For his efforts with the Wildcats, the former Patriots linebacker was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame class of 2013. In four seasons at Arizona, Bruschi tied the Division I-A record for career sacks with 52. He added 185 tackles, 74 tackles for loss, six forced fumbles and five recovered fumbled to his impressive resume.
Bruschi was a first-team All-American in 1994 and 1995 and won the Morris Trophy his senior season as the Pac-10’s best defensive lineman. He was drafted No. 86 overall in 1996 by the Patriots and was moved to outside linebacker by Bill Parcells. Bruschi eventually made the move to inside linebacker, a rare move for a college defensive end. Bruschi went on to win three Super Bowls in New England and play in two more.
The rest of this year’s College Football Hall of Fame includes Nebraska quarterback Tommie Frazier, Florida quarterback Danny Wuerffel, Wisconsin running back Ron Dayne, Miami quarterback Vinny Testaverde, NC State’s Ted Brown, Texas’ Jerry Gray, Kentucky’s Steve Meilinger, Ohio State’s Orlando Pace, Oklahoma’s Rod Shoate, Michigan State’s Percy Snow and Baylor’s Don Trull. Coaches Wayne Hardin and Bill McCartney were also inducted.
