South Carolina football legend one step closer to Hall of Fame
On Thursday, the Pro Football Hall of Fame announced that 60 players have advanced another step closer to potential enshrinement in the “Seniors” category. To be eligible for the senior vote, a player’s last game had to come in 1999 or earlier. One of the 60 seniors to advance to the next stage of voting is South Carolina football legend Sterling Sharpe.
The group will be whittled to three before final voting for the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s class of 2025. Last year, Sharpe was one of the final 12 senior nominees but did not advance to the final voting stage.
Sharpe is one of a handful of these older nominees deserving of a gold jacket, but a look into the numbers shows the former Gamecock was the most dominant of any of the nominees.
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During his seven years with the Green Bay Packers, Sharpe was one of two wideouts at the top of the sport, along with Jerry Rice. In a run-first era, Sharpe put up numbers that match some of the top receivers in the modern, pass-happy game. The five-time Pro Bowler posted five 1000-yard seasons during that stretch, something only Rice and Henry Ellard matched.
Sharpe led the NFL in receptions three times, yardage once, and touchdown receptions twice. He also is one of just five players in the Super Bowl era to win the “receiving triple crown” by leading the NFL in catches, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns in the same season, doing so in 1992 with 108 receptions, 1461 yards, and 13 scores.
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Sharpe broke the record for single-season receptions that season and then broke his own record the next year with 112. In his final season, he scored 18 touchdowns, a number that has only been reached by a receiver five times.
The only thing that has kept Sterling Sharpe out of the Hall has been the brevity of his career. Before his 30th birthday, Sharpe suffered a neck injury that ended his days playing football. Before that, he played (and started) in every game of his career.
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During his South Carolina football career, Sharpe was a two-time All-American. When he left the program, he owned the majority of the Gamecocks’ receiving records. Upon being a 1st round pick in the 1988 NFL Draft (Troy Williamson and Xavier Legette later joined him as 1st-round Gamecock receivers), #2 was USC’s all-time leader in receptions, receiving yards, receiving touchdowns, and 100-yard performances.
Sharpe also was one of just a few Gamecocks ever to return a punt and a kickoff for a touchdown. Rewardinging his excellence, the University of South Carolina retired his jersey while he was still active with the team. The College Football Hall of Fame enshrined Sharpe in 2014.
