Hall of Fame drops 19 selectors from voting panel for the 2027 class

The Pro Football Hall of Fame's overhaul of its selection process has started costing people their votes. Nineteen selectors will not vote on the Class of 2027, a group that accounts for 280 combined years of experience on the panel.

The names surfaced through Paul Kuharsky, one of the 50 voters who is not returning. He published a list of the 19 ousted selectors, which includes Rick Gosselin, Frank Cooney, John McClain, Tony Grossi, Ron Borges, Darin Gantt, Clark Judge, Geoff Hobson, Jason Cole, Armando Salguero, Mary Kay Cabot, Matt Maiocco, Tony Dungy, Bill Polian, Lisa Salters, Joel Bussert, Paul Gutierrez and Rich Cimini.

The reduction follows the Hall's announcement earlier this month, on the Friday before Labor Day weekend, that it would cut its panel from 50 voters to 28. Of those 28, 25 will vote and three will take part without a vote. The Hall said at the time that the new group would be named after the 50 existing members were told where they stood, and those conversations are now playing out in public.

The rework landed on the calendar after Bill Belichick was passed over in his first year of eligibility, an outcome that shocked the sport and pushed the organization toward changing how enshrinement gets decided.

Nine current voters are staying on, according to Kuharsky's list: Charean Williams, Calvin Watkins, Jim Trotter, Jeff Legwold, Ira Kaufman, Howard Balzer, Gary Myers, Vahe Gregorian and Mike Sando.