MADISON, Wis. – What seemed like an ordinary chat with Chris McIntosh eventually took James White by surprise.

McIntosh, the University of Wisconsin athletic director, announced White among 11 other inductees for the UW Athletic Hall of Fame class of 2026 on Thursday. White played for the Badgers from 2010-13 and currently ranks sixth all-time in program history in career yards rushing (4,015), third in yards per carry (6.24, with a minimum of 300 attempts) and tied for fourth in career rushing touchdowns (45).

Up until Braelon Allen’s 96-yard touchdown run against Illinois State in 2022, White also held the school record for longest run – a 93-yard burst against Indiana in 2013.

“It’s a pretty surreal moment for me,” White said. “I still remember getting the phone call from Chris McIntosh, initially having a normal conversation with him, not expecting him to tell me that I’m gonna be inducted into the Wisconsin Athletics Hall of Fame.

“This place means a ton to me. It’s being far away from home, from South Florida, coming all the way out to Wisconsin. The best decision I ever made in my life, as far as not only football, but growing as a man, making friends for a lifetime, learning academics and everything that comes along with being a college student. It’s truly an honor.”

Watch and listen to White talk more with reporters Thursday about being inducted, if it’s weird being back in Madison now that he’s assistant running backs coach for Bret Bielema at Illinois, and if he talked to Wisconsin football coach Luke Fickell.