March 5, 2013
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IOWA CITY, Iowa – Former University of Iowa All-American Andre Tippett is listed on the 2013 Football Bowl Subdivision ballot for the College Football Hall of Fame. The announcement was made Tuesday by the National Football Foundation (NFF).
Tippett earned consensus All-America honors for the Hawkeyes as a senior in 1981. He is one of 77 former players on the ballot, along with five former college head coaches. The 2013 Hall of Fame Class will be announced in a press conference in New York City on Tuesday, May 7.
“It’s truly an honor to be on the ballot and included in a pool of incredible college players and coaches,” said Tippett. “It’s even more of an honor to be able to represent the University of Iowa, Coach Hayden Fry and my teammates on those teams.”
More than 12,000 NFF members and current Hall of Famers will take part in the voting process. The NFF Honors Court, chaired by Gene Corrigan, a former ACC commissioner and NCAA president, makes the final selections. The 2013 class will be inducted at the 56th NFF Annual Awards Dinner, Dec. 10, in New York City.
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“We are extremely excited for Andre to be on the Hall of Fame ballot. As a team captain under Coach Fry, Andre played a key role is getting the Iowa program to the top of the Big Ten Conference, including the amazing Rose Bowl appearance in his senior season.”
Kirk Ferentz
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Tippett lettered three years at Iowa after a prep career in Newark, N.J. He led the Hawkeyes to a share of the 1981 Big Ten title and a spot in the 1982 Rose Bowl, Iowa’s first bowl appearance since the 1959 Rose Bowl. He earned first-team All-Big Ten honors as a junior and senior.
“We are extremely excited for Andre to be on the Hall of Fame ballot. As a team captain under Coach Fry, Andre played a key role is getting the Iowa program to the top of the Big Ten Conference, including the amazing Rose Bowl appearance in his senior season,” said Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz, who was in his first season as Iowa’s offensive line coach in 1981. “Andre’s career in the National Football League, both as a player and as an administrator, speaks volumes in regards to the work ethic and dedication to succeed he has displayed throughout his life. With Andre recently being inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, it would be very fitting and deserving to see him selected into the College Football Hall of Fame.”
Tippett holds the Iowa record for tackles for loss yardage (153 yards on 20 TFL). He led the Big Ten in tackles for loss as a junior. He served as a team captain as a senior and was selected in the second round of the 1982 NFL Draft by New England.
Tippett enjoyed an outstanding NFL playing career that covered 12 seasons. He was a five-time selection to the Pro Bowl (1984-88) and was named Linebacker of the Year by the NFL Players Association for three straight seasons (1985-87). He ranked seventh on the NFL’s all-time sack list at the time of his retirement, including third among linebackers. He was named Defensive Player of the Year in 1985 for the AFC Champion Patriots.
Tippett was named as a defensive end on Iowa’s all-time team and he is a member of Iowa’s National Varsity Club Hall of Fame. He was inducted into the New England Patriots Hall of Fame in 1999 and the National Football Hall of Fame in 2008. He is a member of the NFL’s 1980 All-Decade Team.
Tippett has been employed by the Patriots since his retirement and currently is the Executive Director of Community Affairs. Tippett and his wife, Rhonda, are the parents of four children: Janea Lynn, Asia, Madison, and Coby.
Linebacker Larry Station, inducted in 2009, is the most recent Hawkeye inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. Former UI coach Hayden Fry was induced in 2003. During his tenure at Iowa, Fry coached three Hall of Fame members, including Tippett, Station and quarterback Chuck Long.