CHICAGO, Ill. – Former Slippery Rock University and Arena Football League standout Greg Hopkins was included in a group of six individuals who will comprise the Arena Football Hall of Fame Class of 2013, league commissioner Jerry B. Kurz announced last Saturday.
The announcement was made during halftime of the league championship game, which will be aired August 17 on CBS Television Network.
Hall of Fame inductions will be held during the 2014 Arena Football League regular season, according to a league press release.
The Hall of Fame class was selected through a combination of votes cast by fans, the Arena Football Hall of Fame Advisory Board and current Arena Football Hall of Fame members.
In order to be nominated for the Hall of Fame, candidates had to meet four criteria. A player active before 1989 must have played for at least two seasons, a player active after 1989 needed a minimum of three seasons of service, all players must be retired for three full seasons and coaches must have been active for a minimum of five seasons, but need not be retired.
Hopkins, who played 10 seasons as a wide receiver/linebacker in the AFL and set the league record for career interceptions returned for a touchdown with eight, earned the league's Ironman Award in 2002 as the top two-way performer. He received All-Arena honors in four seasons (1998, 2000, 2002 and 2003 and was an active member of the AFL Players Association's executive board.
A four-year letterman and three-time All-America and Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference selection at SRU, Hopkins remains The Rock's all-time leader in pass receptions (215), pass receiving yards (3,382) and pass receiving touchdowns (28). He also set Rock single-season records with 83 receptions for 1,283 yards and 12 TDs as a senior in 1994.
In addition to lettering in football, Hopkins earned two letters and an alternate berth to the NCAA Division I wrestling national tournament and secured a PSAC Championships berth in his only season on the outdoor track and field team.
A GTE/CoSIDA Academic All-America selection in his senior year, Hopkins was inducted into the SRU Athletic Hall of Fame in 2005.
Away from football, Hopkins, a 1995 graduate of SRU, native of Nineveh and 1990 graduate of Waynesburg High School, Hopkins served as Morris Township Auditor and acting president of the township's community center committee. Hopkins was also an unsuccessful candidate for state representative.
Joining Hopkins in the AFL Hall of Fame Class of 2013 will be five-time wide receiver/linebacker Cory Fleming, four-time All-Ironman wide receiver/linebacker Darryl Hammond, three-time ArenaBowl champion fullback/linebacker Bob McMillen, AFL Supervisor of Officials Carl T. Paganelli and wide receiver/linebacker Lawrence Samuels, a five-time All-Arena selection, three-time ArenaBowl champion and MVP of ArenaBowl XVII.
