TEXAS BOWL GRIDIRON LEGENDS CLASS OF 2024 ANNOUNCED
HOUSTON – The Texas Bowl Committee has selected the 2024 class of Gridiron Legends inductees, the committee announced today. The honorees will be inducted into the Gridiron Legends at a special pregame ceremony during the Texas Bowl game at NRG Stadium on Dec. 31.
The 2024 class features Pro Football Hall of Famer’s Eric Dickerson and John Randle, two sport Baylor Bear and All-American linebacker, James Francis, three-time All American kicker at Texas A&M and Pro Bowl New England Patriots kicker, Tony Franklin and legendary head football coach at Pearland High School, Tony Heath.
The Gridiron Legends have each made significant contributions to the game of football in the state of Texas at the high school, collegiate or professional level. The 2024 class joins 100 other Gridiron Legends who have been inducted since the Bowl’s inception in 2006, including Texas greats Earl Campbell, Joe Greene, Andre Ware, Bum Phillips, Jim Nantz, John David Crow, Andre Johnson, Bruce Matthews and Dave Campbell among others.
Eric Dickerson
Eric Dickerson was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1999, capping off a decorated 11-season career with the Rams (1983-86), Colts (1987-91), Raiders (1992) and Falcons (1993). The Texas Sports Hall of Famer, College Football Hall of Famer and Sealy, Texas native began his long list of accolades at Sealy High School. The All-State running back helped lead the football team to a state championship in 1978 with his record-breaking 296-yard and four-touchdown performance. Dickerson spent four years at Southern Methodist University and cemented himself in the record books as a two-time All-American and recorded 4,450-career rushing yards, the third-most in Southwest Conference History. The former Mustang’s successful career in the League began immediately after being drafted by the Rams in 1983. Dickerson won Rookie of the Year (1983) and NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year after breaking rookie records including most rushing attempts (390), most rushing yards (1,808) and most rushing touchdowns (18). Dickerson was dominant throughout his entire career as a five-time All-Pro (1983, 1984, 1986, 1987 and 1988) and a six-time Pro Bowl selection (1983, 1984, 1986, 1987, 1988 and 1989). His efforts off the field are just as prominent as his successes on the field. He currently serves as the Chief Ambassador of Young Warriors, a foundation that empowers young boys with absent fathers, a struggle he encountered as a child, by giving them the tools needed to be successful and eradicate the adversity they face throughout their youth. Dickerson’s legendary career was recently honored when he was selected to the NFL 100th Anniversary Team in 2019.
John Randle
A success story from the start of his NFL career, Randle came to the Vikings in 1990 as an undrafted rookie free agent from Division II Texas A&I. In 1991, he cracked the regular starting lineup and he went on to start 150 of the 176 career games he played. Randle led or tied for the team lead 9 times in his 11 Vikings seasons and had 10+ sacks in 8 straight seasons from 1993-2000. Randle's 114.0 career sacks ranks 3rd in Vikings history and ranks as the most by a DT. Randle earned starting spots for the NFC in 6 straight Pro Bowls, 1993-98, with the Vikings and went to the Pro Bowl in 2001 as a Seahawk, representing the AFC. He was named to the NFL Team of the Decade for the 1990s and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame for his Texas A&I career. The Vikings then honored him as the 2008 selection for induction to the Ring of Honor. Most recently, Randle received the highest honor of the NFL as part of the 2010 Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrinement class. Randle, a Mumford, Texas native has one daughter, Brittany, and he and his wife, Candace, have twins, Ryann and Jonathan.
James Francis
James Francis was the 12th overall pick by the Cincinnati Bengals in the 1990 NFL Draft. Before joining the League, Francis was a Baylor Bear, lettering four years in football and two in basketball. The multi-talented All-American linebacker and Baylor Hall of Famer was the SWC Defensive Player of the Year, earned First-Team All-Conference honors, was named to the Associated Press First-Team and was named AFCA All-America, all in 1989. Before making his way to Waco, Texas, Francis spent his childhood in Houston, attending LaMarque High School where he was an All-State selection. Francis led a successful 11-year professional career with the Bengals (1990-98) and the Washington Redskins (1999). It began with him being named to the PWFA All-Rookie Team (1990) after notching 78 tackles, 8.0 sacks, one interception and one touchdown in 16 games played. He played a total of 143 games in the League, recording 562 tackles (286 solo), 11 interceptions, 11 forced fumbles, eight fumble recoveries and three touchdowns.
Tony Franklin
Native of Big Spring, Texas, Tony Franklin has gone down in history as one of the most dominant kickers in the game. Franklin was the first NFL kicker to kick a field goal while barefoot, earning the nickname, ‘The Barefoot Kicker.' Franklin began kicking shoeless at Arlington Heights High School in Fort Worth, Texas. He is currently one of eight players from the program to have made it to the NFL. He attended Texas A&M and broke 18 NCAA records including most field goals of 50-plus yards (16), most field goals made in a three-year career (45), most field goals in a career (56) and most points off kicks (291). The former Aggie and Sun Bowl Legend was a three-time All-American at Texas A&M. He also made the Sun Bowl All-Time Team and the All-Time All-SWC Team. Continuing his barefoot triumphs after his collegiate career, Franklin was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the third round (74th overall) of the 1979 NFL Draft. He spent a decade on an NFL roster, kicking for the Eagles (1979-83), New England Patriots (1984-87) and the Miami Dolphins (1988). He was selected to the Pro Bowl in 1986 and played in two Super Bowls in his career. He is also part of the NFL 1980’s All-Decade Team.
Tony Heath
Tony Heath, the Abernathy Texas native, began his coaching career in 1985 as a Graduate Assistant at the University of Texas – Arlington and joined Santa Fe High School as a varsity assistant in 1986. Beginning in 1989 he joined the La Marque High School staff and was a part of four state championship appearances which included back-to-back state championships (’95 and ’96) during his eight year tenure. In 1997, Heath was hired as Head Football Coach and Athletic Coordinator at Pearland High School. He inherited a football team that had a 9-90-1 record over the previous ten seasons and led them to the playoffs in his very first season (1997). After missing the playoffs in ’98 and ‘99, he led the Oilers to the playoffs each season since 2000 – a streak which that spanned 17 seasons. During that span, the Oilers made 6 trips to the regional finals, 4 to the state semifinals and 2 to the state championship. His 2010 Oiler squad was Class 5A Team of the year and set a new Pearland record at 16-0 and won the school’s first Class 5A Division I State Championship by defeating then No. 1 nationally-ranked Euless (TX) Trinity 28-24. His final record was 195-53, making him the winningest coach in Pearland history. Over the course of his tenure at Pearland, he received numerous awards and accolades: 2001 Houston Chronicle Coach of the Year, Touchdown Club of Houston Coach of the Year Finalist from 2000 – 2008, Touchdown Club’s Coach of the Year in 2010, District Coach of the Year in 2001, 2005, 2007, 2008 and 2010. He has served on the Board of Directors for both the Greater Houston (President) and Texas High School Coaches Associations and was inducted into the Ronnie Bell Hall of Honor in 2012. Heath also had the privilege of coaching in the Bayou Bowl in 2003, 2007 and 2009. Heath is now working full-time as a business development manager for Hellas Construction and recently joined Athlete Training and Health as a senior consultant.
For tickets and more information regarding the 2024 Texas Bowl featuring the Big 12 versus the SEC, visit https://www.thetexasbowl.com/
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