2025 COTTON BOWL CLASSIC HALL OF FAME CLASS
JEROME BETTIS, NOTRE DAME, FULLBACK
1993 Classic: Notre Dame 28, Texas A&M 3
Rushing: 20 attempts, 75 yards, 2 TD
Receiving: 1 reception, 26 yards, 1 TD
Passing: 0-1-0, 0 yards
Fullback Jerome Bettis knew how to make football coaches happy, or unhappy, as the case may be. He could run and catch with equal efficiency, and at 6-0, 247 pounds, Bettis was a load to bring down. He ran low to the ground and had the uncanny ability to stop and spin away from tacklers. More often than not he would run over any defender who got in his way. Just ask the Texas A&M safety who Bettis steamrolled at the goal line in the 1993 Cotton Bowl Classic. The score sent Notre Dame rolling toward a runaway 28-3 victory. He logged 20 rushing attempts for 75 yards against the Aggies, scored three touchdowns and accounted for 18 of the Irish's 28 points. Bettis wasn't the game's leading rusher, but he was certainly the most intimidating. Just ask Texas A&M.

RANDY BRABAND, TEXAS, LINEBACKER
1971 Classic: Notre Dame 24, Texas 11
1972 Classic: Penn State 30, Texas 6
1973 Classic: Texas 17, Alabama 13
1972 Defensive Statistics: 14 tackles, 4 unassisted
1973 Defensive Statistics: 19 tackles, 9 unassisted, 1 PBU
Randy Braband was an impact player. Ask any running back who ever collided with this intense Texas defender. In his three Cotton Bowl Classic appearances and two as the Longhorns' starting linebacker, Braband recorded 33 tackles, 19 of them came in the Horns' thrilling 17-13 defeat of fourth-ranked Alabama in 1973. It was a dominating performance by the senior defensive captain. However, there was one tackle that stood well above all the others. On fourth down and inches at the Texas 43, Braband crashed through the line of scrimmage and stood up the Crimson Tide running back, driving him back for a yard loss. Only 1:52 was left to play when the savvy Texas linebacker made this stirring defensive play to slam the door on Alabama's comeback hopes. There was just no getting around Randy Braband.

HEAD COACH DAVID CUTCLIFFE, OLE MISS
2004 Classic: Ole Miss 31, Oklahoma State 28
Classic Record: 1-0-0
Players loved to compete for Ole Miss head coach David Cutcliffe. In football and in life he taught them how to win. He instilled confidence by teaching them to become fundamentally sound, to focus, believe in one another, eliminate mistakes, and to fight through adversity. Coach Cut guided the Rebels to their first 10-victory season in 32 years with a 31-28 triumph over Oklahoma State in the 2004 Cotton Bowl Classic. But it didn't come easy. After building a 17-point, fourth-quarter advantage, he braced the Rebels to expect a furious comeback attempt by the Cowboys. OSU did just that and chopped the margin to three with 4:38 to play. Ole Miss didn't flinch, dug in, engineered a 65-yard drive and ran out the clock. Cutcliffe's life lessons paid big dividends for the Rebels.
 
TONY DAVIS, NEBRASKA, HALFBACK
1974 Classic: Nebraska 19, Texas 3
Rushing: 28 attempts, 106 yards, 1 TD
Receiving: 2 receptions, 8 yards
Nebraska's Tony Davis was a hard-hitting, fiery competitor. Born to be a Cornhusker, Davis grew up in the shadows of Memorial Stadium in a little town where he earned the nickname "Tecumseh Tornado." Everything Davis did, he did at breakneck speed. He preferred to run over tacklers rather than go around them, and made defenders pay for getting in his way. In the 1974 Cotton Bowl Classic, the sophomore halfback made Texas pay dearly. He pounded the Longhorn defense all day long, rushing for 106 yards on 28 carries, and scored once on a three-yard run. Davis and his Husker teammates seized momentum in the third quarter and broke open a 3-3 stalemate with back-to-back touchdowns to help Coach Tom Osborne earn his first bowl victory at Nebraska.
 
FIN EWING III, CBAA BOARD OF DIRECTORS
CBAA CHAIR, TEAM SELECTION CHAIR, PLAYOFF COMMITTEE CHAIR,
CHIEF AMBASSADOR
CBAA Board of Directors: 1991-Present
CBAA Chair: 2002-04
CBAA Team Selection Chair: 2007-14
CBAA Playoff Committee Chair: 2014-23
CBAA Chief Ambassador: 2023-Present
Blessed with a quick wit and a good natured sense of humor that would make Will Rogers envious, Fin Ewing III creates lifelong friendships everywhere he goes, particularly in the world of college football. His leadership roles with the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic have been many…CBAA Chair, Team Selection Chair and Playoff Committee Chair. Add to that list the title of Chief Ambassador. Ewing's specialty is cultivating relationships and spreading goodwill. Since 1967, he and his family have provided vehicles to fuel the Classic's celebrated Drivers' program. And, at a critical juncture in the bowl's history, Ewing stepped forward to conduct negotiations with the Dallas Cowboys in the Cotton Bowl Athletic Association's quest to move to AT&T Stadium. No matter the challenge, he always stands ready to make sure the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic is standing on solid ground.

CHARLIE FISS, CBAA HISTORIAN
CBAA Staff: 1985-Present
CBAA Vice President of Communications: 1985-2020
CBAA Historian: 2020-Present
Cotton Bowl Classic Hall of Fame Co-Founder: 1998
When you think about the Cotton Bowl Classic, you have to think about Charlie Fiss. The venerable wordsmith has been synonymous with the Classic since its 49th edition which saw Heisman Trophy winner Doug Flutie lead Boston College to victory in 1985. He guided the communications efforts and built the best media operations in the bowl business over four decades. Fiss played a vital role in the game's evolution as a top bowl destination. He was also one of the founders of the Cotton Bowl Classic Hall of Fame. He has produced the induction ceremony since the first class in 1998. He first worked the Classic as a staff member at the Southwest Conference office, and in July 1993, he joined the Cotton Bowl staff and assumed the role of Vice President of Communications that he held until 2020 when he transitioned to his current position as Historian. The University of Arkansas alum has poured himself into the Cotton Bowl Classic in ways that are unparalleled. In so many ways and to so many people, he's always been a Hall of Famer.
 
BO JACKSON, AUBURN, RUNNING BACK
1986 Classic:  Texas A&M 36, Auburn 16
Rushing: 31 carries, 129 yards, 1 TD
Receiving: 2 receptions, 73 yards, 1 TD
Bo Jackson, college football's 50th Heisman Trophy winner, more than lived up to expectations with a memorable performance in the Cotton Bowl Classic's Golden Anniversary game. Carrying the bulk of the offensive burden for Auburn, Jackson set a Classic record with 31 rushing attempts while piling up 129 yards. The game was only minutes old when he scored his first touchdown on a five-yard run. But the play that Jackson will be remembered for most was a routine screen pass that he turned into a spectacular 73-yard scoring play. After catching the pass near the left boundary, he turned up field and raced through the heart of the Aggie defense. There was no catching him. Even in defeat, Jackson was brilliant and added yet another chapter to his legendary career at Auburn.
 
DeMECO RYANS, ALABAMA, LINEBACKER
2006 Classic: Alabama 13, Texas Tech 10
Defensive Statistics: 7 tackles, 2 unassisted, 2 TFL for minus-12 yards, 1.5 sacks
Preparation was the name of the game for Alabama linebacker DeMeco Ryans. He was literally a coach on the field. Ryans' infectious leadership qualities brought out the best in everyone. As a senior, he earned unanimous All-America recognition and was named Defensive Player of the Year in the Southeastern Conference. In the Crimson Tide's 13-10 victory over Texas Tech in the 70th Cotton Bowl Classic, Ryans and teammates held the nation's top-ranked passing attack in check. He was credited with seven tackles, five of them solo, two tackles for loss that included 1.5 quarterback sacks for minus-12 yards and was selected as the Felix R. McKnight Outstanding Defensive Player of the Game. Ryans was tremendous in the classroom, too. He graduated with honors and became Alabama's top male student-athlete. He was truly excellence personified.
 
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