Larry Station discusses his College Football Hall of Fame honor

I tried unsuccessfully to reach Larry Station Thursday, the day it was announced he had been elected to the College Football Hall of Fame.

But the former University of Iowa linebacker was kind enough to return my call Friday. He spoke warmly of his new honor, and of his time as a Hawkeye.

Station, 45 and living in his Omaha hometown ("People are still asking me why I went to Iowa.") said the following:

"This is a huge honor for me. I'm still kind of overwhelmed by this award. I've been thinking about the other people who helped me. When I get to New York (for the Hall of Fame dinner in December), I'm going to say thanks to lot of people - coaches, fans, trainers. So many people had a part in it."

"It doesn't seem like 24 years (since he finished his Iowa career). I was just talking to my mom about this the other day. It seems like maybe 10 years. The memories are so vivid. Ten years, maybe 15. Not 24."

"Even though I've been out of football a long time, I still have a player's mentality. I still think how I could have done some things better. I have the tackle record at Iowa with 494, I think. In my mind, I think about the six I could have gotten in those four years to hit that 500 milestone. It's kind of funny to think like that."

"But after 24 years, sometimes you allow yourself to think about the things you actually did right."

"I'm involved in a lot of entreprenurial endeavors. The main thing is real estate management, rental properties. I also am involved in products that help boost a person's immune system, wellness and health products."

(Station's Web site is here.)

"My biggest, most time-consuming job is parent. I'm kind of a perfectionist. I have three children, 15, 11 and 9. My oldest, Imani, was 10th in the Omaha Metro girls' high school golf tournament last year."

"The game where I came to Iowa to visit when they were recruiting me was when Iowa played Michigan State in '81, and if they won they went to the Rose Bowl. On one of the first plays of the game, Bobby Stoops just laid a hit on the tight end. The ball flew out and Andre Tippett took it off Bobby's back and almost ran it back all the way."

"I was ready to sign with Iowa right then. I was ready to suit up right then. I said 'Now that's defense!' I was so excited. I was as excited as the fans."

The next year, Station was a freshman who led the Hawkeyes in tackles. A Hall of Fame career had begun.