Grant Wistrom was one of the last names you could associate with the great Nebraska football teams of the past.
He made his presence felt on the field day in and day out under then-Nebraska coach Tom Osborne, eventually finding his way to the NFL where he spent most of his time with the St. Louis Rams and Seattle Seahawks.
Now, Wistrom receieves an honor he truly deserved.
On December 8th, Wistrom will be inducted as the 14th player in Nebraska football history to be inducted into the Hall–the first Nebraska player since 1983 Heisman winner Mike Rozier, who was inducted in 2006.
Of course Wistrom took care of all his pleasantries like he would if he were receiving a Grammy. He thanked his coaches, particularly Osborne and why shouldn’t he. Wistrom even said he thanked him for making him the player he was on and the man he was off it.
Without Osborne and other coaches, Wistrom wouldn’t have been able to grow half as well as he did in Lincoln. Wistrom was a vital part to a span in Nebraska history that spawned the most dominant team in a 4-year period in college football history.
Wistrom was a Husker from 1994 to 1997, and in turn, the Big Red was able to reel in a few championship trophies in the process. As long as Wistrom had an “N” on his helmet, the Huskers were unstoppable, going a rediculous 49-2 in that span.
Not many players in college football can go to a school for a mere four years and come out of it with three NCAA national championships. It was a dominance of college football that hasn’t been replicated since.
The closest school to doing it would be the USC Trojans. They had a chance of a lifetime to win three-consecutive national championships to stand alone as possibly college football’s most dominant team, but the Longhorns from Texas had a thing or two to say about that.
Wistrom’s induction to the College Football Hall of Fame is just another mark on the illustrious prestige of Nebraska football. You’d have to think, there might be a couple more names from those Nebraska teams joining Wistrom in the Hall sooner or later.