Florida football legend [autotag]Cris Collinsworth[/autotag], who played wide receiver from 1977 to 1980 for the Gators before going on to have a solid NFL career, added some more hardware to his mantle last Thursday. The Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame announced the UF alumnus as a member of the 2023 class in recognition of his spectacular career on the airwaves after his playing days.
In Gainesville, Collinsworth was a three-time All-SEC and two-time All-American, which led to his induction into the UF Athletic Hall of Fame in 1991. That effort also netted him a second-round selection (37th pick overall) for the Cincinnati Bengals, with whom he earned the Rookie of the Year award in 1981 and made three Pro Bowls. Stats-wise, he caught 417 receptions for 6,698 yards and 36 touchdowns over eight seasons.
After hanging up his cleats, the Gator great switched to broadcasting — a realm he flourished in much like on the gridiron. Collinsworth’s second career began in 1990 when he joined NBC Sports as a game analyst for NFL as well as selected college football broadcasts. Aside from the legendary John Madden, he is the only NFL analyst to earn a Sports Emmy for Outstanding Sports Event Analyst, bringing home nine of them in his career.
Collinsworth currently works alongside Mike Tirico in the NBC Sunday Night Football announcer’s booth.
This year’s inductees also include Val Ackerman, Big East Conference commissioner and first president of the WNBA; Lance Barrow, former CBS Sports producer; Tom Fletcher, inventor of the super-slo-mo camera and other innovations; Steve Hellmuth, former NBA EVP, media operations and technology; Ernie Johnson, long-time NBA on TNT studio-show host; Andrea Joyce, leading sports reporter; Tony Petitti, Big Ten Conference Commissioner and former TV-network executive; Jeff Zachary, legendary camera operator.
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