Peyton Manning congratulates his college football teammate on his election to the Baseball Hall of Fame

One Hall of Famer has plenty of love for another.

Retired NFL great Peyton Manning had some kind words for former University of Tennessee teammate and Colorado Rockies first baseman Todd Helton, who was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame, it was announced Jan. 23.

Manning served as Helton’s backup at quarterback when the two were at Tennessee in the ‘90s.

“Todd, congratulations on your induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame,” Manning says in a video posted on X by the Rockies on Jan. 23.

“It’s extremely well deserved. I know how hard you’ve worked your entire life to be the best baseball player that you could be. And this honor shows all the hard work and all the sacrifice was worth it. And I’m just proud to know you, proud to be your friend and proud to have been a witness on your journey to greatness that ends in Cooperstown. Congratulations, pal.”

Manning also celebrated Helton's big moment with a post on Instagram in which he shared a pair of photos of them at the Rockies' Coors Field, including one where they are both wearing Tennessee caps.

"Was an honor to be your backup, an honor to be your fan, and it’s an honor to be your friend. Congrats on the HOF Todd, so well deserved," he wrote.

Helton and Manning each played quarterback at Tennessee, with Helton earning the starting job in 1994 after first-string quarterback Jerry Colquitt got hurt in the season opener. Manning, in turn, would take over the job after Helton also sustained an injury.

That would prove to be a pivotal moment, as Manning would remain the starting quarterback for the duration of his college career, while Helton would focus on baseball, eventually winning the Dick Howser Trophy for best collegiate player by the American Baseball Coaches Association and Player of the Year by Baseball America in 1995.

The Rockies selected him with the No. 8 overall pick in the 1995 draft and two years later he made his major league debut. He played his entire 17-year career with the team before he retired after the 2013 season, capping a run in which he was a five-time All-Star and led the Rockies to their only World Series appearance, in 2007.

Things worked out pretty well for Manning, too. He would finish as the Heisman Trophy runner-up as the best collegiate football player in 1997 before the Indianapolis Colts chose him with the No. 1 overall pick in the 1998 NFL draft, starting a career that would end with his induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2021. In 2017, he was also enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame.

Manning led the Colts to one Super Bowl victory and won another title with the Denver Broncos, which, perhaps not so coincidentally, play near the Rockies. In fact, Manning was on hand for Helton’s final home game with the Rockies, when he blasted a home run and drove in three runs in a loss to the Boston Red Sox.

Helton joined Minnesota Twins catcher Joe Mauer and slugging third baseman Adrian Beltre as new inductees into the Hall of Fame, along with manager Jim Leyland, whose impending enshrinement was announced in December. The quartet will be inducted in a ceremony in Cooperstown, New York, on July 21.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com