A special moment for the Alabama football program comes before the NFL Draft.
The Reese’s Senior Bowl (Mobile, Ala.) puts out great talent every year for the National Football League, and its 2024 Hall of Fame Class has been announced. Two former Crimson Tide standouts made the list as DeMeco Ryans and Marty Lyons are in the Hall of Fame as defensive players. Ryan, a Bessemer (Ala.) native, was a decorative inside linebacker for the Tide from 2002 to 2005. He was a first-team All-SEC selection, an Unanimous All-American selection, the SEC Defensive Player of the Year, and the Lott IMPACT Trophy winner in 2005. Ryans played 10 seasons in the NFL (2006-15) for the Houston Texans and Philadelphia Eagles before starting his coaching career. He was a defensive assistant for the San Francisco 49ers, but he rose up the ranks to be the defensive coordinator from 2021 to 2022. Ryans is now the head coach of the team that drafted him as a player in 2006.
The Senior Bowl Hall of Fame Class of 2024!
LB DeMeco Ryans #Texans
QB Carson Palmer #Cardinals
DB Eric Weddle #Chargers
WR Roddy White #Falcons
DL Marty Lyons #JetsDL YaYa Diaby #Buccaneers
WR Puka Nacua #Rams
LB Byron Young #Rams #TheDraftStartsInMOBILE™️ #SBHOF2024… pic.twitter.com/8oqASwKuGx— Reese’s Senior Bowl (@seniorbowl) April 17, 2024
He took the Texans to the AFC playoffs last year and won a playoff game.
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Ryans’ journey started at the Reese’s Senior Bowl as a player, and now he’s having success as a coach.
Lyons was a defensive lineman for Coach Paul W. “Bear” Bryant from 1975 to 1978. He was a Consensus All-American, SEC Defensive Player of the Year, and first-team All-SEC selection in 1978. Lyons also helped the Tide capture a national championship in the 1978 season. Alabama earned a record of 31-5 during his tenure as a player. He was the No. 14 overall selection of the 1979 NFL Draft by the New York Jets. Lyons played in 147 career games from 1979 to 1990 for the Jets.
He is in the College Football Hall of Fame.
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Stephen M. Smith is the senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith
