Wilber Marshall inducted into Florida's Ring of Honor

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Former NFL star linebacker Wilber Marshall had tears rolling down his cheeks as he was inducted into Florida's Ring of Honor on Saturday.

Marshall, wearing a white Gators shirt, a blue hat and both of his Super Bowl rings, joined Emmitt Smith, Steve Spurrier, Danny Wuerffel and Jack Youngblood as the only players in the school's football hall of fame. The other four made up last year's inaugural class.

Marshall wasn't eligible for Florida's Ring of Honor last season, and his omission from the first induction ceremony raised eyebrows.

The Gators responded by softening the strict criteria to "players with two or more consensus All-American honors who have also been named national offensive/defensive players of the year."

Previous rules required that inductees be former Heisman Trophy winners, former All-Americans who had been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, former players who were NCAA career category leaders, coaches who won national championships at Florida, coaches who won at least three conference championships at Florida, three-time consensus All-Americans and two-time national offensive or defensive players of the year.

Marshall was a two-time consensus All-American and the 1983 national defensive player of the year. He was a first-round draft pick by the Chicago Bears in 1984 and enjoyed a 12-year NFL career. He was a three-time All-Pro selection (1986, '87 and '92) and earned Super Bowl rings with Chicago and Washington.

Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press

This story is from ESPN.com's automated news wire. Wire index

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