Why Stetson Bennett Isn’t Eligible for College Football Hall of Fame

A National Football Foundation rule could shut him out of enshrinement in Atlanta.

Former Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett may not have been a statistically overwhelming quarterback like some of his peers, but it's hard to argue against his importance of telling the story of college football in the 2020s.

However, according to current National Football Foundation rules, Bennett would be ineligible for the College Football Hall of Fame.

That’s because Bennett, despite finishing fourth in Heisman Trophy voting in 2022, was never a first-team All-American. Players must achieve first-team All-American status as a requirement for enshrinement in Atlanta, as Saturday Down South’s Connor O’Gara pointed out in a tweet during the national title game on Jan. 9.

Bennett quarterbacked Georgia to national championships in 2021 and ’22, helping the Bulldogs end a 41-year title drought on the national stage. He was named the offensive MVP of Georgia’s wins over Michigan in the ’21 Orange Bowl, Alabama in the ’22 national championship, Ohio State in the ’22 Peach Bowl and TCU in the ’23 national championship.

Similar controversy erupted after the December death of Mississippi State coach Mike Leach, who would be ineligible due to the Hall’s winning percentage requirement.