Greg Eslinger, the two-time All-America center who won both the Outland and Rimington trophies for the Gophers in 2005, on Wednesday was named to the 2025 College Football Hall of Fame class. He is the 20th Gophers player to receive the honor.
Joining Eslinger in the 2025 class, selected by a vote of National Football Foundation members, are two other players with Minnesota ties: St. John’s wide receiver Blake Elliott and North Dakota tight end Jim Kleinsasser, who played 13 seasons for the Vikings.
“I definitely was shocked,” Eslinger said. “I put this in the back of my mind. I knew I was on the ballot but thought, ‘It’s not gonna happen.’ I got the call … and I was just completely floored."
Eslinger, a Bismarck, N.D., native, was a four-year starter for the Gophers and earned first-team All-Big Ten honors in his final three seasons. Known for his agility and tenacity, Eslinger was key to an offense that twice led the Big Ten in rushing with 256.8 yards per game in 2004 and 273.1 in 2005. In 2005, he became the first Gophers player to win Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year honors. He added the Outland (nation’s best interior lineman) and Rimington (nation’s best center) at season’s end.
“Two things stand out. One would be my teammates,” Eslinger said of his career highlights. “As an offensive lineman, it’s really not an individual award; it’s the people around you. … And also, Coach [Glen] Mason, Coach [Mitch] Browning and Coach [Gordy] Shaw gave me a shot — a small-town kid from North Dakota who was a zero-star recruit."
Elliott, a former Melrose (Minn.) High School standout, led St. John’s to the 2003 NCAA Division III championship, was a two-time MIAC Player of the Year and the 2003 winner of the Gagliardi Trophy, given to the top player in Division III. Elliott finished his career second all-time in all NCAA divisions in catches (327) and second in Division III in touchdown receptions (56). He posted 369 receptions for 4,826 yards and 63 touchdowns in his career.
Kleinsasser, a Carrington, N.D., native, played tight end at North Dakota from 1995-98. He earned first-team All-America honors by various publications in 1997 and 1998 and received honorable mention in 1996. Kleinsasser caught 88 passes for 1,309 yards and 10 TDs in his UND career.
The 18 players and four coaches in the Hall of Fame’s 2025 class were selected from a ballot of 77 players and nine coaches from the Football Bowl Subdivision and 101 players and 34 coaches from the divisional ranks. They’ll be officially inducted Dec. 9 in Las Vegas.
