Marvin Harrison elected to Pro Football Hall of Fame

SAN FRANCISCO - The third time was the charm for Marvin Harrison.

The Roman Catholic High School product was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame Saturday in his third year of eligibility. The former Indianapolis Colts wide receiver had been a finalist in each of his previous two years on the ballot.

Harrison was one of eight people voted into Canton Saturday by the Hall's 46 selectors during a nearly nine-hour meeting. The others in the 2016 class are quarterback Brett Favre, linebacker Kevin Greene, offensive tackle Orlando Pace, former Colts and Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Tony Dungy, former San Francisco 49ers owner Eddie DeBartolo, guard Dick Stanfel, and quarterback Ken Stabler.

DeBartolo was the lone "contributor" nominee this year. Stanfel and Stabler were veterans committee nominees. The other five were modern-era finalists.

Former Eagle wide receiver Terrell Owens, one of 15 modern-era finalists, was eliminated in Saturday's first reduction vote from 15 to 10.

Also eliminated on the first vote were kicker Morten Andersen, safety Steve Atwater, guard Alan Faneca, and running back Edgerrin James.

Eliminated during the 10-to-five reduction vote were former coach Don Coryell, running back Terrell Davis, offensive tackle Joe Jacoby, safety John Lynch, and quarterback Kurt Warner.

Favre, Owens, and Faneca all were in their first year of Hall eligibility.

Harrison's 1,102 career receptions are the third most in league history behind only Jerry Rice (1,549) and Tony Gonzalez (1,325). He also is seventh in receiving yards (14,580) and fifth in touchdown receptions (128).

The Colts selected Harrison out of Syracuse with the 19th overall pick in the 1996 draft. He spent all 13 of his pro seasons with the team, including the final 11 with quarterback Peyton Manning.

Harrison and Manning were the most productive pitch-and-catch tandem in NFL history. In 158 games with Manning, Harrison caught 953 passes for 12,766 yards and 112 touchdowns.

Harrison, a three-time all-pro who was selected to eight Pro Bowls, had a breakout season in his second year with Manning in 1999, catching 115 passes for a career-high 1,663 yards and 12 touchdowns. It was the first of four consecutive 100-catch seasons and seven straight years with 80 or more receptions for Harrison.

Harrison, an intensely private man, didn't attend Saturday night's Hall of Fame announcement.

"It's definitely an honor," he told Fox's Indianapolis affiliate. "It's definitely a privilege. It doesn't just happen. You don't take it for granted. You don't just wake up and say, 'I'm a Hall of Famer.'

"All of the pieces fell into place for me to where I was able to show my talent."

Dungy called Harrison the most artistic receiver he's ever been around.

"He loved to play," Dungy said. "He just didn't like everything else that went with it. This is so well-deserved."

Harrison's first phone call after finding out he had been voted in was to Colts owner Jim Irsay.

"We were hoping he was going to be a first-ballot [Hall of Famer], but we're so delighted that he's in," Irsay said. "He called me as soon as he got the call. I could hear it in his voice how excited he was. Just like a kid 8 years old again."

Harrison drew scrutiny after his career ended when a gun registered to him was used to shoot a man outside of a bar owned by Harrison in North Philadelphia in April 2008. The man, Dwight Dixon, was shot again in July 2009, two blocks away from the bar, and later died.

Harrison has never been charged in connection with either incident.

Owens, who played 15 years for five teams, including the 2004 and '05 seasons with the Eagles, has Hall of Fame-worthy statistics, but his history as a divisive force on many of the teams he played on may have worked against him with the selectors in his first year of eligibility.

He is sixth all-time in receptions (1,078), second in receiving yards (15,934) behind only Rice (22,895), and third in touchdown catches (153) behind Rice (197) and Randy Moss (156).

Owens was a five-time all-pro, including with the Eagles in '04, and was selected to six Pro Bowls. He was named to the NFL's all-decade team of the 2000s.