Alan Faneca, Rocky Bleier headline Steelers' second Hall of Honor class

When they announced a super-sized, 27-man Hall of Honor class last summer, the Steelers intended to limit subsequent groups to four members.

So much for best-laid plans.

The class unveiled Saturday afternoon featured five members from a cross-section of contributors spanning the past six decades.

This year’s group consists of running back Rocky Bleier, wide receiver Buddy Dial, guard Alan Faneca and contributors Bill Nunn and Art Rooney Jr.

The class will be feted during the weekend of Sept. 30 when the Steelers play the Baltimore Ravens at Heinz Field.

“We had a tough selection process again this year,” Steelers president Art Rooney II said. “We started out by saying we would keep the number to four, but we just couldn’t do it.”

The selection of Nunn and Rooney in the same class was fitting since they were two of the architects behind the drafts that produced the four-time Super Bowl-winning teams in the 1970s.

Rooney Jr. was the team’s personnel director from 1965-86 and, along with coach Chuck Noll, drafted nine future Hall of Fame players and 11 more who would earn four Super Bowl rings. Nunn, a sports writer for the Pittsburgh Courier, was added to the scouting department in 1968 and worked in the player personnel department until his death in 2014. He was known for finding players at historically black colleges who were overlooked by other scouts. Among his finds were L.C. Greenwood, Dwight White, John Stallworth, Mel Blount and Donnie Shell.

“We have a great tradition in our personnel department going back to those days,” Rooney II said. “They set us on a path that we’re still building on today.”

Bleier and Faneca attended the announcement Saturday at the Fred Rogers Center on the Saint Vincent campus.

Bleier played on all four of those Super Bowl teams, an improbable feat considering the leg injuries he suffered in the Vietnam War, which earned him a Bronze Star and Purple Heart. Bleier played for the Steelers from 1968 and 1970-80, and he rushed for 1,036 yards in 1976. His comeback story spawned a television movie and one-man theatrical production.

Bleier, who is still ranked No. 9 on the franchise’s career rushing list, said it was appropriate to be among the second class because it comes 50 years after his rookie season.

“Who would think that 50 years later I would be a part of one of the greatest dynasties and one of the greatest teams,” Bleier said. “To be honored for my contributions is very special.”

Faneca was selected to the Pro Bowl nine times in his NFL career and was a six-time first-team All-Pro in his 10 seasons with the Steelers. He has been a finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame in all three years of eligibility.

“Alan deserves to be in Canton,” Rooney II said. “I think he will be. I think he’ll make it sooner or later, and we’re glad he’s part of this class. He’s certainly deserving.”

As the youngest member of the Hall of Honor classes, Faneca said that only recently he started thinking about his career accomplishments.

“When you are playing, you don’t think about it, you don’t put yourself there,” he said. “You don’t start thinking about it until you are done and you start looking backwards on your career. And things like this happen. It’s amazing to think you are in the same class and the same list as the guys who came before you and were inducted last year.”

The Hall of Honor, the brainchild of late team patriarch Dan Rooney, was implemented so the Steelers could recognize former players, coaches, front-office personnel and contributors. Each recipient receives a replica solid steel football.

Dial was a prolific wide receiver with the Steelers from 1959-63 and averaged a franchise-record 20.6 yards per catch in those five seasons. He was the first receiver in franchise history to record a 1,000-yard season, doing it in 1961 and 1963.

“That’s one of the fun parts about this is to be able to talk about names like Buddy Dial and other names that came up from that era,” Rooney II said. “We’re lucky enough to have a long list like that.”

Joe Rutter is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Joe at jrutter@tribweb.com or via Twitter @tribjoerutter.