4-year USC safety Taylor Mays included on 2026 College Football HoF ballot

Three-time Rose Bowl winner and three-time Pac-10 champion Taylor Mays left his mark on college football while at USC. The hard-hitting safety made it a huge risk for the opposing quarterback to look to hit his wide receivers downfield at any point during the game.

After four years with the Trojans, Mays left for the NFL as a second-round draft pick. With 276 tackles and five interceptions while patrolling the USC secondary, the defensive player has now earned an additional well-deserved recognition.

Released on Monday, the National Football Foundation (NFF) shared the names that will be eligible for voters to select into the College Football Hall of Fame. It has been over a decade since Mays stepped foot on the Trojan campus as a player.

Now with the Washington Huskies as a safeties coach, when he steps foot at the Coliseum again in the near future, it could be as a CFB HoF member.

During his tenure at USC, Mays was part of a lot of team success and also earned individual accolades while a student-athlete. He made it to the All-American team each of his four seasons. His freshman year saw him earn a second-team honor. The ensuing three years had him as a first-team All-American.

Place in HoF has been in the works for former USC player

Mays' junior season had him come in third in the Jim Thorpe Award final rankings. As a finalist, the Trojan ended up finishing behind Eric Berry and Malcolm Jenkins. Since seeing playing time as a freshman, the impact and trust of coach Pete Carroll in this USC defense were clear throughout his stay in Los Angeles.

The play from the safety spoke for itself. Now, being able to watch him be a step closer to being a member of the Hall of Fame will come as an additional honor that Mays earned on the field while at USC.