The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) proudly announced today a record number of 201 semifinalists for the 2023 William V. Campbell Trophy

Recording Breaking Campbell Trophy Semifinalists

201 Candidates with an Average 3.65 GPA

23 of the Top 25 Ranked Teams Represented

IRVING, Texas (Sept. 27, 2023) – The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) proudly announced today a record number of 201 semifinalists for the 2023 William V. Campbell Trophy®, college football’s premier scholar-athlete award. The new highwater mark eclipses the 199 nominees in 2000. The impressive list of candidates boasts an impressive 3.62 average GPA, with more than half of the semifinalists having already earned their bachelor’s degrees.

Celebrating its 34th year, the Campbell Trophy® recognizes an individual as the absolute best football scholar-athlete in the nation for his combined academic success, football performance and exemplary leadership.

 

 

2023 WILLIAM V. CAMPBELL TROPHY® SEMIFINALISTS NOTES

  • 34thyear of the William V. Campbell Trophy®
  • 65th year of the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards Presented by Fidelity Investments
  • 201 Semifinalists
  • 3.65 Average GPA
  • 121 Nominees who have already earned their bachelor’s degrees
  • 5 Nominees who have earned a master’s degree
  • 10 Nominees with a perfect 4.0 GPA
  • 63 Nominees with a 3.8 GPA or better
  • 85 Nominees with a 3.7 GPA or better
  • 24 Academic All-America selections
  • 121 Captains
  • 24 All-Americans
  • 108 All-Conference picks

“These 201 impressive candidates truly represent the scholar-athlete ideal,” said NFF Chairman Archie Manning, whose sons Peyton (Campbell Trophy® winner) and Eli were named NFF National Scholar-Athletes in 1997 and 2003, respectively. “During the past seven decades, the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards have recognized 906 college football players who excelled as the best our great sport has to offer. This year’s semifinalists build on the tradition, further illustrating the power of football to develop the next generation of influential leaders.”

 

The NFF will announce 12-14 finalists on Oct. 25, and each of them will receive an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship as a member of the 2023 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class Presented by Fidelity Investments. The finalists will travel to the ARIA Resort & Casino in Las Vegas for the 65th NFF Annual Awards Dinner Presented by Las Vegas on Dec. 5, where their accomplishments will be highlighted in front of one of the most powerful audiences in all of sports. Live during the event, one member of the class will be declared as the winner of the 34th Campbell Trophy® and have his postgraduate scholarship increased to $25,000. Click here for more information on the Awards Dinner, including options to purchase tickets online, special travel rates to the event from Delta Air Lines and room rates at the ARIA.

 

Nominated by their schools, which are limited to one nominee each, candidates for the awards must be a senior or graduate student in their final year of playing eligibility, have a GPA of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale, have outstanding football ability as a first team player or significant contributor and have demonstrated strong leadership and citizenship. The class is selected each year by the NFF Awards Committee, which is comprised of a nationally recognized group of media, College Football Hall of Famers and athletics administrators.

“The NFF would like to personally congratulate each of the nominees as well as their schools and coaches on their tremendous accomplishments,” said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. “We are extremely proud to highlight each semifinalist’s achievements, showcasing their ability to balance academics and athletics at the highest level. The NFF Awards Committee will have an incredibly difficult task in selecting the finalists from this outstanding group of candidates.”

Launched in 1959, the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards Presented by Fidelity Investments celebrate their 65th year in 2023. The awards were the first initiative in history to grant postgraduate scholarships based on both a player’s academic and athletic accomplishments, and the NFF has recognized 906 outstanding individuals since the program’s inception. This year’s postgraduate scholarships will push the program’s all-time distribution to more than $12.6 million.

 

The Campbell Trophy® was first awarded in 1990, adding to the program’s prestige. Past recipients include two Rhodes Scholars, a Rhodes Scholar finalist, two Heisman Trophy winners and eight first-round NFL draft picks. Named in honor of the late Bill Campbell, the trophy has been prominently displayed inside its official home at the New York Athletic Club since 2013, and the winner is honored each year during a special luncheon at the storied venue.

 

Known as “The Coach of Silicon Valley,” Campbell became one of our country’s most influential business leaders, playing critical roles in the success of Apple, Google, Intuit and countless other high-tech companies. The captain of the 1961 Columbia Ivy League championship team, he found his true calling after an unlikely career change at age 39 from football coach to advertising executive. His ability to recruit, develop, and manage talented executives – all lessons learned on the gridiron – proved to be a critical component of his ability to inspire his business teams to the highest levels of success.

 

Later in life, Campbell was driven by a heartfelt desire to give back, and he quietly gave away tens of millions of dollars to multiple charities while also finding an hour and half each autumn weekday to coach an eighth-grade boys and girls flag-football team near his home in Palo Alto, California. Campbell passed away April 18, 2016, at the age of 75.

 

As part of its support of the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards, Fidelity Investments helped launch the NFF Faculty Salutes, which recognize the contributions of the faculty athletics representatives at each of the institutions with a finalist for the Campbell Trophy®. Once the finalists are selected, the NFF will present each of their faculty athletics representatives with a plaque and Fidelity will donate $5,000 for the academic support services at each school. The salutes have recognized 168 FARs since the program’s inception, and Fidelity has made a total of $830,000 in donations.

 

2023 Campbell Trophy® Semifinalists by Division and Position

  • 89 Nominees from the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS)
  • 39 Nominees from the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (FCS)
  • 15 Nominees from NCAA Division II
  • 48 Nominees from NCAA Division III
  • 10 Nominees from the NAIA
  • 86 Offensive Players
  • 99 Defensive Players
  • 16 Special Teams Players

2023 WILLIAM V. CAMPBELL TROPHY® SEMIFINALISTS

 

FOOTBALL BOWL SUBDIVISION

Alabama – Seth McLaughlin

Appalachian State – Bucky Williams

Arizona – Kyle Ostendorp

Arizona State – Michael Matus

Arkansas – Hudson Clark

Auburn – Tyler Fromm

Boise State – Riley Smith

Bowling Green State – Demetrius Hardamon

Brigham Young – Ben Bywater

Buffalo – Alex McNulty

California – Matthew Cindric

Central Florida – Jason Johnson

Central Michigan – Robi Stuart

Cincinnati – Malik Vann

Clemson – Sheridan Jones

Duke – DeWayne Carter

East Carolina – Jeremy Lewis

Eastern Michigan – Tanner Knue

Florida – Ricky Pearsall

Florida State – Preston Daniel

Fresno State – Levelle Bailey

Georgia – Ladd McConkey

Georgia State – Seth Glausier

Georgia Tech – Gavin Stewart

Illinois – Isaiah Williams

Indiana – Trey Walker

Iowa State – Easton Dean

Kansas – Mason Fairchild

Kansas State – Cooper Beebe

Kentucky – Alex Raynor

Louisiana – Ben Wooldridge

Louisiana State – Josh Williams

Louisville – Bryan Hudson

Marshall – Logan Osburn

Maryland – Taulia Tagovailoa

Memphis – Jacob Likes

Miami – Jalen Rivers

Michigan – Zak Zinter

Michigan State – Maverick Hansen

Mississippi – Isaac Ukwu

Mississippi State – Ryland Goede

Missouri – Brady Cook

Nebraska – Brian Buschini

Nevada, Las Vegas – Amanaki Fahina

North Carolina – Spencer Rolland

North Carolina State – Timothy McKay

Northern Illinois – James Ester

Northwestern – Bryce Gallagher

Notre Dame – JD Bertrand

Ohio – Bryce Houston

Ohio State – Cody Simon

Oklahoma – Drake Stoops

Oklahoma State – Alex Hale

Old Dominion – Michael Flores

Oregon – Bo Nix

Oregon State – Isaac Hodgins

Penn State – Olu Fashanu

Pittsburgh – Shayne Simon

Purdue – Gus Hartwig

Rice – Luke McCaffrey

Rutgers – Mayan Ahanotu

San Jose State – Tre Jenkins

South Carolina – Kai Kroeger

Southern Mississippi – Swayze Bozeman

Stanford – John Humphreys

Syracuse – Garrett Shrader

Temple – Jordan Magee

Tennessee – Jacob Warren

Texas A&M – Nik Constantinou

Texas at El Paso – Andrew Meyer

Texas at San Antonio – Lucas Dean

Texas Christian – Chase Curtis

Texas Tech – Jaylon Hutchings

Toledo – Judge Culpepper

Troy – Clayton Ollendieck

Tulane – Michael Pratt

United States Air Force Academy – Caleb Rillos

United States Military Academy – Leo Lowin

United States Naval Academy – Eavan Gibbons

Utah – Devaughn Vele

Vanderbilt – Ethan Barr

Virginia – Paul Akere

Wake Forest – Michael Jurgens

Washington – Edefuan Ulofoshio

Washington State – Dean Janikowski

West Virginia – Zach Frazier

Western Kentucky – Austin Reed

Western Michigan – Boone Bonnema

Wisconsin – Maema Njongmeta

 

FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP SUBDIVISION (FCS)

Alcorn State – Akeem McNair

Austin Peay State – Michael DiLiello

Brown – Justin Anagonye

Bucknell – Coleman Bennett

Butler – Bryan Bystol

California, Davis – Jordan Ford

Colgate – Zack Pelland

College of the Holy Cross – Jacob Dobbs

College of William & Mary – Will Whitehurst

Columbia – Joey Giorgi

Cornell – Jake Stebbins

Dartmouth – Macklin Ayers

Dayton – Derek Willits

Delaware – Chandler Harvin

Eastern Illinois – Chad Strickland

Gardner-Webb – William McRainey

Harvard – Garrett Sharp

Incarnate Word – Jayden Borjas

Lehigh – Christian Jablonski

Marist – Justin Iaccio

Montana – TraJon Cotton

Montana State – Nolan Askelson

New Hampshire – Max Brosmer

Nicholls State – Zack Bernard

North Carolina Central – Davius Richard

North Dakota – Ben McNaboe

Pennsylvania – Jack Fairman

Princeton – Jalen Travis

Richmond – Tristan Wheeler

Sacramento State – Jett Stanley

Samford – Chandler Smith

South Dakota – Brock Mogensen

Stonehill – David Satkowski

Stony Brook – Aidan Kaler

Tennessee at Chattanooga – Ailym Ford

Tennessee Tech – Bradley Clark

Towson – Jamal Gay

Western Carolina – Richard McCollum

Yale – Wande Owens

 

DIVISION II

Ashland (OH) – Jake McLoughlin

Benedict (SC) – Loobert Denelus

Bentley (MA) – Jake Tarentino

Black Hills State (SD) – Ryder Blair

Colorado State Pueblo – Chance Fuller

East Stroudsburg (PA) – Daryn Blackwell

Henderson State (AR) – Shaq Robinson

Hillsdale (MI) – Michael Harding

Northern State (SD) – Bradyn Oakley

Ouachita Baptist (AR) – Riley Harms

Penn West, California (PA) – Jack Colecchi

Slippery Rock (PA) – Yuriy Hryckowian

Southern Arkansas – Jacob Berry

Wayne State (MI) – Drake Reid

Wingate (NC) – Trevor Grant

 

DIVISION III

Allegheny (PA) – Declan O’Brien

Augsburg (MN) – Justin Tverberg

Bates (ME) – Cole De Magistris

Birmingham-Southern (AL) – Conner Thornburg

Bowdoin (ME) – Andre Eden

Carnegie Mellon (PA) – Dustin Moss

Case Western Reserve (OH) – Marco Toth

Central (IA) – Jeff Herbers

Cornell (IA) – Sam Adams

DePauw (IN) – Brevon Gude

Gallaudet (DC) – Jonathon Waterman

Hamline (MN) – Charlie Wilson

Hampden-Sydney (VA) – George Langhammer

Hardin-Simmons (TX) – Gaylon Glynn

Hobart (NY) – Abdoulaye Diallo

Ithaca (NY) – A.J. Wingfield

John Carroll (OH) – Bricker Thiel

Johns Hopkins (MD) – Luke Schuermann

Lake Forest (IL) – Justin Albee

Loras (IA) – Brett Bower

Lycoming (PA) – Hunter Campbell

Lyon (AR) – Karson Douglas

McMurry (TX) – Malachi LeCadre-Grey

Methodist (NC) – Brandon Bullins

Middlebury (VT) – Tomás Kenary

Millsaps (MS) – Conner Rucker

Mount Union (OH) – Braxton Plunk

North Central (IL) – Jarod Thornton

Saint John’s (MN) – Aaron Syverson

Shenandoah (VA) – Noah Temme

Springfield (MA) – DJ Brown

St. Olaf (MN) – Ben Hestorff

SUNY, Morrisville – Steve Frerichs

The of Wooster (OH) – Lake Barrett

Trinity (CT) – Darren Warren

Trinity (TX) – Tucker Horn

Wabash (IN) – Liam Thompson

Wartburg (IA) – Owen Grover

Washington & Jefferson (PA) – Justin Johns

Wesleyan (CT) – Jake Edwards

Western New England (MA) – Joe Shea

Westminster (PA) – Carter Chinn

Wilkes (PA) – Billy Anderson

Wisconsin Lutheran – Kyle Kubacki

Wisconsin-Oshkosh – Kobe Berghammer

Wisconsin-Platteville – Justin Blazek

Wisconsin-Stout – Gervase Thompson

Wisconsin-Whitewater – Egon Hein

 

NAIA

Dakota State (SD) – Cole Sylliaasen

Doane (NE) – Ty Martinsen

Evangel (MO) – Andreas Moeller

Friends (KS) – Keegan Martin

Indiana Wesleyan – Xander Stokes

Montana Western – Tanner Harrell

Peru State (NE) – Will Mueller

Rocky Mountain (MT) – Dylan Beridon

Southeastern (FL) – Shane McLaughlin

Texas Wesleyan – Michael Bonner

 

Historical List of Campbell Trophy® Winners

 

1990 – Chris Howard (Air Force)

1991 – Brad Culpepper (Florida)

1992 – Jim Hansen (Colorado)

1993 – Thomas Burns (Virginia)

1994 – Rob Zatechka (Nebraska)

1995 – Bobby Hoying (Ohio State)

1996 – Danny Wuerffel (Florida)

1997 – Peyton Manning (Tennessee)

1998 – Matt Stinchcomb (Georgia)

1999 – Chad Pennington (Marshall)

2000 – Kyle Vanden Bosch (Nebraska)

2001 – Joaquin Gonzalez (Miami [FL])

2002 – Brandon Roberts (Washington U. in St. Louis [MO])

2003 – Craig Krenzel (Ohio State)

2004 – Michael Munoz (Tennessee)

2005 – Rudy Niswanger (LSU)

2006 – Brian Leonard (Rutgers)

2007 – Dallas Griffin (Texas)

2008 – Alex Mack (California)

2009 – Tim Tebow (Florida)

2010 – Sam Acho (Texas)

2011 – Andrew Rodriguez (Army West Point)

2012 – Barrett Jones (Alabama)

2013 – John Urschel (Penn State)

2014 – David Helton (Duke)

2015 – Ty Darlington (Oklahoma)

2016 – Zach Terrell (Western Michigan)

2017 – Micah Kiser (Virginia)

2018 – Christian Wilkins (Clemson)

2019 – Justin Herbert (Oregon)

2020 – Brady White (Memphis)

2021 – Charlie Kolar (Iowa State)

2022 – Jack Campbell (Iowa)

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