Urlacher Named to Pro Football Hall of Fame
Minneapolis, Minn. — Brian Urlacher, who in December became the first Lobo enshrined into the College Football Hall of Fame, was named as one of eight inductees into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The announcement will be made by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell as a part of the NFL Honors awards show on NBC Saturday night. The actual Hall of Fame voting was conducted by the 48-person Selection Committee.
Joining Urlacher in the Class of 2018 is Randy Moss, Ray Lewis, Brian Dawkins, Terrell Owens, Jerry Kramer, Robert Brazil and Bobby Beathard.
Urlacher will officially be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio on August 4 as a part of The Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Week Powered by Johnson Controls. The weekend will start with the Hall of Fame Game on Thursday, Aug. 2, with the Enshrinees’ Gold Jacket Dinner following on Friday, Aug. 3, which will be broadcast on the NFL Network.
After the Saturday induction ceremonies, the weekend will finish on Sunday with the Enshrinees Roundtable and the Concert for Legends. All of those activities will take place at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium.
“On behalf of The University of New Mexico, and all Lobo fans worldwide, I would like to congratulate Brian on the distinguished honor of being inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame,” said UNM Athletic Director Eddie Nuñez. “The honor is a tribute to his hard work, dedication and most of all his leadership that he has always exemplified throughout his career.”
Urlacher had a brilliant 12-year career, all with the Chicago Bears, who drafted him ninth overall in the 2000 draft. Statistically he was unparalleled, playing in 182 games over 12 seasons with 180 starts, recording 1040 career tackles, 41.5 career sacks, 11 forced fumbles, 15 fumble recoveries, 85 passes broken up and 22 interceptions. Urlacher also scored five career touchdowns, two fumble returns, two interception returns, and a 27-yard reception.
Among his NFL honors, he was voted to eight NFL Pro Bowls, was named the Associated Press and The Sporting News Defensive Rookie of the Year (2000), NFL Defensive Player of the Year (2005), and was named the Ed Block Courage Award winner for commitment to sportsmanship and courage (2012). He was a member of the 2000s All-Decade Team, and he was named First Team All-Pro in 2001, 2002, 2005 and 2006, and he was a Second Team All-Pro in 2010. He was also named NFL Defensive Player of the Week seven times in his career.
Urlacher is the first Lobo to earn enshrinement into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.