Football is officially back as the NFL season is set to kickoff tonight in Canton, Ohio with the Hall of Fame Game. This year’s matchup features the Detroit Lions and the Los Angeles Chargers. While most of the notable players will not be playing, plenty of others will be looking to strengthen their case for a spot on the 53-man roster. Making it on to an NFL roster, even in the preseason, is a significant accomplishment and likely means that the player was once a standout at the college level.
Here are five former college football stars to look out for in the 2025 NFL Hall of Fame Game.
Former North Dakota State Bison quarterback Trey Lance will get the start tonight for the Chargers and is expected to play at least the entire first half. Despite starting just 17 games in college, and playing only one game in 2020 due to the pandemic, Lance was selected third overall in the 2021 draft, but it has been a struggle for him thus far in the league. Lance made a name for himself during the 2019 season in Fargo throwing for over 2,700 yards and 28 touchdowns, while adding 1,100 yards and 14 scores on the ground. That year he led the Bison to an FCS national championship and won the Walter Payton Award as the top offensive player in the FCS.
During his college days, Hendon Hooker was the perfect quarterback for Josh Heupel’s high-powered Tennessee offense. He transferred to Knoxville after three years at Virginia Tech. Over the course of his college career, Hooker threw for just under 9,000 yards and 80 touchdowns and won SEC Offensive Player of the Year as a senior. An injury at the end of his college career really hurt his draft stock, but he was still selected by the Detroit Lions where he has since been the backup.
Hassan Haskins was the wrecking ball on offense for the Michigan Wolverines in 2021 when they finally broke through by beating Ohio State and making it into the College Football Playoff. That season Haskins averaged 94.8 rushing yards per game, with his most notable performance coming against the Buckeyes when he went for 169 yards and five touchdowns. Last season he reunited with his college head coach Jim Harbaugh in Los Angeles. With Chargers first-round pick, and another former college standout, Omarion Hampton expected to see limited action tonight, look for Haskins to carry most of the load.
Junior Colson is another former Michigan Wolverine that Jim Harbaugh brought with him out west. He is also reunited with his college defensive coordinator, Jesse Minter, whose system he thrived in as a fast and athletic linebacker. Colson started in all three of his years in Ann Arbor, leading the team in tackles in both 2022 and 2023 when the Wolverines won the national title. The third-round pick struggled to find a consistent role in his first season in the league, so I would expect to see him get valuable snaps in the HOF game.
Former five-star recruit, Clemson Tiger, and Oregon State Beaver DJ Uiagalelei’s college career ended terribly last season with Florida State. Uiagalelei was a guy that just never lived up to the hype in his college career, but still had a 31-14 record as a starter. He will look for a fresh start in the NFL as a possible back-up, but that looks highly unlikely as he currently sits fourth on the depth chart. Uigalelei is expected to relieve Lance in the second half and finish the game under center for the Chargers.