From Hugh McElhenny at Washington to John Elway at Granada Hills, Tom Brady at Junipero Serra and many more, California has been a hotbed for high school football for more than a century.
There has been an abundance of California prep stars who have gone on to celebrated NFL careers and many of them were recognized Monday when the 100-player inaugural class of the California High School Football Hall of Fame was announced at the Rose Bowl by the Rose Bowl Legacy Foundation.
The aforementioned McElhenny, Elway, current San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch (Torrey Pines), Marcus Allen (Lincoln), Ronnie Lott (Eisenhower) and Anthony Munoz (Chaffey) were among the 29 Pro Football Hall of Famers on the list, according to NFL Research.
That number will undoubtedly climb with Brady and Aaron Rodgers (Pleasant Valley) in the distinguished class.
Current Washington Commanders head coach Ron Rivera (Seaside) is also in the class, as is legendary Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Jackie Robinson, who was a multisport start at John Muir High in Pasadena.
Two NFL Network analysts also made the cut: Willie McGinest and Maurice Jones-Drew. McGinest is one of six Long Beach Poly products on the list as the Jackrabbits have a long history of producing NFL talent. Jones-Drew, who starred at Northern California powerhouse Concord De La Salle, is one of three Spartans to be recognized.
Jones-Drew is joined by his high school coach, Bob Ladouceur, who is accompanied by California coaching luminaries such as Mike Herrington, Bill Redell, Kevin Rooney and Harry Welch, among others, in a 13-coach group.
The class of 100 players is emblematic of the Rose Bowl Stadium’s 100th year. In the future, classes will be enshrined every other year and of a smaller size. The first class was selected by a 26-member committee that included members of the media and administrators from California.
The California High School Football Hall of Fame will be located at the Rose Bowl and is set to open in late-November, with an induction ceremony for the inaugural class set for the spring of 2023.
A full list of the class members is below:
California High School Football Hall of Fame inaugural class of players
California High School Football Hall of Fame inaugural class of coaches