Former Alabama center and assistant coach Sylvester Croom was selected as part of the 2022 College Football Hall of Fame class, the National Football Foundation announced on Monday afternoon.
An All-American for the Crimson Tide in 1974, Croom is one of 18 players and three coaches that make up the 2022 list of inductees. He is also the 22nd Alabama player in program history to be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
Sylvester Croom
Center (1972-74)
- A native of Tuscaloosa, Croom was a standout center for the Crimson Tide from 1972-74
- Helped the Crimson Tide to an impressive 32-4 record during his time at the Capstone, a run that included three consecutive conference titles, three top-10 finishes in the polls and the 1973 UPI national championship
- Selected as a first team All-SEC and All-America honoree in 1974 while also winning the SEC’s Jacobs Blocking Trophy as the conference’s top offensive lineman that year
- Spent the 1975 season with the NFL’s New Orleans Saints before returning to Tuscaloosa to begin his storied coaching career
- Served on the UA staff from 1976-86 under Paul ‘Bear’ Bryant and Ray Perkins before moving on to coaching in the NFL from 1987-2003
- Made history as the SEC’s first African-American head football coach when he was hired at Mississippi State in 2004 and would go on to be named the SEC Coach of the Year in 2007
- Following five seasons at MSU, Croom returned to the NFL as an assistant coach before retiring following the 2017 season
- Also inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 2020 while having the Crimson Tide’s spring ‘Sylvester Croom Commitment to Excellence Award’ named in his honor
The 2022 class will officially be inducted during the 64th NFF Annual Awards Dinner on Dec. 6, 2022. The inductees will also be recognized at their respective collegiate institutions with NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salutes during the fall. Their accomplishments will forever be immortalized at the Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta.
**This information was acquired from a recent press release from Alabama Athletics.**
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