Inside The Panthers

Aaron Donald's Hall of Fame Eligibility Coming Soon

Pitt Panthers legend Aaron Donald will have to wait to get into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Stephen Thompson

Aaron Donald's Hall of Fame Eligibility Coming Soon
Aaron Donald's Hall of Fame Eligibility Coming Soon /
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PITTSBURGH -- Former Pitt Panthers superstar Aaron Donald made a stunning announcement this week, revealing that he would retire after 10 seasons in professional football. 

It is almost a foregone conclusion that the former Penn Hills High School, Pitt and Los Angeles Rams standout is worthy of enshrinement into the Pro Football Hall of Fame but he will have to wait until 2029 before he can officially be fitted for his gold jacket.  

Donald, the 2014 AP Defensive Rookie of the Year, has also won three overall Defensive Player of the Year awards and First-Team All-Pro selections in eight of his nine seasons. He earned a Super Bowl ring in 2022 with the Los Angeles Rams.

He dominated his senior season at Pitt in 2013, finishing the year having taken home ACC Defensive Player of the Year honors, in addition to the Nagurski, Lombardi and Bednarik Awards and the Outland Trophy and consensus first-team All-American honors. Donald's 66 career tackles for loss rank fourth all-time in NCAA history.

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Stephen Thompson
STEPHEN THOMPSON

Stephen Thompson graduated with a bachelor's degree in communications and political science from Pitt in April 2022 after spending four years as a sports writer and editor at The Pitt News, the University of Pittsburgh's independent, student-run newspaper.  He primarily worked the Pitt men's basketball beat, and filled in on coverage of football, volleyball, softball, gymnastics and lacrosse, in addition to other sports as needed. His work at The Pitt News has won awards from the Pennsylvania News Media Association and Associated College Press.  During the spring and summer of 2021, Stephen interned for Pittsburgh Sports Now, covering baseball in western Pennsylvania. Hailing from Washington D.C., family ties have cultivated a love of Boston's professional teams and Pitt athletics, and a fascination with sports in general.  You can reach Stephen by email at stephenethompson00@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter. Read his latest work:

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