James Laurinaitis to enter College Football Hall of Fame
NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...
James Laurinaitis will be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame later this year.
The National Football Foundation unveiled the class of 2026 on Jan. 14, a group of inductees that included Laurinaitis, one of the most decorated linebackers in Ohio State’s history.
Laurinaitis, who is currently the Buckeyes’ linebackers coach, was a three-time All-American from 2006-08 and took home some of college football’s most prestigious individual awards over his playing career.
The honors included the Bronko Nagurski Trophy as the nation’s best defensive player in 2006 and the Butkus Award as the top linebacker in 2007.
Laurinaitis made 375 tackles over his four years, a total that ranks seventh on Ohio State’s career list.
He helped the Buckeyes reach the BCS national championship game in consecutive seasons when they finished as runner-ups to Florida and LSU.
Laurinaitis has been on the ballot for the College Football Hall of Fame since 2019 and will be the 29th player from Ohio State enshrined. Former offensive tackle Chris Ward was the most recent inductee in 2024.
Laurinaitis spent eight seasons in the NFL, most of them with the St. Louis Rams, who drafted him in the second round in 2009.
He went into coaching in 2022 when he was hired as a graduate assistant at Notre Dame before leaving for his alma mater a year later.
Joey Kaufman covers Ohio State football for The Columbus Dispatch. Email him at jkaufman@dispatch.com and follow along on Bluesky, Instagram and X for more.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: College Football Hall of Fame to induct James Laurinaitis in 2026
More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos