IRVING, Texas (Dec. 11, 2013) – The National Football Foundation (NFF) and the New York Athletic Club (NYAC) announced today that the NYAC will become the exclusive home of the William V. Campbell Trophy, endowed by HealthSouth as the nation’s premier football scholar-athlete award.

“The Campbell Trophy represents the epitome of college football, and we continue to do everything we can do to raise its profile as an inspiration to future scholar-athletes to achieve excellence in all aspects of their lives,” said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. “Making the New York Athletic Club the official home of the Campbell Trophy will give the award an outstanding platform in one of the most important cities in the world in partnership with one of the leaders in amateur sports. It’s the perfect home for the trophy.”

The Campbell Trophy has become one of college football's most sought after and competitive awards, recognizing an individual as the absolute best in the country for his combined academic success, football performance and exemplary community leadership. The award comes with a 24-inch, 25-pound bronze trophy and a $25,000 postgraduate scholarship. As part of today’s announcement, the trophy will become part of the NYAC Hall of Fame, and it will be prominently displayed in an exhibit featuring the names and photographs of each of the winners.

Commenting on the announcement, the President of the New York Athletic Club, S. Colin Neill said, “The attributes required to win the Campbell Award epitomize the core values of the New York Athletic Club. We are delighted to partner with the NFF in support of these scholar-athletes."

The centerpiece to the NFF's robust scholar-athlete program, the Campbell Trophy was first awarded in 1990. It is named in honor of Bill Campbell, the chairman of Intuit, former player and head coach at Columbia University and the 2004 recipient of the NFF's Gold Medal. Candidates must be a senior or graduate student in their final year of college football eligibility, have a grade point average of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale, have outstanding football ability as a first team player and have demonstrated strong leadership and citizenship.

In 2013, the NFF accepted 171 nominations for the award. Last night during the 56^th NFF Annual Awards Dinner at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City, the NFF named Penn State Offensive Guard John Urschel as the 24^th recipient of the trophy. Urschel was honored today at an NYAC reception, and he participated in the official announcement that the club will be the new home of the trophy.

“The National Football Foundation exists not just to perpetuate a game, but to ensure that the young men who play our game develop the skills to go on to be leaders in their chosen fields,” said NFF Chairman Archie Manning, whose son Peyton played at Tennessee and claimed the Campbell Trophy in 1997.  “The Campbell Trophy plays a central role in that objective, and we are proud to partner with the NYAC to generate awareness about this powerful award.”

With an average GPA of 3.7, past Campbell Trophy winners include two Rhodes Scholars, a Rhodes Scholar finalist, two Heisman winners and five first round NFL Draft picks. Additionally, 16 of the 23 winners have made their mark in the NFL. If you hold the title Campbell Trophy winner, you are one of the following: a college president, a doctor, a lawyer, a world-wide leader in climatology research, a Ph.D. nuclear engineer executive, a partner in a highly successful real estate firm, a director with a non-profit foundation or television broadcaster, and that does not include the six recipients still playing in the NFL or the 2011 recipient who is a second lieutenant in the Army.

The Past Recipients of the William V. Campbell Trophy
 

·                     Chris Howard (Air Force, 1990 - College President)

·                     Brad Culpepper (Florida, 1991 - Attorney)

·                     Jim Hansen (Colorado, 1992 - Leader in Climatological Research)

·                     Thomas Burns (Virginia, 1993 - Engineering Executive)

·                     Robert Zatechka (Nebraska, 1994 - Physician)

·                     Bobby Hoying (Ohio State, 1995 - Real Estate Executive)

·                     Danny Wuerffel (Florida, 1996 - Nonprofit Executive Director)

·                     Peyton Manning (Tennessee, 1997 - NFL Player)

·                     Matt Stinchcomb (Georgia, 1998 - Television Broadcaster & Insurance Executive)

·                     Chad Pennington (Marshall, 1999 - Non-Profit President)

·                     Kyle Vanden Bosch (Nebraska, 2000 - Former NFL Player)

·                     Joaquin Gonzalez (Miami, 2001 - Corporate Executive)

·                     Brandon Roberts (Washington University in St. Louis [Mo.], 2002 - Physician)

·                     Craig Krenzel (Ohio State, 2003 - Insurance Executive)

·                     Michael Munoz (Tennessee, 2004 - Non-Profit CEO)

·                     Rudy Niswanger (Louisiana State University, 2005 - Corporate Executive)

·                     Brian Leonard (Rutgers University, 2006 - NFL Player)

·                     Dallas Griffin (University of Texas, 2007 - Corporate Executive)

·                     Alex Mack (University of California, 2008 - NFL Player)

·                     Tim Tebow (University of Florida, 2009 - Non-Profit Chairman)

·                     Sam Acho (University of Texas, 2010 - NFL Player)

·                     Andrew Rodriguez (United States Military Academy, 2011 - Second Lt., United States Army)

·                     Barrett Jones (University of Alabama, 2012 - NFL Player)

·                     John Urschel (Pennsylvania State University, 2013 – Studying for 2^nd Master’s Degree)