Ducks Digest

Oregon Legend Haloti Ngata Lands on 2024 College Football Hall of Fame Ballot

One of the best defensive players in Oregon program history could be in line for another honor.

Max Torres

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Former Oregon Ducks defensive tackle Haloti Ngata could be joining an elite tier of college athletes in the near future.

On Monday, the former Duck was one of 78 former college players and 9 former coaches from the FBS ranks included on the 2024 College Football Hall of Fame ballot. 

Ngata played at Oregon from 2003 to 2005 after signing with the Ducks as one of the top defensive players in the country coming out of Highland High School in Salt Lake City, Utah.

He wasted no time making an impact with the Ducks, cracking the starting lineup in his fifth game as a true freshman against Arizona. He would go on to earn first-team freshman All-American honors in 2003. 

Ngata had a very decorated career in Eugene, becoming the program's first consensus All-American since 1962 when he took home the honor as a junior in 2005. He was a two-time All-Pac-10 selection and the first Oregon player to be named Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year in 2005.

2005 was truly the year of Haloti Ngata, at least in the Pac-10, as he also took home the Morris Trophy, awarded to the conference's top interior linemen on either side of the ball.

The 6-foot-5, 338-pound trench talent went on to play 13 seasons in the NFL, playing the bulk of his career with the Baltimore Ravens (2006-2014) before being winding down his playing days with the Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles. Ngata won a Super Bowl with Baltimore in 2013 when they defeated the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl XLVII (47).

Oregon has had some impressive defensive linemen come through Eugene in recent years, highlighted by the likes of DeForest Buckner, Arik Armstead and Kayvon Thibodeaux. 

The Ducks also recently added former South Carolina edge rusher Jordan Burch from the transfer portal and signed Adidas All-American defensive end Matayo Uiagalelei in the 2023 recruiting class.

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Max Torres
MAX TORRES

Max Torres is the publisher and lead editor of Ducks Digest. He's covered the Oregon football and recruiting beats for four years. He's based out of Long Beach, CA and travels around Southern California and the country covering top high school football prospects.

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