Legendary Coach Long named Class of 2025 Inductee for Black College Football Hall of Fame
Legendary Wiley University football and men's basketball coach Fred "Pop" Long is one of six people who will be inducted into the Black College Football Hall of Fame on June 7.
Long was selected out of 28 finalists by the BCFHOF committee made up of prominent journalists, commentators, historians, former NFL General Managers and executives and BCFHOF members. The Class of 2025 will be honored in a ceremony in Atlanta, Ga. They will also be recognized at halftime of the AllState HBCU Legacy Bowl at Yulman Stadium in New Orleans on February 22.
At Wiley, he led the Wildcats to Southwestern Athletic Conference football titles in 1923, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1930, 1932, 1944, 1945, 1956 and 1957. Wiley won the 1928, 1932 and 1945 Black College Football National Championships. In 35 seasons at Wiley, he won 189 games. Long won 224 games in his 43-year career which also included stops at Paul Quinn College, Prairie View A&M University and Texas College.
Long passed away in 1966 but his legacy lives on. He was inducted as a charter member into his alma mater Milikin University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1970. In 1996, he was inducted into the Texas Black Sports Hall of Fame. The Southwestern Athletic Conference inducted him into their Hall of Fame in 2001. In January 2010, he was honored with the 2009 American Football Coaches Association Trailblazer award.
About the Black College Football Hall of Fame
The Black College Football Hall of Fame was founded in 2009 by African-American pioneers, quarterbacks James Harris and Doug Williams to preserve the history and honor the greatest football players, coaches and contributors from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). There have been over 100 Inductees since inception, including Mel Blount, James Harris, Willie Lanier, Art Shell and Doug Williams, who serve as Trustees.
The Black College Football Hall of Fame (BCFHOF) will soon have a permanent home at the Pro Football Hall of Fame (PFHOF) to tell the story of HBCUs.
About Wiley University Athletics
Wiley University sponsors 12 varsity sports, women's volleyball, men's and women's soccer, men's and women's cross country, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's indoor track and field, men's and women's outdoor track and field and baseball. It competes in the Historically Black Colleges and Universities Athletic Conference (HBCUAC) and the Continental Athletic Conference for men's and women's soccer.
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