Alexander named to college hall
I always try to give recognition to my root hogs — my offensive linemen. ” Charles alexander, former LSU running back
Former LSU running back Charles Alexander said he learned Friday in a letter he had been named to the College Football Hall of Fame.
“They said to keep it confidential until today,” Alexander said Tuesday by phone. “It was kind of hard doing that, but for the most part, I did.”
Alexander said he told only his two daughters and a couple of close friends about the honor.
Everyone else found out Tuesday as the National Football Foundation announced that Alexander would be part of a 2012 induction class that includes 14 players and three coaches.
This class will be inducted at the 55th NFF awards dinner on Dec. 4 at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York. Former Texas A&M coach R.C. Slocum, former BYU quarterback Ty Detmer, former Rice quarterback Tommy Kramer and former Kansas State linebacker Mark Simoneau are among the others who will be honored.
Slocum, who went 123-47-2 as A&M’s coach from 1989-02, is a former McNeese State football standout. He was born in Oakdale, but grew up in Orange, Texas. Other coaches included Miami’s Jimmy Johnson and Tennessee’s Phillip Fulmer.
Detmer won the Heisman Trophy in 1990. Kramer played for the Saints in 1990 and Simoneau from 2006-08.
The rest of the class includes receiver Art Monk of Syracuse; tight end Dave Casper of Notre Dame; tackle Jonathan Ogden of UCLA; and Otis Armstrong of Purdue; defensive backs Scott Thomas of Air Force and Greg Myers of Colorado State; split end Hal Bedsole of Southern California; defensive end Gabe Rivera of Texas Tech; and guard John Wooten of Colorado.
“I’m the first to say that I didn’t do this by myself,” Alexander said. “I always try to give recognition to my root hogs — my offensive linemen. I had teammates to help me along the way.”
Alexander earned first-team All-America recognition at LSU as a junior in 1977 and as a senior in 1978. He finished fifth in the Heisman Trophy balloting as a senior after finishing ninth as a junior, the year he was named the Most Valuable Player of the Southeastern Conference.
After he was selected by Cincinnati with the 12th pick of the 1979 NFL draft, Alexander played seven seasons with the Bengals.
He is a member of LSU’s Modern Day Team of the Century, the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and the LSU Athletic Hall of Fame.
Alexander, 54, resides in Houston, where he works in the oil and gas industry.
“This is an important recognition for one of the legendary figures in LSU athletics history,” LSU Athletic Director Joe Alleva said in a university news release.
“This honor is one of the most significant and prestigious honors in all of sports and one which is well-deserved. Charlie played an important role in LSU football history and the university congratulates him on this tremendous honor.”
Alexander is the eighth former LSU player to make the College Football Hall of Fame. He joins Billy Cannon, Tommy Casanova and Jerry Stovall as LSU’s living members of the Hall.
Cannon and Stovall were both elected within the past four years.
“I think there’s going to be a lot more in the years to come,” Alexander said.