Flutie adds to haul
College honor follows his Canadian selection
You knew it was a question of when, not if, for Doug Flutie.
For the former Boston College quarterback, the kid from Natick who became a Heisman Trophy winner and local sports icon, the when came yesterday as Flutie was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame.
Flutie is part of a 2007 class of 12 players and two coaches who will be inducted Dec. 4 at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York.
Also being inducted are Oklahoma center Tom Brahaney, Michigan defensive back Dave Brown, Clemson linebacker Jeff Davis, Texas defensive back Johnnie Johnson, Ohio State quarterback Rex Kern, Oregon running back/wide receiver Ahmad Rashad, Indiana running back Anthony Thompson, Houston defensive tackle Wilson Whitley, Dartmouth linebacker Reggie Williams, Southern Cal linebacker Richard Wood, Notre Dame defensive tackle Chris Zorich, former Central Michigan coach Herb Deromedi, and current Penn State coach Joe Paterno.
Flutie, who won the Heisman in 1984, the year his famous Hail Mary pass to Gerard Phelan beat Miami, also was named Tuesday to Canada's Sports Hall of Fame, the first non-Canadian to be so honored.
"I guess this means that I threw more than one pass," joked Flutie yesterday at the ceremonies in New York naming the college Hall class. "This is extra special for me because it shows we [at BC] did something special. I feel fortunate to be part of that and represent Boston College."
Flutie and Williams, who played 14 seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals, said they were motivated by rejection early in their careers.
"I remember [former Michigan coach] Bo Schembechler telling me that I wasn't good enough to play at Michigan," said Williams.
Flutie talked about his senior year at Natick High School, when he was being recruited by several schools, including Ohio State. "They looked at my size and told me I wasn't a Division 1 quarterback," said Flutie, who heard much of the same throughout his pro career, one reason he admits to playing "with a chip on my shoulder."
Yesterday, Futie and Williams cashed in some of those chips.
The Atlantic Coast Conference will hold its spring meetings next week in Amelia Island, Fla., and one of the topics for discussion will be expanding the conference basketball schedules from 16 to 18 games, beginning with the 2008-09 season. "I don't know if it has any legs," said BC athletic director Gene DeFilippo. "But it will be discussed." . . . Another topic on the agenda will be moving the ACC championship football game to other sites on a revolving basis, with Tampa and Charlotte, N.C., in the rotation . . . DeFilippo said the possibility of BC working out a football series with USC is in the Trojans' hands. USC is trying to move a game with Hawaii so it can set up a potential prime-time season-opening game with BC in 2011 . . . The BC basketball staff met with Vermont transfer Joe Trapani Tuesday. Trapani, a 6-foot-7-inch forward who was a freshman last season for the Catamounts, expects to choose by the weekend from among BC, Providence, Northeastern, and Michigan.
Mark Blaudschun can be reached at blaudschun@globe.com. 