COLUMBUS, Ohio — Former Ohio State safety Michael Doss was announced Monday as a member of the College Football Hall of Fame class of 2022.
Doss, who is one of eight three-time All-Americans in Ohio State history, will become the school’s 27th player to join the College Football Hall of Fame.
He famously came back for his senior season in 2002 to help lead the Buckeyes to a national championship.
Doss, a team captain and Thorpe Award finalist, was part of the team that went 14-0, won a Big Ten championship and defeated Miami in the Fiesta Bowl to claim the BCS National Championship.
He was named the Defensive MVP of the 31-24 double-overtime victory over the Hurricanes after recording nine tackles and a 35-yard interception that led to the Buckeyes’ first touchdown of the game.
The 2002 season was the first 14-0 season in school history and its first undefeated season since 1973.
Doss was named the 2002 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and was a three-time first-team All-Big Ten selection.
He led Ohio State in tackles as a sophomore and junior with 94 and 87 respectively before recording a personal best 107 tackles in his last season.
Doss has the most career tackles by a defensive back in Ohio State history (331) and his 228 career solo tackles are fifth-most all-time.
In his career in Columbus, Doss played in 50 games with 40 starts.
Doss, who was inducted into the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame in 2011, played for College Football Hall of Fame coaches John Cooper and Jim Tressel.
The Indianapolis Colts drafted Doss in the second round of the 2003 NFL Draft. He played four seasons with the Colts and was part of the team that won Super Bowl XLI.
Doss went on to play one season each with the Minnesota Vikings and Cincinnati Bengals in 2007 and 2008 respectively.
In 2005, he founded the Michael A. Doss Foundation, which focuses on education and social welfare. He has also hosted “Make a Difference” youth camps.
He earned a master’s in business operational excellence from Ohio State in 2019 and is now a licensed real estate agent for the Robert Weiler Company.
Doss and the rest of the 2022 class will be officially inducted during the 64th National Football Foundation Annual Awards Dinner on Dec. 6.
