“Gibby” Heads to College Football Hall of Fame

He is better known for one of the greatest memories in Major League Baseball history, but people forget his prowess on the gridiron.

Kirk Gibson, the Waterford native that played for his hometown Detroit Tigers and Los Angeles Dodgers, later managing the Arizona Diamondbacks, was named one of 13 inductees into the College Football Hall of Fame for 2016.

Gibson played all four years at Michigan State and was part of the Spartans' Big Ten Championship team in 1978. Even though most of his receiving records have disappeared in recent years some of Gibson's records remain, including yards per catch for a career (21.96).

In a statement to Michigan State, Gibson responded graciously to the honor.

"It's an incredible honor to be selected to the College Football Hall of Fame. But I would be remiss if I didn't recognize all those who were there to lift me up when I was down, or those who kicked me in the a-- when it was warranted. I was blessed to have dedicated and supportive family, friends, teammates and coaches. This award is in honor of all of them and significant in illustrating the power of we."

There are several other places where Gibson's name pops up in the MSU record books. He is still 20th in career receptions (112), tied for fourth in receiving yards (2,347), third in touchdown catches (24), and fourth in yards per catch in a season (24.14).

Other 2016 inductees announced today include Steve Spurrier (already in as a player at Florida), Peyton Manning (Tennessee), Marshall Faulk (San Diego State), Matt Leinhart (Southern California), Bob McKay (Texas), Dat Nguyen (Texas A & M), Adrian Peterson (Georgia Southern), Mike Ruth (Boston College) and Brian Urlacher (New Mexico).

The College Football Hall of Fame, now located in Atlanta, was formally located in South Bend, Indiana, until 2012.

The induction ceremony is December 5th.