How Did College Football Hall Of Fame Forget Chris Claiborne?

USC's only Butkus Award winner left off ballout

Last week, College Football Hall of Fame voters sent in their ballots for the 2020 class.

USC's candidates were Carson Palmer, Jeff Bregel and Jack Del Rio.

What I can't figure out is how Del Rio made the ballot over Chris Claiborne.

Claibrorne is USC's only Butkus Award winner. He and Richard Wood are considered the two best linebackers in USC history. Wood is already in the College Football Hall of Fame.

Claiborne was Pac-10 defensive player of the year in 1998. Del Rio was second-team All-Pac-10 in 1984, which was his senior year. The Pac-10 defensive player of the year in 1984 was another USC linebacker, Duane Bickett.

A big talking point in that 1984 season was how Bickett was actually the Trojans' best linebacker even though Del Rio got most of the attention.

Del Rio is deservedly in the USC Hall of Fame and I'm not opposed to him being on the College Football Hall of Fame ballot . . . one day.

But before Claiborne? No way. Claiborne not only deserves to be on the ballot, he deserves to be in the Hall of Fame. It's something probably needs to push a little bit to make sure he gets on next year's ballot.