Hill Trophy presentation
to the Division II Player of the Year, and the Hall of Fame inductions
are part of the Shoals area's championship week activities.
The Division II
Football Hall of Fame is sponsored by Coca-Cola, The City of Florence,
Trustmark Construction, TNT Fireworks, OptiNet and the Marriott Shoals
Hotel and Spa.
Tickets are $45 each or $360 for a table of eight and are available by
calling the Shoals Chamber of Commerce (256) 764-4661 or the UNA Sports
Information Office at (256) 765-4595.
Randle becomes the
third Javelina inductee into the Division II Football Hall of Fame,
making Texas A&M-Kingsville the first school with three inductees.
Randle joins Johnny Bailey and Darrell Green in that Hall of Fame trio.
Gross and Landeta are the first inductees from their respective schools.
 Gross,
a Rogersville, Ala., native, had a 41-2 record as a starting quarterback
from 1992-95 at North Alabama, including a 12-1 record as a starter in
the NCAA playoffs. He set school records for career rushing touchdowns
and touchdowns scored (40), career touchdowns responsible for (65) and
career total offense (5,614). His only two losses as a starter were to
1992 Division II National Champion Jacksonville State in the NCAA
quarterfinals (12-10) and to 1994 Division I-AA National Champion
Youngstown State (17-14) in Youngstown in a regular-season matchup.
Despite suffering a torn muscle, he played extensively in the 1995
Division II Championship Game, leading three scoring drives in a 27-7
win over Pittsburg State. He led UNA to 14-0, 13-1 and 14-0 records from
1993-95 and played on UNA teams with a combined 48-5-1 record that
included three straight Gulf South Conference titles, three straight
national championships and four straight playoff appearances. He was
chosen All-Gulf South Conference and GSC Offensive Player of the Year in
1995. He was selected for the 50th Anniversary UNA Football Team for
1949-98, the Gulf South Conference "Team of the Quarter Century" for
1971-95 and the Gulf South Conference Team of the 1990s. Gross was
inducted into the University of North Alabama Athletic Hall of Fame in
October in his first year of eligibility. He is currently an assistant
coach at Athens High School.
 Landeta
was a four-year letterman and starter at Towson University from 1979-82.
He was a three-time All-Eastern College Athletic Conference selection
for the Tigers from 1980-82 and led Division II in punting in 1980 with
a 43.4 average, and also led the nation in field goals with 14. He was
named to the Kodak and Associated Press All-America teams as a senior in
1982 and was later selected as the punter for the NCAA Division II Team
of the Quarter Century from 1972-97. His jersey number 5 was also
retired by Towson in 1996. He began his professional career by
playing three seasons in the United States Football League from 1983-85
with the Baltimore/Philadelphia Stars. He was the first punter selected
in the USFL Open Draft in 1983. he earned two USFL championship rings
and was a two-time, first-team All-USFL punter. In 1985 he signed
as a free agent with the New York Giants and spent the next 21 years in
the National Football League. His NFL involvement includes playing with
the Giants (1985-93), Los Angeles Rams (1993-94), St. Louis Rams
(1995-96), Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1997), Green Bay Packers (1998),
Philadelphia Eagles (1999-2002), St. Louis Rams (2003-04) and
Philadelphia Eagles (2005). Landeta is the NFL career leader in
total punting yardage with 60,707, and is second in league history in
total punts with 1,401. He holds the all-time NFL record for the highest
punting average (43.3) among punters with 1,000 or more punts. He was
named "Punter of the Decade" for the 1980s by the Pro Football Hall of
Fame, and was second-team "Punter of the Decade" for the 1990s. He was a
two-time Pro Bowl selection in 1986 and 1990 and was three-time
first-team All-Pro (1986, 1989, 1990). He punted for two Super Bowl
Champion New York Giant teams in 1987 and 1991 and was named the punter
on ESPN's All-Time Super Bowl Team in 2006. Landeta averaged 43.3
yards per punt over his NFL career, including 381 punts downed inside
the opponents 20-yard line. He led the NFC in punting four times and he
finished third or better nine times. He supports numerous
non-profit organizations and charities throughout the country each year.
 Randle
was an All-American defensive lineman at Texas A&M-Kingsville in 1988
and 89. He was selected All-American by the Associated Press and
Football Gazette, was All-Lone Star Conference and LSC Defensive Lineman
of the Year. He helped lead the Javelinas to two Lone Star Conference
championships as the teams had a combined 20-4 record. Randle was named
to the Lone Star Conference Team of the Decade for the 1980s and to the
Division II Football Team of the Quarter Century. He was also inducted
into Javelina Hall of Fame.
He signed as a free agent with the Minnesota Vikings and became one of
the Vikings' all-time greats during his 11 seasons with the club. Was
signed by the Seattle Seahawks in 2001, playing three years. Was a
seven-time Pro Bowl player and played in 183 consecutive games before an
injury forced him to miss a 2001 game with Oakland. Had 131 sacks from
1991-2002, tops in the NFL, and his eight consecutive 10-plus sacks
seasons rank second in NFL history behind Reggie White's nine. Made 496
career tackles, including 137.5 career sacks.
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