Former Steelers offensive lineman Alan Faneca, scout Bill Nunn inducted into Pro Football Hall of Fame

CANTON, Ohio — Steelers Guard Alan Faneca was voted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in his 6th year as a finalist.

Faneca played for the Steelers from 1998 through 2007, before ending his NFL career with stints with the New York Jets and the Arizona Cardinals.

The Steelers drafted him in the first round in 1998. He became a starter six games into his rookie season, and helped pave teh way for Jerome Bettis to have a 1,000 yard rushing season. Faneca missed just one game in his entire career.

He was a member of the Super Bowl XL Championship Team in 2006. Faneca was selected to nine consecutive Pro Bowls, and played in 14 career playoff games, including four AFC Championship games. Faneca was also named to the NFL’s All-Decade Team of the 2000s.

Faneca is the most recent of several Steelers who will be honored in Canton, Ohio this summer. The Class of 2020 never had its enshrinement ceremony. That class includes: Bill Cowher, Troy Polamalu and Donnie Shell.

Many Steelers fans may not know his name, but Bill Nunn, Sr was as much a part of the team’s 1970s Super Bowl success than any on the long list of Hall of Fame players that he’s joining in Canton after being selected for the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday.

Nunn, an inductee in the “Contributor” category, was a “super scout” for the Steelers, a legendary figure who opened the door for players from historically black colleges and universities who previously hadn’t received attention in the draft.

Nunn was a trailblazer, and his impact forever changed the NFL. Nunn’s path to the Steelers included a very successful career in the newspaper business. He was a sports writer, then sports editor, and eventually the managing editor of the Pittsburgh Courier. Nearly 20 years before joining the Steelers, he was responsible for selecting the Courier’s annual Black College All-American team.

He joined the Steelers on a part-time basis in 1967, and took a full-time position two years later when Chuck Noll was hired as head coach. The draft picks and player signings of the Nunn era were legendary.

In the 1st Round in 1969, the Steelers selected Joe Greene of North Texas State. In the 10th Round that same year, they drafted LC Greenwood from Arkansas AM&N.

In 1970, the Steelers drafted Mel Blount in the 3rd Round out of Southern University. In 1974, the Steelers selected John Stallworth in the 4th Round from Alabama A&M. Also in 1974, the Steelers signed Donnie Shell, who was undrafted after a college career at South Carolina State.

Nunn’s influence also brought Dwight White, Frank Lewis and Joe Gilliam to the Steelers.

Between Nunn’s first year as a full-time scout, and up to 1975, the Steelers drafted 25 players from historically black colleges and universities.

Nunn’s vision changed the scouting game, impacting the Steelers and the entire NFL in a profound way.

Nunn was involved with six Super Bowl championship teams during his tine with the Steelers. Nunn was 89 when he passed away in 2014. Now he joins a long list of Steelers, and pro football immortals, at the Hall of Fame in Canton.

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