Members
Inductee
KERRIGAN, RYAN
KERRIGAN, RYAN
Born on
Muncie, Indiana
Inducted On
June 25, 2023
Location Inducted
Lafayette, Indiana
Region Number
4
Purdue University
Player
Muncie Central
2007
Ryan led the state with 19 sacks and earned Defensive Lineman of the Year honors as a senior at Muncie Central High School.
Purdue University
B.S. in Education
2011
A member of the Den of Defensive Ends, Ryan is the Purdue career record-holder with 14 fumbles forced, ranks tied for second with 33.5 sacks and is fifth with 57 tackles for loss. As a senior, Kerrigan was a unanimous All-American, the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and the Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year. He topped the country with 26 tackles for loss (third most in school history) while recording 12.5 sacks (among 70 total tackles) and five fumbles forced that season. Kerrigan served as a team captain and was selected as the Boilermaker's most valuable defensive player.
Kerrigan paced the country with a school-record-tying seven forced fumbles his junior season to go with 66 tackles, including 18.5 for loss and 13 sacks (tied for fourth in school history). He earned first-team All-Big Ten honors as a junior and senior. An education major, Kerrigan was a second-team Academic All-Big Ten honoree. The amiable yet unassuming Kerrigan earned the Big Ten Outstanding Sportsmanship Award as a senior.
Kerrigan was inducted into the Purdue Athletics Hall of Fame in 2018.
Kerrigan was named to the "90 Greatest" list of players and coaches in Washington history in 2022, in conjunction with the 90-year anniversary of the founding of the franchise.
Throughout his playing career, Kerrigan was tremendously active in the community. In 2013, he launched Ryan Kerrigan's Blitz for the Better Foundation - providing opportunities, support and resources to children and families in need in the Washington metropolitan area. He was the Redskins' Walter Payton Man of the Year in 2015.
Kerrigan and his wife, Jessica, have three daughters - Lincoln, Hayes and Carter.
Kerrigan was selected with the 16th pick of the 2011 NFL Draft by the Washington Redskins. A four-time Pro Bowl selection (2012, 2016, 2017 & 2018) at linebacker, he started the first 139 games of his professional career before an injury forced him to the sideline on December 1, 2019. It ranked as the fourth-longest streak among active NFL players. In 2014, he tied for the NFL lead with five forced fumbles. Kerrigan played for Washington through the 2020 season, becoming the franchise's career leader with 95.5 sacks and 26 forced fumbles. He concluded his 11-year career with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2021 and subsequently signed a one-day contract to retire with Washington on July 29, 2022.
In 172 NFL games, Kerrigan recorded 457 tackles (including 120 for loss and 95.5 sacks), 149 quarterback hits, 26 forced fumbles and returned all three of his career interceptions for touchdowns. He is one of merely three players in the league history to record 60-plus sacks and three-plus interceptions returned for touchdowns, along with Jason Taylor and Julius Peppers.
Kerrigan is an assistant coach for the Washington Redskins.
