The Biletnikoff Award began in 1994 to honor the most outstanding receiver in college football each season. Before Michael Crabtree came along, no receiver had ever won it twice.
Texas Tech's sensational pass catcher won the Biletnikoff in his first two seasons to play, setting eight NCAA records and twice earning unanimous all-America recognition. Now he's a member of the College Football Hall of Fame.
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Crabtree was among 18 former players and three former coaches inducted in the class of 2022. The ceremonies took place during the 64th National Football Foundation awards dinner Tuesday at the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada.
"The journey itself was the best thing for me," Crabtree said of his college experience. "I miss it. It's something that's once in a lifetime, and while being there we changed lives and changed the program forever."
After redshirting his freshman year of 2006, Crabtree caught 134 passes for 1,962 yards and 22 touchdowns in 2007 and caught 97 passes for 1,165 yards and 19 TDs in 2008. The Red Raiders finished 9-4 with a Gator Bowl victory over Virginia in 2007 and 11-2 with a Cotton Bowl loss to Mississippi in 2008.
Crabtree said the Air Raid offense the Red Raiders ran under Leach "changed the game," adding that "the whole NFL is run-and-gun, spread offense, getting everybody the ball 20 times a game."
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"I got the green light at Texas Tech, and I took advantage of it and we had fun," he said. "It was like Steph Curry with the Warriors."
One of Crabtree's 231 receptions stands out among the rest. He's best known for catching a 28-yard touchdown pass with one second left that lifted Tech to a 39-33 victory against Texas on Nov. 1, 2008, the ninth win in a 10-0 start.
"It still means a lot," Crabtree said. "I think we kind of like trumped Texas in that game. I mean, it put Texas Tech on the map. It put me on the map. It put (quarterback) Graham (Harrell), Mike Leach, the whole staff. It was a legendary moment. It changed the program forever."
Crabtree came to Tech from Dallas Carter, where he played quarterback and was a standout in basketball.
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"There's a lot of guys that had a lot to do with it," Crabtree said. "As far as recruiting guys, Sonny Dykes, Mike Leach, Bob Knight. He (Knight) gave me my first scholarship, and it was basketball. It wasn't even football. So it's a group of people that got me to go to Tech."
Crabtree declared for the NFL draft after his sophomore season. Chosen 10th overall by San Francisco in 2009, he played 11 seasons with the 49ers, Oakland Raiders, Baltimore Ravens and Arizona Cardinals.
On Tuesday, he was on a dais with 17 other players who had been first-team all-Americans, a requirement to be considered for the College Football Hall of Fame. He said the magnitude of moment hit him, being seated alongside former Georgia star Champ Bailey, who three years ago was a first-ballot selection for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
"I didn't know about it beforehand," Crabtree said. "I was on a mission, on a journey. But now I guess this comes with it. I'm feeling it. I'm feeling it. I don't think it hit me until I was on stage and seeing all the guys next to me ... and I'm saying, 'Man, this is Hall of Fame. This is major.'
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"The coaches, 30, 40 years removed and getting inducted into the Hall of Fame. I'm like, man, that's major. So it's hit me now."
Crabtree is the seventh member of the College Football Hall of Fame from Texas Tech. He follows E.J. Holub, inducted in 1986, Donny Anderson (1989), Dave Parks (2008), Gabriel Rivera (2012), Jerry Moore (2014) and Zach Thomas (2015). Moore had a losing record as the Red Raiders' coach from 1981-85, but as Appalachian State coach from 1989 through 2012, he went 215-87 with 18 playoff appearances in Division I-AA/FCS and three national championships.
Among the other inductees was the late Billy Jack Murphy, who went 91-44-1 from 1958-71 as coach at then-Memphis State. Murphy was born in Lorenzo in 1921. He died in 2008.
Class of 2022 inductees
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The following former players and coaches were inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame during the 64th National Football Foundation awards dinner on Tuesday in Las Vegas, Nevada.
LaVar Arrington, LB, Penn State, 1997-99
Champ Bailey, DB, Georgia, 1996-98
Michael Crabtree, WR, Texas Tech, 2007-08
Sylvester Croom, C, Alabama, 1972-74
Mike Doss, S, Ohio State, 1999-2002
Chuck Ealey, QB, Toledo, 1969-71
Kevin Faulk, RB, LSU, 1995-98
Moe Gardner, DT, Illinois, 1987-90
Boomer Grigsby, LB, Illinois State, 2001-04
Mike Hass, WR, Oregon State, 2002-05
Marvin Jones, LB, Florida State, 1990-92
Andrew Luck, QB, Stanford, 2009-11
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Mark Messner, DT, Michigan, 1985-88
Terry Miller, RB, Oklahoma State, 1974-77
Rashaan Salaam, RB, Colorado, 1992-94
Dennis Thomas, C, Alcorn State, 1971-73
Zach Wiegert, OT, Nebraska, 1991-94
Roy Williams, S, Oklahoma, 1999-2001
Coach John Luckhardt, 225-70-2, Washington & Jefferson (Penn.), 1982-98; California (Penn.), 2002-11
Coach Billy Jack Murphy, 91-44-1, Memphis, 1958-71
Coach Gary Pinkel, 191-110-3, Toledo, 1991-2000; Missouri, 2001-15
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal:
Michael Crabtree, 'on a mission, on a journey,' lands in College Football Hall of Fame
