Last Updated on June 3, 2025 10:26 am
BOONE, N.C. — Dino Hackett, one of only five App State Football alums with his jersey retired, is included on the 2026 ballot for induction into the College Football Hall of Fame.
The National Football Foundation (NFF) and College Hall of Fame on Monday announced a candidate list that includes 79 players and nine coaches from the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) and 100 players and 35 coaches from the divisional ranks, which include FCS standouts.
With a voting deadline of July 1, the ballot was emailed Monday to the more than 12,000 NFF members and current Hall of Famers, whose votes will be tabulated and submitted to the NFF's Honors Court, which will deliberate and select the class. The announcement of the 2026 College Football Hall of Fame Class will be made in early 2026.
A first-team All-American in 1985 as a defensive standout for the Mountaineers, Hackett played for App State from 1982-85 and spent eight years in pro football after being a second-round selection of the Kansas City Chiefs in the 1986 NFL Draft. He made the Pro Bowl as a member of the Chiefs in 1988, two years after finishing third in NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year voting.
The native of Greensboro, N.C., still holds nine App State records from his time as a linebacker in Boone, including single-game tackles (27 against ETSU in his final collegiate game) and single-season tackles (200 as a senior). In addition to the 27 tackles, he also finished that 20-3 victory against ETSU with two blocked punts, two fumble recoveries and one interception.
Hackett totaled six games with at least 20 tackles that season and had a streak of 15 consecutive games with double-figure tackles during his career. As a senior, he led the Mountaineers to an 8-3 overall record, a second-place finish in the Southern Conference with a 6-1 mark and a final ranking of No. 12 at the FCS/I-AA level.
The two-time All-SoCon performer completed his App State career with 372 tackles, 26 tackles for loss, four sacks, 10 forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries, four interceptions and 15 pass breakups. He was picked 35th overall by Kansas City, the highest NFL draft pick in App State history at the time, with only Brian Quick's selection of 33rd overall in 2012 surpassing that in program history.
Hackett, who wore No. 38 for the Mountaineers, was inducted into the App State Athletics Hall of Fame in 1995. College Football Hall of Fame inductees Dexter Coakley and Armanti Edwards are two of the four other Mountaineers to have their App State jerseys retired, along with Larry Hand and John Settle.
Coakley and Edwards have been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame based on their accomplishments as App State players, while Jerry Moore and Mack Brown were both head coaches for the Mountaineers. Fisher DeBerry, another College Football Hall of Famer, served as an App State assistant in the 1970s, before he moved on to the Air Force Academy.
Hackett currently resides in Pleasant Garden, N.C., just outside of Greensboro. He has worked as a general contractor and real estate developer since his NFL career ended in 1993.
