Former Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Commissioner Dr. Dennis E. Thomas will be inducted as part of the 2022 College Football Hall of Fame class, which was officially unveiled on Monday.
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As an offensive lineman at Alcorn State, Thomas was a two-time Pittsburgh Courier All-American (1972, 1973), and he was named the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Offensive Player of the Year in 1973 – the first and only offensive lineman to win the award.
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He beat out Jackson State legend Walter Payton for the award that season.
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Thomas was a member of the Braves’ 1970 SWAC championship team, and his teams went a combined 27-8-1.
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Following his playing career, Thomas embarked on an athletics administration career that saw him serve as an assistant coach at his alma mater, a head coach at South Carolina State from 1986-88, Director of Athletics at Hampton University and Commissioner of the MEAC from 2002-21.
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Thomas has also been inducted into the Black College Football Hall of Fame (2020), Alcorn State Athletics Hall of Fame (2010), Hampton University Athletics Hall of Fame (2009) and Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Hall of Fame (2003).
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The 2022 College Football Hall of Fame Class will be officially inducted during the 64th NFF Annual Awards Dinner on Dec. 6, 2022, and permanently immortalized at the Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta, Ga. They will also be honored at their respective schools with an NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salute, presented by Fidelity Investments, during the 2022 season.
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About the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
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The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) is in its 51st year of intercollegiate competition with the 2021-22 academic school year. Located in Norfolk, Va., the MEAC is made up of eight outstanding historically black institutions across the Atlantic coastline: Coppin State University, Delaware State University, Howard University, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, Morgan State University, Norfolk State University, North Carolina Central University and South Carolina State University.
