Top Five ACC Football Graduates in the Hall of Fame

Neon Deion played cornerback with supreme athletic ability and unbelievable confidence making him one of the greatest of all-time. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

4. Deion Sanders, CB, Florida State

Putting Deion Sanders here really was tough because I do consider him one of the greatest corners of all-time. Not only was Deion one of the greatest athletes, he played with a confidence that mirrored that of Richard Sherman. Deion never thought he could get beat in coverage, and was an elite return man with the sweet moves the back up his talk. Sanders return skills saw him finish his career with six punt return touchdowns and three kick return touchdowns.

Also impressive was his 53 career interceptions, with nine being returned for touchdowns and blanket coverage that routinely had quarterbacks looking in the other direction.

In addition to the stats on paper, Deion also was one of the “big” corners who at 6’1” could match up with any receiver, had the quickness and speed to cover any route, and the smarts to read the quarterback’s eyes.

If I was ranking the top athletes of all time in the NFL, forget the ACC, I would most likely put him number one, but since I only have five spots for the greatest ACC graduates in the Hall of Fame, Deion gets stuck at number four.

Next: No. 3 Ranked ACC Graduate