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Al Harris is in the running to become only the second player from Hawaii to be named to the College Football Hall of Fame.
Harris, a 1975 Leilehua High graduate, is among 76 players on the National Football Foundation ballot for the 2012 Hall class. Voting concludes at the end of the month.
Harris was an All-American defensive end in 1978 for Arizona State, where he had 19 sacks and was a Lombardi Award and Outland Trophy finalist.
His NFL career spanned 12 years with the Bears and Eagles. He was selected ninth overall by the Bears in the 1979 NFL Draft — the highest a player from Hawaii has ever been chosen.
Saint Mary’s and Saint Louis School running back Herman Wedemeyer is the only player from Hawaii currently among the more than 800 honorees in the South Bend, Ind.-based Hall of Fame. He was inducted in 1979.
Clark Shaughnessy, who was the UH head coach in 1965, was named to the coaches’ wing in 1968.
Eric Dickerson, Art Monk, Vinny Testaverde and Ty Detmer are among the others on the ballot this year. Generally, 11 to 12 players are voted in each year, officials said.
To be eligible for the Hall of Fame ballot, a player must have been named a first-team All-American by an NCAA-recognized outlet, have ended his career at least 10 years before nomination and no longer be playing pro football.