Former Kutztown Golden Bear John Mobley will be inducted into the Division II Hall of Fame later this year. He will be inducted with Fort Valley State's Tyrone Poole. The induction ceremony will take place on December 14th, prior to the Harlon Hill Trophy presentation. Mobley's career at Kutztown was highlighted by awards and honors that are way too numerous to list. Lets just say he is one the PSAC's all time greats. He will be the second Kutztown player to be inducted, following Andre Reed (2002).

I am happy to say that I saw Mobley play during his senior year at Kutztown. When I was growing up as a young sports fan, my dad took me to tons of events. We went to Phillies games, Orioles games, lots of minor league games, Indycar races, sprint car races, and of course quite a few Penn State football games. But we also liked to look for unique opportunities. He took my brother and me to a Maryland game when Florida State was visiting, so we could see Charlie Ward play (my brother was a huge fan). He took me to to see Holy Cross at Bucknell when Gordy Lochbaum was playing for the Crusaders and receiving Heisman Trophy attention. We went to Hershey Stadium to see Wilson High School in a playoff game because their quarterback (Kerry Collins) had already committed to Penn State. Dad could definitely recall that one for you...Collins threw the game winning touchdown pass on the last play of the game, with no time on the clock. When John Mobley was a senior at Kutztown, he was being tabbed as a first round draft choice and getting a lot of attention in the local media. Some kids from our high school football team had gone on to KU, so dad took us to see this great linebacker that they had.

I don't remember who Kutztown played or what the outcome of the game was. But what I do remember is that when I watched the game, it was pretty obvious which player was about to be an NFL first round draft pick. To say he stood out would be an understatement. He had a great afternoon that day (I think he may have even had an interception). The other thing I still remember is how much excitement there was at the game, because of him. Everyone at the game was talking about him, or talking about what NFL teams were there to see him that day. People were discussing what teams they heard were most interested, or where they wanted him to end up. Its not every year a D2 program has a potential first round pick on the roster. It was a unique and exciting experience, and now almost 20 years later, it becomes even more memorable. We can say we saw a Hall of Famer that day.

Due to injuries, John Mobley didn't get to have a long career in the NFL, but he started over 100 games, made the Pro Bowl and was part of two Super Bowl championships. Pretty darn successfull by any standards. So congratulations to John Mobley, Kutztown University and the PSAC for this well deserved honor.