Nebraska Football Hall of Fame Announces 2007 Class

Lincoln ? All-American Jason Peter, who was a member of three national championship teams for the Huskers between 1994 and 1997, headlines a list of seven former Huskers players to be inducted into the Nebraska Football Hall of Fame this September, Nebraska Chapter President Irving Veitzer announced Thursday.

The Nebraska Football Hall of Fame is sponsored by the Nebraska Chapter of the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame.  The 10-memberinduction class, which includes seven former Huskers and three members from the state college ranks, will be enshrined at a special reception on Friday, Sept. 21, and will be introduced at the Ball State game on Sept. 22.

The seven-player class of Huskers includes Lincoln native Eric Anderson, who helped NU to three national titles in 1994, 1995 and 1997 as a teammate of Peter's. Donta Jones helped Coach Tom Osborne claim his first title in 1994. Erik Wiegert was a captain on NU's 1991 Big Eight title squad and joins his younger brother Zach (1995) in the Hall of Fame. Peter also joins his older brother Christian (2006) in the Hall. Tyrone Legette, Kevin Ramaekers and Pioneer Division selection Adolph Wenke, round out NU's contingent in the 2007 Hall of Fame class.

The Nebraska Football Hall of Fame is sponsored by the Nebraska Chapter of the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame. The College Football Hall of Fame opened in South Bend, Ind., in 1995.

In addition to the Hall of Fame class, the Nebraska Chapter will present its Clarence Swanson Memorial Award to Joe Silverman of Lincoln, and its Lyell Bremser Special Merit Award to former Husker assistant coach George Darlington.

The 2007 Nebraska Football Hall of Fame Class
Eric Anderson - A four-year letterman as an offensive tackle during one of the most dominant stretches in college football history, Anderson was an anchor on a Nebraska line that powered the Huskers to national titles in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The Lincoln native helped the Huskers to NCAA rushing title in all three championship seasons. NU rolled to a nation-leading 399.8 rushing yards in 1995, when it produced a school-record 556.3 yards of total offense per game. During his four-year career, Nebraska was an amazing 49-2 overall. He earned first-team All-Big Eight honors as a sophomore in 1995, before adding All-Big 12 accolades as a senior in 1997. He was also an academic All-Big 12 pick in 1997. After playing in the Blue-Gray All-Star Game, Anderson spent two seasons with Amsterdam in NFL Europe (1998, 1999).

Donta Jones - A four-year letterman as an outside linebacker with the Huskers, Jones was a starter on Nebraska's 1994 national championship team as a senior. He notched five tackles and three quarterback hurries in NU's title game victory over the Miami Hurricanes in the Orange Bowl. The native of LaPlata, Md., appeared in four Orange Bowls during his career and earned first-team All-Big Eight honors as a senior. One of the hardest-working Huskers during his career, Jones was voted Nebraska's Lifter-of-the-Year in 1994 and was the Co-Lifter-of-the-Year in 1993. He was a fourth-round pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1995 NFL Draft and played linebacker for the Steelers in Super Bowl XXX. He spent four seasons with Pittsburgh before playing for Carolina in 1999 and New Orleans in 2000.

Tyrone Legette - A three-year letterman as a cornerback for the Huskers from 1989 to 1991, Legette helped Coach Tom Osborne's Huskers to a share of the Big Eight title and an Orange Bowl trip as a senior. A native of Columbia, S.C., Legette led the Huskers with nine pass breakups on his way to first-team All-Big Eight honors as a senior. He was a third-round pick in the 1992 NFL Draft by the New Orleans Saints and enjoyed the longest pro career of the 2007 Hall of Fame class. He spent seven seasons in the NFL, starting with the Saints from 1992 to 1996, before spending one season with Tampa Bay and concluding his career in San Francisco in 1998.

Jason Peter - A four-year letterman as a defensive tackle during one of the most dominant stretches in college football history, Peter was a leader of a Blackshirt defense that fueled the Huskers to national titles in 1994, 1995 and 1997. The Locust, N.J., native earned All-America honors as a senior captain in 1997, and a first-team All-Big 12 selection in both 1996 and 1997. During his four-year career, Nebraska was a remarkable 49-2 overall. A first-round pick in the 1998 NFL Draft, Peter spent four seasons with the Carolina Panthers (1998-2001). Jason, who played side-by-side with his older brother Christian, joins him in the Nebraska Football Hall of Fame after Christian's 2006 induction.

Kevin Ramaekers - A three-year letterman and a first-team All-Big Eight selection as a defensive tackle in 1993, Kevin Ramaekers helped Nebraska to three straight Big Eight crowns and three Orange Bowl appearances in 1991, 1992 and 1993. A graduate of Norfolk (Neb.) Catholic High School, Ramaekers' career was hampered by injuries as a junior, but he started every game as a senior to help Nebraska play for the national title against Florida State in the 1994 Orange Bowl. Ramaekers also competed for the Husker men's track and field team in the shot put and discus early in his NU career. He earned his bachelor's degree from Nebraska in August of 1993.

Erik Wiegert - A three-year letterman as an offensive lineman for the Huskers, Wiegert was a captain of a Nebraska team that earned a share of the 1991 Big Eight title and a trip to the Orange Bowl. Wiegert joined fellow Hall of Fame inductee Tyrone Legette as a first-team All-Big Eight pick in 1991. With Wiegert anchoring the offensive line, the Huskers rolled to NCAA rushing titles in 1989 (375.3 ypg) and 1991 (353.2 ypg). Wiegert joins his younger brother Zach (1995) in the Nebraska Football Hall of Fame. Zach was a captain on NU's 1994 national title team, and the pair are joined by Chad and Chris Kelsay, Grant and Tracey Wistrom and Christian and Jason Peter as the only brothers to serve as captains at NU.

Adolph Wenke - A three-time letterman as a tackle for Nebraska from 1920 to 1922, Wenke was chosen by the Hall of Fame as its Pioneer Division selection. The Pender, Neb., native earned first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference honors in 1922, helping the Huskers to the league title under Coach Fred Dawson. In his final game, Wenke helped NU to a 14-6 win over Notre Dame in Lincoln. He served in the U.S. Army during World War I and later became a district judge in Nebraska from 1938 to 1943. He served as a justice of the Nebraska Supreme Court from 1943 to 1954. New Hall of Famers from the State College ranks include:

Brad Fults (Chadron State) - A four-year letterman as a quarterback at Chadron State from 1975 to 1978, Fults rewrote the Eagle record book during his career. He still ranks fifth in career total offense with 6,603 yards, while passing for 5,658 yards and 36 touchdowns in his career. He ended his career with school records for passing yards, touchdowns and completions that stood for a decade. Along with his passing prowess, Fults rushed for nearly 1,000 yards in his career and owns one of the longest touchdown runs in school history with his 88-yard burst against Minot in 1977. He was the 1979 Omaha World-Herald State College Athlete of the Year.

Ruben Mendoza (Wayne State) - A Kodak All-America offensive lineman in 1985, Mendoza was a star at Wayne State College in the mid-1980's. Mendoza earned NAIA All-America and first-team CSIC all-conference honors, and was a team captain. The Crystal City, Texas, native spent three seasons in the NFL as an offensive guard, playing for the Green Bay Packers (1986), Miami Dolphins (1987) and Phoenix Cardinals (1988).Mendoza is currently the strength and conditioning coordinator at Notre Dame, and has also served as a strength coach at Mississippi, Clemson and Tennessee-Chattanooga.

Webster VanValkenburgh (Hastings) - An All-American at Hastings College in both 1976 and 1977, VanValkenburgh was a two-time captain for the Broncos. The 6-2, 275-pound defensive tackle was a three-time All-NIAC selection and a three-time all-district selection. A four-year letterwinner from 1974 to 1977, VanValkenburgh was named the Hastings Athlete of the Year after his senior season and was inducted into the Hastings College Hall of Fame in 1995.

Special Merit Award Winners:
This year's special merit award winners - Joe Silverman (Clarence Swanson Award) and George Darlington (Lyell Bremser Award), have a lot in common.  Both were born in <?xml:namespace prefix="st1" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"?>Charleston, Va., and spent time at MarshallUniversity.  They will be honored along with the player and coach inductees at the Hall of Fame Banquet and on the field at the BallState game.<?xml:namespace prefix="o" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"?>

Joe Silverman (Lincoln) - A longtime supporter of Husker Athletics, Silverman has been a Husker Football fan since 1942 and has supported UNL and the athletic programs since he got off the train in Lincoln as a young officer candidate that same year.  Stationed at the Lincoln Air Force Base in Lincoln, Joe fell in love with the Huskers, and his first wife, Helen Speier, at nearly the first moment he was introduced to both.  He met Glenn Presnell, who would go on to coach the Huskers in 1942 and Vike Francis, a fullback for NU in 1939 and 1940, while serving his country as a member of the Air Force Air Corps. Silverman said, "All signs pointed to Nebraska.  I taught at Lincoln Jr. High in Huntington, W. Va., opened up a classroom book by chance to the capital of Nebraska -- Lincoln while teaching one day had no idea where the train was taking us when we arrived here on June 15, 1942.  But the sign said Lincoln, Nebraska...population 85,000 and the rest is history." Silverman "never misses" Husker home football, men's basketball and volleyball games, and has been a member of the Rebounders Club, the Match Club, the Director's Club and the Chancellor's Club for about as long as the respective clubs have been in existence.  He was named to the first Board of Directors for Madonna, served on St. Elizabeth's Board of Directors until 1969 and also served as president of the Lincoln Chief's Baseball Team.  His medical expertise came as he served at four different military bases, including in Lincoln, Colorado, New York and Illinois.  After serving four years in the Air Force, Silverman was honorably discharged as a Captain. He married Helen in 1943, the first year he purchased Husker season football tickets.  Together they had one son, Richard Allen, who teaches in Singapore and one daughter, Jan (Silverman) Taylor, who resides in Mesa, Ariz., before Helen passed away suddenly in 1964.  Joe was "blessed" to meet and marry his current wife, Be George in 1984.  With the marriage, his family has grown, adding two stepsons and a daughter.  He served as general manager and owner of Globe Cleaning and Laundry in Lincoln for more than four decades. His love of football came as a player for MarshallUniversity.  A standout defensive end, Silverman played four years at left tackle and graduated from Marshall in 1941 with a bachelors of science and physical education degree.  He also officiated football and basketball on the high school and small college level for many years.  Close friends with Coach Bob Devaney and many Husker coaches and players over the years.  Silverman said this award means more to him than anything he has ever received.  "I'm so very honored," Silverman said.  "I have loved this University and it's athletic programs for as long as I can remember, and I'm so fortunate to be honored for service that I considered a privilege."   

George Darlington (Lincoln) -

Darlington spent 30 years coaching the legendary Blackshirt defense, serving as the secondary coach for 17 years following his 13 years as the defensive ends coach.  Darlington joined the Husker staff in 1973 under Head Coach Tom Osborne, and became the first assistant coach in Division I-A history to be a part of more than 300 wins at one institution.  During his time as the secondary coach, the Huskers’ pass defense was never ranked lower than 37th in the nation, including four Top 10 honors in his last seven seasons with the Blackshirts.  Darlington recruited and coached seven All-Americans as well as several future NFL stars, and in 1998, he was awarded the All-American Football Foundation’s Top Assistant Award for his outstanding work and fantastic attitude. Following his tenure with the Huskers, Darlington became the safeties coach at MarshallUniversity in 2003.  In just his first season, he helped guide the Thundering Herd to the top of the Mid-American Conference in total defense.  A year later, he took on the additional duty of becoming the recruiting coordinator for the team. In 2006, Darlington served as the defensive coordinator for LouisianaTechUniversity before his retirement at the end of the season. He was the Legend Coach at this year's Coach Callahan Charities Football 101 session and is well-known in Nebraska for beginning the first football 101 sessions for women on campus, holding weekly classes during the football seasons for most of his years at Nebraska.  Currently, he is serving as the defensive coordinator for Team USA in the International Federation of American Football’s World Championships in Kawasaki, Japan. Darlington and his wife, Susan, currently live in Lincoln.  The couple has three children ? Lisa, David and Julia ? and five grandchildren.