Bill Parcells and Eddie DeBartolo Jr. were among 17 finalists named for the Hall of Fame Class of 2012 on Saturday.
Parcells, who coaches the Giants, Patriots, Jets and Cowboys, and longtime Chiefs guard Will Shields were the two "first-year" eligible nominees among the 15 modern-era finalists, although Parcells was also a finalists in 2001 and 2002 after he initially retired after leaving the Jets in 1999.
DeBartolo owned the 49ers from 1979-2000, overseeing the rise of one of the most dominating franchises during that period, winning five Super Bowl titles.
The 44-member selection committee will meet on Feb. 4 in Indianapolis, the day before the Super Bowl, to select the 2012 Class.
The 15 modern-era finalists are:
Jerome Bettis, RB—1993-95 Los Angeles/St. Louis Rams, 1996-2005 Pittsburgh Steelers
Tim Brown, WR/KR—1988-2003 Los Angeles/Oakland Raiders, 2004 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Cris Carter, WR—1987-89 Philadelphia Eagles, 1990-2001 Minnesota Vikings, 2002 Miami Dolphins
Dermontti Dawson, C—1988-2000 Pittsburgh Steelers
Edward DeBartolo, Jr., Owner—1979-2000 San Francisco 49ers
Chris Doleman, DE/LB—1985-1993, 1999 Minnesota Vikings, 1994-95 Atlanta Falcons, 1996-98 San Francisco 49ers
Kevin Greene, LB/DE—1985-1992 Los Angeles Rams, 1993-95 Pittsburgh Steelers, 1996, 1998-99 Carolina Panthers, 1997 San Francisco 49ers
Charles Haley, DE/LB—1986-1991, 1999 San Francisco 49ers, 1992-96 Dallas Cowboys
Cortez Kennedy, DT—1990-2000 Seattle Seahawks
Curtis Martin, RB—1995-97 New England Patriots, 1998-2005 New York Jets
Bill Parcells, Coach—1983-1990 New York Giants, 1993-96 New England Patriots, 1997-99 New York Jets, 2003-06 Dallas Cowboys
Andre Reed, WR—1985-1999 Buffalo Bills, 2000 Washington Redskins
Willie Roaf, T—1993-2001 New Orleans Saints, 2002-05 Kansas City Chiefs
Will Shields, G—1993-2006 Kansas City Chiefs
Aeneas Williams, CB/S—1991-2000 Phoenix/Arizona Cardinals, 2001-04 St. Louis Rams
They will be joined by two senior nominees are:
Jack Butler, CB—(1951-59 Pittsburgh Steelers)
Dick Stanfel, G—(1952-55 Detroit Lions, 1956-58 Washington Redskins)
Butler, DeBartolo, Greene and Williams have been eligible before but this is their first time as finalists, while Bettis, Brown, Carter, Dawson, Doleman, Haley, Kennedy, Martin, Reed, Roaf and Stanfel have been finalists previously.
Semifinalists not making the cut were:
Steve Atwater, S—1989-1998 Denver Broncos, 1999 New York Jets
Don Coryell, Coach—1973-77 St. Louis Cardinals, 1978-1986 San Diego Chargers
Roger Craig, RB—1983-1990 San Francisco 49ers, 1991 Los Angeles Raiders, 1992-93 Minnesota Vikings
Terrell Davis, RB—1995-2001 Denver Broncos
Clay Matthews, LB—1978-1993 Cleveland Browns, 1994-96 Atlanta Falcons
Karl Mecklenburg, LB—1983-1994 Denver Broncos
Donnie Shell, S—1974-1987 Pittsburgh Steelers
Paul Tagliabue, Commissioner—1989-2006 National Football League
Steve Tasker, ST/WR—1985-86 Houston Oilers, 1986-1997 Buffalo Bills
Ron Wolf, Contributor—1963-1974, 1978-1990 Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders, 1975-77Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 1990 New York Jets, 1991-2001 Green Bay Packers
George Young, Contributor—1968-1974 Baltimore Colts, 1975-78 Miami Dolphins, 1979-1997 New York Giants, 1998-2001 National Football League
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