The annual Hall of Fame selection meeting was the most interesting of the 11 years I’ve served on the committee. Spirited, serious discussion about the 15 candidates who had made it through thte selection process to be brought up indivisdually for consideration. I was glad to hear that some of the real veterans on the committee agreed with my private assessment that this was the most difficult year ever to choose one candidate over another. I seriously believed that all fifteen deserve selection to the Hall, but the rules say we can only elect six per year, so somebody would have to wait.

And that was part of my thought process when going through the list of names.

How many years of eligibility does this guy have? Does he have enough support to be on the ballot again next year? Players like Russ Grimm and Gary Zimmerman had Hall of Fame careers but they’ll have another chance to get in. Under the new rules, the Senior Committee selects 2 names from the past that perhaps have “slipped through the cracks.”

They meet in August in Canton and through a diligent process that includes two Hall of Fame members as “consultants,” they come up with two names. The consultants this year were Elvin Bethea and Jack Youngblood, both defensive linemen. So when Rayfield Wright was selected as a Senior nominee only two years after making it to the final six only to be denied, I knew the committee thought the general assembly had made a mistake.

John Madden was the other selection, based on his ten years as coach of the Oakland Raiders. While there, he compiled a .760 winning percentage. Apparently when he was originally eligible, many selectors thought he’d return to coaching (he retired at 42) or that Al Davis was really running the franchise. Of course, Madden didn’t return to coach, and since he left the Raiders their winning percentage has been .533. The other telling stat about his tenure was his success against other coaches already in the Hall. There are twenty coaches in the Hall, ten Madden coached against. In games against those coaches, Madden won 68% of the time.

Troy Aikman, Warren Moon and Reggie White were first ballot selections. There was a lot of discussion about Moon, none about Aikman and White. Moon’s story was compellingly told by John McNair of Houston with greats statistical comparisons and perfect testimonies from guys who played and coached against him. Moon is the first modern-era black quarterback to be selected to the Hall and the first player to be selected to both the Canadian and the American football Halls of Fame.

I switched my vote about Harry Carson to “yes” this year after hearing his presenter’s passionate oration regarding Carson’s qualifications. He also waylaid some of my fears about Carson’s reaction to a potential selection, convincing me that he’d be a proud ambassador of the game and the Hall.

I was disappointed (again) about Art Monk’s lack of support throughout the committee. I think it’s hard to justify keeping him out. Michael Irvin’s elimination has nothing to do with his off-field issues and everything to do with an overall perception on the committee that he was one of many “very good” receivers in that era. I also think Bob Kuchenberg deserves selection into the Hall, but there musts be somebody on the committee who thinks there are enough players from the ’72 Dolphins already in the Hall.

Claude Humphrey got some unexpected supports and Thurman and Derrick Thomas seem to have plenty of support but were casualties of this year’s numbers game.

I had a discussion with a very prominent member of the committee who said he was willing to vote “no” on somebody when it came to the final six if he hadn’t voted for him in the first two rounds of reduction. “Why should I?” he asked. “Because if a guy gets to the final six, without your support, perhaps you should have confidence in your fellow committee members that they know what they’re doing.” “Mmmm,” he said as he shook his head and scratched his chin.

Hopefully he sees it that way in the future.

What was gratifying was the initial reaction from the selectees present to their new-found status as Hall of Famers. Aikman, Sara White representing her husband, Rayfield Wright, Warren Moon and John Madden couldn’t have been more humble and appreciative of getting into the Hall. As a selector, that’s a really fun part of the process and always brings a smile to my face.

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