Former USC Trojans Mark Carrier, Taylor Mays, Jeff Bregel Named to College Football HOF Ballot

Former USC Trojans safeties Mark Carrier and Taylor Mays and offensive lineman Jeff Bregel are on the ballot for the 2026 College Football Hall of Fame class, the National Football Foundation announced Monday. The ballot for the class included 79 former players and nine coaches from the FBS level.

USC currently have 35 inductees into the College Football Hall of Fame, which is second among all college football programs. Some notable names include safeties Ronnie Lott and Troy Polamalu, linebacker Junior Seau, running back Reggie Bush, receiver Lynn Swann quarterbacks Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart and coach John Robinson.

Carrier was the Trojans first Jim Thorpe Award winner in 1989, which is presented annually the nation's top defensive back. The Long Beach native was two-time All-American in 1988-89, He is tied for sixth all-time on the university’s career interception list with 13. Carrier went on to be drafted with No. 6 overall pick in the 1990 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears, where he spent seven seasons. He also played three seasons with the Detroit Lions and one with the Washington Redskins.

Carrier was inducted into the USC Athletic Hall of Fame in 2007 and made the Pac-12 All-Century Team in 2015.

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Mays was a five-star recruit and top-ranked player in the state of Washington coming out of O’Dea high school in Seattle in the 2006 recruiting cycle. The 6-foot-3, 230-pound safety was an immediate impact player during the Trojans impressive run in the early 2000s under coach Pete Carroll. Mays earned Pac-10 Co-Freshman of The Year and Second Team All-American honors.

Mays went on to become USC's fourth-ever three-time All-American from 2007-09, joining Leinart, linebacker Richard Wood and offensive tackle Sam Baker. Mays was integral member of three Pac-10 championship teams and won three Rose Bowls from 2006-08.

The Seattle native was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the second round of the 2010 NFL Draft, where he played one season before being traded to the Cincinnati Bengals, where he spent the next four seasons and then one with the Oakland Raiders. Mays returned to his alma mater in 2022 and served as an assistant defensive backs coach for three seasons. Mays returned home to Seattle in the offseason to be safeties coach at Washington.

Bregel was two-time All-American in 1985-86. The Redondo Beach native was the recipient of the 1985 Pac-10 Morris Trophy, which was presented conference's most outstanding offensive lineman. Bregel not only shined on the gridiron but in the classroom. He was the winner of USC's Football Alumni Club Award for highest grade point average in 1986. He was also named the 1986 National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete and earned First Team Academic All-American honors.

Bregel was drafted in the second round of the 1987 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49ers, where he played three seasons.

The announcement of the 2026 College Football Hall of Fame Class will be made in January 2026 and officially be inducted during the 68th NFF Annual Awards Dinner Presented in Las Vegas on Dec. 8, 2026, at the Bellagio Hotel & Casino.

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