Salute to Rickey Dixon Set for Sunday

NORMAN — The University of Oklahoma and The National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame announced Thursday that they will jointly honor 2019 electee Rickey Dixon with an NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salute, presented by Fidelity Investments. The salute will take place at halftime of the Sooners' football season opener against Houston. Coverage of the game will start at 6:30 p.m. CT on ABC.

"Someone sent a football here. It said 'College Football Hall of Fame' on it. We were like, 'What?'" Rickey's wife, Lorraine, told the Tulsa World in January on behalf of her husband who has been battling amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Lou Gehrig's disease, since 2013. "He had a big smile on his face. Rickey is always very humble. He had a big smile on his face. I don't think he really realized it, though, until today."

The NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salute program, which began with the inaugural College Football Hall of Fame Class in 1951, has become a hallowed tradition, and to this day, the singular events remain the first of numerous activities in each inductee's Hall of Fame experience. During the NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salutes, each inductee returns to his alma mater or college where he coached to accept a Hall of Fame plaque that will remain on permanent display at the institution. The events take place on the field during a home game, and many inductees cite the experience as the ultimate capstone to their careers, providing them one more chance to take the field and hear the crowd roar their name.

"In a long line of Oklahoma greats, Rickey Dixon stands out as one of the best defensive players to ever suit up for the Sooners," said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. "He helped the team to a national title and set multiple school and conference records along the way. We are thrilled to honor him at Memorial Stadium."

A consensus first-team All-American in 1987, Dixon was the recipient of the Jim Thorpe Award as the best defensive back in the nation after leading the Big Eight Conference with nine interceptions (a single-season school record). The two-time first-team All-Big Eight selection guided the Sooners to four consecutive conference titles and two wins in four Orange Bowl berths. As a sophomore, Dixon played a key role in Oklahoma's 1985 national championship season, which culminated with a win over Penn State in the 1986 Orange Bowl.

He was the Big Eight Defensive Player of the Week four times during his stellar 1987 season, and he intercepted two passes in the game that year between No. 1 Nebraska and No. 2 Oklahoma, which was billed as the "Game of the Century II." The Sooners won 17-7 on the road.

Dixon finished his career with 17 interceptions, which stood as a conference record for almost 20 years and rank as the second most in Oklahoma history. A member of the Big Eight All-Time All-Conference Team, he also tallied 170 tackles and 303 interception return yards while leading the Sooners to a 42-5-1 record during his four seasons.

The Dallas native will join his coach, Barry Switzer, and teammates Brian Bosworth, Tony Casillas and Keith Jackson in the College Football Hall of Fame.
The fifth overall pick by Cincinnati in the 1988 NFL Draft, Dixon played five seasons for the Bengals before finishing his career with the Los Angeles Raiders in 1993. He helped the Bengals reach Super Bowl XXIII following the 1988 season.

Following his football career, Dixon became a motivational speaker for at-risk youth. He also owned a landscaping business, coached high school football and taught physical education at Red Oak High School in Texas before beginning his brave battle with ALS in 2013.

Dixon becomes the 22nd Sooner player to be inducted, joining Brian Bosworth (1984-86), Tom Brahaney (1970-72), Kurt Burris (1951-54), Tony Casillas (1982-85), Forest Geyer (1913-15), Keith Jackson (1984-87), Tommy McDonald (1954-56), Jim Owens (1946-49), Steve Owens (1967-69), Greg Pruitt (1970-72), Claude Reeds (1910-13), J.D. Roberts (1951-53), Lee Roy Selmon (1972-75), Rod Shoate (1972-74), Billy Sims (1975-79), Clendon Thomas (1955-57), Jerry Tubbs (1954-56), Billy Vessels (1950-52), Joe Washington (1972-75), Jim Weatherall (1948-51) and Waddy Young (1936-38).
Five former Oklahoma coaches are also in the Hall: Biff Jones (1935-36), Bennie Owen (1905-26), Barry Switzer (1973-88), Jim Tatum (1946) and Bud Wilkinson (1947-63).

Including the 2019 class, only 1,010 players and 219 coaches have been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame from the nearly 5.4 million people who have played or coached the game over the past 150 years. In other words, less than two one-hundredths of a percent (.02%) of those who have set foot on the gridiron have earned the distinction. Click here for a complete list of players and coaches in the Hall.

The 2019 College Football Hall of Fame Class will be officially inducted during the 62nd NFF Annual Awards Dinner at the New York Hilton Midtown on Tuesday, Dec. 10. This year's College Football Hall of Fame Class includes: Terrell Buckley (Florida State), Rickey Dixon (Oklahoma), London Fletcher (John Carroll [OH]), Jacob Green (Texas A&M), Torry Holt (North Carolina State), Raghib "Rocket" Ismail (Notre Dame), Darren McFadden (Arkansas), Jake Plummer (Arizona State), Troy Polamalu (Southern California), Joe Thomas (Wisconsin), Lorenzo White (Michigan State), Patrick Willis (Mississippi), Vince Young (Texas) and coaches Dennis Erickson (Idaho, Wyoming, Washington State, Miami [FL], Oregon State, Arizona State) and Joe Taylor (Howard, Virginia Union, Hampton, Florida A&M).

The 2019 Class will also be honored during the 15th Annual National Hall of Fame Salute at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl on Dec. 28, and will be forever immortalized at the Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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