Suffolk native Terrence Warren and the halls of leading athletes are becoming well acquainted.

Earlier this year, he was welcomed by the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association into the elite John B. McLendon Jr. Hall of Fame. He was part of a nine-member induction class that included NBA champion and former Detroit Pistons star Ben Wallace.

In 2010, he was inducted into the Hampton University Athletics Hall of Fame.

At Hampton, Warren was a track and field athlete, which led to national and international wins, and he also become a Pirates football player, which led to an NFL career.

Reflecting on his most recent induction, he quipped, “To me, it means that I’m old.” But then he quickly added, “It actually meant a great deal.”

He marveled at the great athletes who have competed in the CIAA through history.

“I would never have thought even in my wildest dreams that I would have even been considered for the induction,” he said.

Sure, he had hopes, like anyone can have, but he said he never really expected it.

While at Hampton University, he claimed eight All-CIAA titles in the sprints and relays, 11 NCAA Division II All-American honors. He also was one of only five athletes in D-II history to earn consecutive national championships in the 200-meter dash.

Warren represented the United States in 1988 as a high school senior, helping a 4×100-meter relay team win gold at the International Association of Athletics Federations World Junior Track and Field Championships in Ontario, Canada.

During his college career, he participated in the 1990 United States Olympic Festival and earned a gold medal as part of the 1600-meter relay team.

“Track and field was my first love,” Warren said, noting he actually went to college on a track and field scholarship.

He made a big impression in that sport while attending and competing for the former John F. Kennedy High School.

A six-time state champion, and in his senior year, he became a high school national champion in the 200 at an event in Sacramento, Calif.

He played high school basketball for all but his senior year, and he also participated in football after his track and field coach, Arnice Monroe, encouraged him to use his speed on the gridiron.

“There was success in it,” he said.

At one point, colleges had actually recruited him for football over track and field.

He walked on to Hampton’s football team in his sophomore year and played the rest of his time there, helping the Pirates win the CIAA football championship in 1992.

Warren set records as a running back and wide receiver, and in 1993, he become the first player in school history to receive an invitation to the prestigious NFL Scouting Combine.

The Seattle Seahawks drafted him in the fifth round, and he later would play for both the San Francisco 49ers and the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Warren said the combination of all of his athletic experiences is “really what I value the most,” placing special emphasis on the simple pleasure of playing football in Suffolk at the age of 12.

His older brother, Shawn Warren, was among the family present to support him at the CIAA induction and said the honor was the “culmination of a lot of hard work and dedication on his part. The whole family’s proud of him.”