In a room that had already been named in his honor, Ohio State great Orlando Pace received another honor on Friday evening.
Pace, who played offensive tackle for the Buckeyes from 1994 to 1996, went on to play 13 seasons in the NFL and was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2016, was named Friday as Ohio State’s College Hometown Hall of Famer, as part of the Hometown Hall of Famers Program presented by Ford Motor Company, during a ceremony inside the Orlando Pace Recruit Room at Ohio Stadium.
The program, which began in 2011, honors players who have previously been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame by dedicating plaques to be permanently displayed in their respective hometowns or college communities.
While many Hall of Famers have chosen to dedicate their plaques in the towns where they grew up, Pace – a native of Sandusky, Ohio, where he already has a street and a park named after him – chose to have his plaque dedicated to Ohio State, making Ohio State the 116th school to be recognized as an "official school of the Pro Football Hall of Fame" through the program.
"These were three of the best years of my life," Pace said during the ceremony in regards to attending Ohio State. "I had the chance to live out a dream, to play the game that I love and to have some success doing that as well, so any time I get an opportunity to come back here and to receive an award is even more special to me."
Pace said that he "was fortunate enough to be surrounded by great teammates" during his years at Ohio State, and gave special recognition during his speech to fellow former Ohio State offensive tackle Korey Stringer, who was teammates with Pace in 1994 and played for the NFL’s Minnesota Vikings until 2001, when he died after collapsing from heat stroke during a practice.
"He was my mentor," Pace said of Stringer. "He hosted me when I first came here. And he did so many great things in my life for me. He showed me how to play offensive tackle and how to play at a high level and how to punish people, and he was long before I was the Pancake Man here at Ohio State, he was the guy that used to punish guys week in and week out, and I always give him credit any time I stand here and accept an award on his behalf, because what he did for me, words can’t really explain."
Pace, one of 10 Buckeyes in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, is the fifth former Buckeye player or coach to be honored by the Hometown Hall of Famers Program.
Cris Carter was honored in his hometown of Middletown, Ohio in 2013. Dick LeBeau was honored in his hometown of London, Ohio in 2013. Paul Warfield was honored in his hometown of Warren, Ohio in 2012. Former Ohio State coach Paul Brown, who graduated from Miami (Ohio), was honored posthumously in Massillon, Ohio in 2012.