Nick Collins’ NFL career may have been cut short, but the impact he made in a short window still echoes through the halls of Lambeau Field-and now, it’ll be celebrated on another historic stage.
The former Green Bay Packers safety, a three-time Pro Bowler and three-time Second Team All-Pro, has been named to the 2026 class of the Black College Football Hall of Fame. Collins, who starred at Bethune-Cookman before making his mark in the NFL, joins a prestigious group that includes Jimmy Smith (Jackson State), Eddie Robinson Jr.
(Alabama State), and Tyrone Poole (Fort Valley State), among others. The induction ceremony is set for June 6.
Collins was a second-round pick in the 2005 NFL Draft, and from the moment he stepped onto the field in Green Bay, he brought a rare blend of speed, instincts, and ball-hawking ability to the back end of the Packers’ defense. His breakout year came in 2008, when he led the league in interceptions returned for touchdowns with three. But if there’s one play that defines his legacy, it’s the pick-six in Super Bowl XLV-snagging a Ben Roethlisberger pass and racing it back to the end zone, helping the Packers secure their fourth Lombardi Trophy.
That moment wasn’t just a highlight-it was a culmination of everything Collins brought to the game: anticipation, athleticism, and the ability to rise when the stakes were highest.
Sadly, Collins’ career was derailed in 2011 by a neck injury that forced him into early retirement. It was a tough blow for both the player and the franchise, as he was just entering his prime.
Still, what he accomplished in seven seasons was enough to earn him a spot in the Packers Hall of Fame in 2016. Now, he’s being honored once again-this time for the legacy he built at the college level.
Bethune-Cookman, a historically Black university in Daytona Beach, Florida, has long been a pipeline for NFL talent, and Collins is one of its brightest stars. His induction into the Black College Football Hall of Fame not only cements his place among the greats from HBCUs, but also highlights the impact those programs continue to have on the game.
Collins now joins an elite group of Packers players who’ve been honored by the Black College Football Hall of Fame, including Elijah Pitts, Donald Driver, and Willie Davis-each of them legends in their own right, and each with roots in historically Black college football.
For fans who watched Collins fly around the field in Green Bay, this recognition feels like a fitting tribute to a player who gave everything he had-until the game took it away too soon. His career may not have lasted as long as it should have, but his legacy? That’s built to last.