25 best college football players not in the College Football Hall of Fame (yet)

NEW YORK - DECEMBER 14: Carson Palmer of the University of Southern California speaks with the press after winning the 68th annual Heisman Trophy Award at The Yale Club December 14, 2002 in New York City. The USC quarterback became the first west coast player win the trophy since 1981. Palmer received 242 first-place votes winning by 233 over second place Iowa quarterback Brad Banks. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) /

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Tony Gonzalez #44 of the California Golden Bears (Photo by David Madison/Getty Images) /

23. Tony Gonzalez, California, TE

Tony Gonzalez is the only two-sport athlete on this list. He played at California Berkley college, where he starred in basketball and football. Obviously, this is the College Football Hall of Fame, but the narrative of a two-sport athlete has to help his case at least a little bit. It’s not like he was anything less than spectacular on the field.

He was a consensus All-American in 1996. He caught 44 balls for 699 yards and five touchdowns. He was never going to have numbers that looked like Ja’Marr Chase or other star wide receivers, but as a tight end, that’s a fantastic season. Add in the fact that when he was done he went to become a pretty good basketball player adds to the legacy.

In all honesty, Gonzalez is a better NFL Hall of Fame case than he is a college case. Don’t get this wrong, he was a superstar on the field, but when he skipped his senior year, it really hurt his overall stats. He was a big-play maker in his junior season, averaging 15.9 yards per reception for the Golden Bears.

Gonzalez was also a product of the talent around him. His quarterbacks were Dave Barr and Pat Barnes. Imagine if he was able to play with Kyle Boller, who was there two years after he left. There’s no stopping Gonzalez if he had Aaron Rodgers as his quarterback.

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