BYU tops FBS in NFF Hampshire Honor Society honorees

IRVING, Texas (April 10, 2019) - The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) announced today the members of the 2019 NFF Hampshire Honor Society, which is comprised of college football players from all divisions of play who each maintained a cumulative 3.2 GPA or better throughout their college careers. An all-time high of 1,643 players from a record 424 schools qualified for membership in the Society's 13th year.

 

BYU and Vanderbilt led all FBS schools with seven members each while Harvard topped the FCS with 16 honorees. Division III's Saint John's (MN) led all schools in 2019 with 20 honorees. Minnesota Duluth was the Division II leader with 10 members and Doane (NE) had the most honorees in the NAIA with nine.

 

Cougars honored by the NFF in 2019 include running backs Brayden El-Bakri and Matt Hadley, linebackers Adam Pulsipher and Riggs Powell, defensive back/holder Gavin Fowler, offensive lineman Austin Hoyt and punter Rhett Almond. Pulsipher was also recognized by the NFF during the season as a semifinalist for the 2018 William V. Campbell Trophy awarded each year to the top football scholar-athlete in the nation.

 

With 61 overall honorees, BYU sets the pace among all FBS programs for the most players to earn recognition in the NFF Hampshire Honor Society since the inception of the program in 2007. Minnesota (49 honorees), Duke and Nebraska (43) and Ohio State (42) round out the top five among FBS programs. BYU is one of eight FBS schools to have had at least one player honored in all 13 years of the NFF Hampshire Honor Society (2007-19) along with Minnesota (49), West Virginia (36), Penn State (31), Colorado (27), Iowa (27), Kentucky (27) and SMU (24).

 

"The NFF has always done an excellent job of recognizing outstanding student-athletes who achieve success both on the field and in the classroom,” BYU Director of Athletics Tom Holmoe said. “BYU football players make it a goal to be included in the NFF Hampshire Honor Society and we have been fortunate enough to have had student-athletes selected 13 years in a row. I'm grateful to the NFF for shining a positive light on the accomplishments of amateur football players and inspiring our athletes to perform.”

 

The NFF Hampshire Honor Society capitalizes on the NFF's National Scholar-Athlete program by greatly expanding the number of scholar-athletes the NFF can recognize each year. The program further strengthens the organization's leadership role in encouraging academic performance by the student-athletes at the 778 colleges and universities with football programs nationwide. 

 

"We are pleased to see another record number of athletes honored by the Hampshire Honor Society this year," said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. "For more than a decade, it has become a powerful vehicle for schools to recognize their college football players who have distinguished themselves both academically and athletically, and we congratulate the schools and each of these young men for their commitment to excellence in all aspects of their lives.”

 

The 1,643 players honored in 2019 sets a new high water mark, eclipsing the previous record of 1,274 honorees in 2018. The 424 schools represented breaks the previous mark of 308 set in 2018.

 

The initiative has now honored 10,660 student-athletes since its inception, and the program has experienced growth every year in either members or school participation since its launch in 2007. 

 

Nominated by their respective schools, members of the NFF Hampshire Honor Society must have: