The ballot for the College Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2025 included 15 former SEC standouts.

In contention to join the 104 former SEC stars already in the College Football Hall of Fame are:

· Florida defensive lineman Alex Brown

· Auburn linebacker Gregg Carr

· Florida defensive tackle Brad Culpepper

· LSU guard Alan Faneca

· Tennessee wide receiver Willie Gault

· Georgia running back Garrison Hearst

· Tennessee defensive lineman John Henderson

· Alabama running back Mark Ingram

· Auburn guard Ed King

· Ole Miss offensive lineman Terrence Metcalf

· Ole Miss offensive lineman Michael Oher

· Alabama offensive lineman Chris Samuels

· Tennessee wide receiver Larry Seivers

· Georgia defensive lineman Richard Seymour

· Auburn linebacker Takeo Spikes

Those players were among the 221 from the SEC who were eligible to appear on the ballot.

To be considered for the College Football Hall of Fame today, a player must have been a first-team All-American selection by one of the organizations that the NCAA uses to compile its annual consensus All-American team. Currently, those organizations are the American Football Coaches Association, Associated Press, Football Writers Association of America, Sporting News and Walter Camp Football Foundation. But the selectors used by the NCAA have varied over the years, ranging from a low of two to a high of 10.

That’s an eligibility hurdle that some of the top players in SEC history can’t clear. These 11 players were never first-team All-American choices by a consensus selector, so they can’t be considered for the College Football Hall of Fame:

Georgia running back Nick Chubb

Chubb is the only one of the top five rushers in SEC history who is not eligible for the College Football Hall of Fame. Chubb is No. 2 on the list with 4,769 rushing yards. No. 1 is Georgia’s Herschel Walker with 5,259. Walker is in the College Football Hall of Fame as are No. 3 Darren McFadden of Arkansas, No. 4 Kevin Faulk of LSU and No. 5 Bo Jackson of Auburn. Chubb made All-SEC as a freshman in 2014 and a senior in 2017, but he was never an All-American, although two other SEC running backs were during Chubb’s time at Georgia – Alabama’s Derrick Henry and LSU’s Leonard Fournette.

Auburn running back Joe Cribbs

The former Sulligent High School standout was the SEC Player of the Year in 1979. The next three running backs to win the SEC Player of the Year Award after Cribbs — Georgia’s Herschel Walker, Auburn’s Bo Jackson and Florida’s Emmitt Smith — are members of the College Football Hall of Fame. In 1978, Cribbs won the SEC rushing title, but LSU running back Charles Alexander was a consensus All-American that season and is now a member of the College Football Hall of Fame. In 1979, Cribbs made third-team All-American for The Associated Press. But even as the SEC Player of Year, he wasn’t the conference’s highest running back in the All-American selections. Teammate James Brooks was a second-team AP pick. A Pro Bowler in three of his first four NFL seasons, Cribbs was a 1,000-yard rusher five times in his first six years as a pro. The miss came in 1982, when the NFL season was cut to nine games by a players strike. Cribbs achieved his fourth and fifth 1,000-yard seasons for the Birmingham Stallions of the USFL.

Auburn defensive end Kevin Greene

Greene is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and has the third-most sacks in the history of the NFL. However, he wasn’t as highly lauded at Auburn, working his way from walk-on to breaking the Tigers’ single-season sack record in 1984. But he never made All-SEC, let alone All-American, while teammate Gregg Carr was a consensus All-American in Greene’s senior season, making the linebacker the player with College Football Hall of Fame eligibility, and he’s on the ballot again for the Class of 2025.

Alabama wide receiver Julio Jones

Jones has been a first-team All-Pro twice and Pro Bowler seven time in the NFL. While he could end up in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Jones won’t make the College Football Hall of Fame. In three seasons at Alabama, Jones was first-team All-SEC once and second-team twice, and he left college as the Crimson Tide’s single-game and single-season leader in receptions and receiving yards. During Jones’ three seasons as Alabama, one SEC wide receiver received first-team All-American recognition from a consensus selector — South Carolina’s Alshon Jeffery in 2010.

Ole Miss quarterback Eli Manning

Manning’s father, Ole Miss QB Archie Manning, is in the College Football Hall of Fame. Eli Manning’s brother, Tennessee QB Peyton Manning, is in the College Football Hall of Fame. But Eli Manning won’t be in the College Football Hall of Fame, even though he won the 2003 Maxwell Award, which is presented to college football’s player of the year. In 2003, each of the five organizations used to determine the consensus All-American team picked Oklahoma’s Jason White as its first-team quarterback. White was not drafted and did not play in the NFL. Manning was the first player picked in the 2004 NFL Draft and retired after the 2019 season. He’s one of the SEC’s six No. 1 picks who isn’t eligible for the College Football Hall of Fame, along with Georgia end Harry Babcock,

Alabama quarterback Joe Namath

After finishing behind Georgia Tech’s Billy Lothridge in 1962 and 1963 for All-SEC honors, Namath was the first-team all-conference QB in 1964 as Alabama compiled an undefeated regular-season record and won the SEC crown. In 1964, the NCAA used six selectors to compile the consensus All-American team, and because some of them still were choosing four-player backfields instead of individual positions, six quarterbacks qualified as first-teamers eligible for College Football Hall of Fame consideration. Namath was not one of them. The quarterbacks were Oregon’s Bob Berry, Notre Dame’s John Huarte, California’s Craig Morton, Tulsa’s Jerry Rhome, Virginia Tech’s Bob Schweickert and Michigan’s Bob Timberlake. Namath went on to the Pro Football Hall of Fame as the face of the AFL with the New York Jets.

Alabama kicker Will Reichard

Reichard left Alabama for the Minnesota Vikings after the 2023 season as the leading scorer in NCAA football history. With 84 field goals and 295 extra points, Reichard tallied 547 points. During Reichard’s time with the Crimson Tide, Iowa’s Keith Duncan and Georgia’s Rodrigo Blankenship in 2019, Miami (Fla.)’s Jose Borregales in 2020, Missouri’s Harrison Mevis, Michigan’s Jake Moody and Bowling Green’s Nate Needham in 2021, North Carolina State’s Christopher Dunn and Stanford’s Joshua Karty in 2022 and Miami (Ohio)’s Graham Nicholson and UNLV’s Jose Pizano in 2023 were first-team All-American picks by at least one consensus selector. Reichard was not, although he was the first-team kicker on CBS’ All-American team for the 2020 season.

Tennessee quarterback Heath Shuler

Shuler received the SEC Player of the Year Award in 1993, when he finished second in the voting for the Heisman Trophy. The Washington Redskins then made Shuler the third selection in the 1994 NFL Draft. Shuler is the only SEC player who finished first or second in the Heisman Trophy balloting who is not a member of or eligible for selection to the College Football Hall of Fame. He was the runner-up to Florida State’s Charlie Ward for the Heisman. The NCAA used seven organizations to select its consensus All-American team, and Ward was the first-team quarterback pick on all of them.

Alabama quarterback Ken Stabler

Stabler was the No. 2 QB on the SEC’s 50th anniversary team, but he’s not eligible for the College Football Hall of Fame even though he was a first-team All-American. In 1967, the Football News named Stabler as its All-American QB. The Football News was one of the organizations used to compile the consensus All-American teams in 1943 and 1944 and again from 1993 through 2001. But it wasn’t one of the six consensus selectors in 1967. Stabler was the second-team All-American QB for two of the consensus selectors – Central Press Association and Newspaper Enterprise Association – behind UCLA Heisman Trophy winner Gary Beban. Beban is in the College Football Hall of Fame. Stabler is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford

After leading Georgia to three bowl victories, Stafford left for the NFL as the No. 1 pick in the 2009 NFL Draft. He’s still playing. In 2021, Stafford helped the Los Angeles Rams win Super Bowl LVI, and he earned Pro Bowl recognition last season. Among the 22 SEC players who have been the first choice in an NFL Draft, Stafford is among the seven who were never a first-team All-American pick by a consensus selector. The other No. 1 picks from the SEC who can’t be on the College Football Hall of Fame are Vanderbilt quarterback Bill Wade, 1952′s top pick; Georgia end Harry Babock, 1953; Tulane running back Tommy Mason, 1961; Ole Miss quarterback Eli Manning, 2004; LSU quarterback JaMarcus Russell, 2007; and Georgia defensive end Travon Walker, 2002.

Alabama center Dwight Stephenson

Stephenson was the All-SEC center for the 1977, 1978 and 1979 seasons. Alabama did not lose a conference game in any of those years. Stephenson won the SEC’s Jacobs Blocking Trophy as a senior, when he was the second-team center on the AP and UPI All-American selections — behind North Carolina State’s Jim Ritcher in both cases. Ritcher is in the College Football Hall of Fame, but Stephenson can’t be. However, Stephenson is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame for his NFL career with the Miami Dolphins.

FOR MORE OF AL.COM’S COVERAGE OF THE SEC, GO TO OUR SEC PAGE

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.