Former Owl Tyler Matekavich Added To College Football HOF 2027 Ballot
Tagged under: News, Pennsylvania Colleges, Temple
Mike Livingston | June 1, 2026
Former Temple linebacker Tyler Matakevich has been added to the ballot for the 2027 College Football Hall of Fame.
If elected, he’d be just the second Owls player ever elected to the College Football Hall of Fame, joining running back Paul Palmer, who was elected back in 2018. Three coaches, Glenn “Pop” Warner (1951), Ray Morrison (1954), and Wayne Hardin (2013), have also been elected.
The announcement comes from the National Football Foundation (NFF), which nominated 80 former FBS players and nine coaches, while also nominating 99 players and 39 coaches from the NCAA Division II and III ranks, along with the NAIA.
Matakevich is undoubtedly one of the most deserving players in Temple football history.
“We are so proud of Tyler’s accomplishments, and he continues to represent Temple so well,” said Temple Vice President and Debbie and Stanley Lefkowitz ’65 Director of Athletics Arthur Johnson. “While I was not here during Tyler’s time as a student-athlete, I am very well aware of his achievements. He was a tackling machine, but more importantly, he was a leader who helped raise the level of those around him. It’s no surprise that his years at Temple were some of the best years in the history of our football program.”
Hailing from Trumbull, Connecticut, Matakevich spent the 2012 through 2015 seasons with the Owls before being selected 246th overall in the 2016 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers.
His time with the Owls can be seen as unparalleled by many, as he racked up numerous achievements, including recording 101 tackles during his freshman year, becoming the first freshman to eclipse triple digits, earning Freshman All-American honors, and All-Big East Freshman honors.
He followed that up with 106 and 117 tackles in his sophomore and junior seasons, along with a monster 138 in his senior 2015 season, when the Owls garnered national attention during one of the best seasons in program history.
Matakevich took home consensus All-American honors, earning the Bronko Nagurski Trophy, Chuck Bednarik Award, and AAC Defensive Player of the Year honors.
He went on to play nine seasons in the NFL with Pittsburgh and Buffalo, being named a captain for both franchises.
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