The National Football Foundation (NFF) and College Football Hall of Fame announced the 2023 College Football Hall of Fame Class on
Monday afternoon.
The 2023 Hall of Fame Class features two Big 12 honorees in Kansas State’s Michael Bishop (1997-98) and Texas’ Derrick Johnson (2001-04).
Bishop held a 22-3 record as K-State’s quarterback under Hall of Fame Coach Bill Snyder during the 1997 and 1998 seasons. The Willis, Texas native is the fourth K-State player to be selected to the College Football Hall of Fame.
He received the Davey O’Brien Award and was named a consensus First Team All-American during the 1998 season while being named the Heisman Trophy runner-up and a finalist for the Maxwell and Johnny Unitas Golden Arm awards.
During his time at Kansas State, the Wildcats won back-to-back Big 12 North titles, made the program’s first berth in a conference championship and had two bowl appearances (Alamo Bowl and Fiesta Bowl). The two-time All-Big 12 honoree rushed for 1,314 yards and 23 touchdowns while he threw for 4,401 yards and 36 touchdowns. The 2016 K-State Athletics Hall of Fame inductee was named to the school’s Ring of Honor in 2015.
Selected in the seventh-round by the New England Patriots in 1999, Bishop played two seasons in the NFL before leading the Toronto Argonauts to a CFL Grey Cup in 2004. He also claimed an Arena Bowl Championship when he was with the Chicago Rush.
Off the field, he is the head football coach at Legacy School of Sport Sciences in Houston, Texas and is the CEO of 4
th Quarter Fitness. In his free time, he engages with the Boys and Girls Club, Toys for Tots, and Habitat for Humanity and volunteers regularly with youth football and basketball teams.
Johnson played under Hall of Fame Coach Mack Brown and is the 21
st Texas player to be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
Earning consensus First Team All-American in 2003 followed by a unanimous selection the following season, he also claimed the Butkus Award and the Bronko Nagurski Trophy in 2004. Johnson finished 12
th in the Heisman Trophy awards and was a finalist for the Bednarik, Lombardi and Lott IMPACT awards while earning Big 12 Defensive Player and Big 12 Male Athlete of the Year recognitions. As a freshman in 2001, he was named a First-Team Freshman All-American, the Sporting News National Freshman of the Year and the Big 12 Co-Defensive Freshman of the Year.
In four seasons with the Longhorns, the linebacker helped Texas to a 43-8 record and four bowl appearances. A three-time All-Big 12 First Team honoree, his 458 career tackles and 280 solo tackles are still program records. Johnson forced 11 fumbles, which included his nine in 2004 that tied for most in the NCAA, and had five fumble recoveries in his tenure at Texas. Other season records include tackles for loss (65), sacks (10.5), pass breakups (30) and interceptions (9).
Chosen as the 15
th overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft, Johnson played for the Kansas City Chiefs (2005-2017) and the Oakland Raiders (2018). He was a four-time Pro Bowler and is the Chiefs’ all-time tackle leader (1,262). He has been inducted into the Texas Athletics Hall of Honor, Texas Sports Hall of Fame, Missouri Sports Hall of Fame and Texas High School Football Hall of Fame.
Johnson founded and serves as the director of the Defend the Dream Foundation in Austin, Texas. The organization provides low-income and inner-city youth opportunities and resources that help them reach their full potential in school and life.
The full Hall of Fame class can be found
here.