IRVING, Texas (Sept. 30, 2026) – The National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame announced today the 12 honorees who will receive NFF awards during festivities surrounding the 68th NFF Annual Awards Dinner Presented by Las Vegas on Dec. 8. The honorees include leaders in athletics administration, broadcasting, officiating, communications, bowl administration and the NFF's nationwide chapter network.
 
"Our 2026 honorees have dedicated their careers to strengthening the game," said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. "Their tireless work has made an extraordinary impact. We look forward to celebrating their contributions in Las Vegas in December."
   
NFF John L. Toner Award

• Gene Taylor — Director of Athletics, Kansas State University

 
NFF Chris Schenkel Award

• Todd Ellis — Voice of the Gamecocks, University of South Carolina

 
NFF Legacy Awards

• Rick Baker — Former President & CEO, Cotton Bowl Athletic Association
• Chris Plonsky — Executive Senior Associate Athletics Director, Chief of Staff, University of Texas
• Steve Shaw — Former Secretary-Rules Editor for Football and National Coordinator of Officials, NCAA
• Herb Vincent — Associate Commissioner for Communications, Southeastern Conference
• New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC)

 
NFF Chapter Leadership Awards

• Paul Glagola — NFF Greater Baltimore [Maryland] Chapter (East Region)
• Bart Curtis — NFF Moose Krause/South Bend [Indiana] Chapter (Midwest Region)
• Greg Draddy — NFF Westchester [New York] Chapter (Northeast Region)
• Joe Thompson — East Tennessee Chapter (South Region)
• Ray Ma'ae — Hawaii Chapter (West Region)

 
All 12 honorees will be recognized during the 68th NFF Annual Awards Dinner Presented by Las Vegas on Dec. 8, 2026, at the Bellagio Resort & Casino in Las Vegas. Please click here to purchase tickets.
 
The event will also feature the induction of the 2026 NFF College Football Hall of Fame Class, the presentation of the 2026 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards Presented by Fidelity Investments, and the announcement of the recipient of the 37th William V. Campbell Trophy®, college football's premier scholar-athlete award. The 2026 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class, who will also serve as the pool of finalists for the Campbell Trophy®, will be announced Oct. 21.
 
   
The NFF John L. Toner Award, first presented in 1997, honors athletics directors who have demonstrated superior administrative abilities and outstanding dedication to college athletics and particularly college football. The award is named after its first recipient, the late John L. Toner, former athletics director and football coach at the University of Connecticut and NCAA President.
 
Gene Taylor, who has served as Kansas State's director of athletics since 2017, will receive the 2026 NFF John L. Toner Award for his distinguished career in college athletics administration, which has included stops at Iowa, North Dakota State, Navy and SMU, and his commitment to the values of college football.
 
Taylor's tenure at K-State has represented one of the most successful periods in the school's athletics history, marked by team championships, individual national titles, postseason runs, record crowds, continued academic success and significant facility enhancements.
 
Heading into 2026-27, K-State will be led by two new head coaches in Collin Klein (football) and Casey Alexander (men's basketball), while second-year track and field coach Travis Geopfert is coming off a season that saw three Wildcats claim individual national championships and three teams finish in the top 10, including a program-best fourth-place national finish by the men's indoor team.
 
K-State football has enjoyed sustained success during Taylor's tenure, highlighted by the 2022 Big 12 Championship, the program's first conference title in a decade. When Taylor arrived on campus in 2017, NFF College Football Hall of Fame coach Bill Snyder was still at the helm. Following Snyder's retirement after the 2018 season, Taylor faced the daunting task of replacing a living legend. He turned to Chris Klieman, rekindling a relationship that dated to their days together at North Dakota State. As the Bison athletics director, Taylor had promoted Klieman from defensive coordinator to head coach in 2013. Klieman went on to win four FCS national championships in five seasons before Taylor hired him again, this time to succeed Snyder at K-State.
 
Klieman quickly established the Wildcats as a consistent Big 12 contender, leading K-State to the 2022 conference crown and an Allstate Sugar Bowl appearance while producing three consecutive nine-win seasons from 2022-24. When Klieman retired in 2025, Taylor again faced the task of selecting a successor, this time turning to former Wildcat quarterback and Heisman Trophy finalist Klein to lead the program. With Taylor in the front office, the Wildcats have posted a 70-46 record, winning 60.3% of their games.
 
The Wildcats have also been a regular postseason presence during Taylor's tenure, earning seven bowl berths and winning the 2017 Cactus Bowl, 2021 Texas Bowl, 2023 Pop-Tarts Bowl and the 2024 Rate Bowl. Taylor's tenure has also included the induction of three Wildcats into the NFF College Football Hall of Fame — Darren Sproles, Michael Bishop and Terence Newman — and the selection of four players as Campbell Trophy® Finalists: Dalton Risner, Adam Holtorf, Adrian Martinez and Cooper Beebe.
 
A former member of the College Football Playoff Selection Committee, Taylor currently serves as chair of the FBS Athletics Directors Association and as a member of the College Football Oversight Committee.
 
Beyond football, K-State has enjoyed significant success during Taylor's tenure, including Big 12 championships in men's basketball and women's track and field, an Elite Eight appearance in men's basketball, a Sweet 16 run in women's basketball and a baseball Super Regional berth. Women's golf also reached the NCAA Championships for the first time in school history, while track and field produced three individual national champions and a program-best fourth-place NCAA indoor finish.
 
Taylor and his staff have also raised funds for and implemented a department-wide facility master plan benefiting all Wildcat teams, including the Indoor Track and Field Complex, Morgan Family Arena for volleyball, the Morris Family Olympic Training Center and the Shamrock Practice Facility for football.
 
Taylor, who was named the 2022-23 Cushman & Wakefield FBS Athletic Director of the Year, has implemented a strategic plan emphasizing the student-athlete experience while guiding the department through a period of unprecedented change in college athletics, including the COVID-19 pandemic and the rapidly evolving NIL and revenue-sharing landscape.
 
K-State Nation continues to support the athletics program in unprecedented fashion as total cash giving to the department during the 2026 fiscal year totaled $45.7 million, breaking the previous fundraising record set in 2014. Within this, a new annual fund record was set with $41.2 million in annual gifts, shattering the previous record of $26.3 million set in 2024, and a record $1.17 million raised during the annual Powercat Auction. 
 
Academic achievement has remained a priority under Taylor's leadership, with K-State continuing to rank among the top schools in the Big 12 in Academic Progress Rate and Graduation Success Rate.
 
Taylor arrived at K-State after serving as deputy athletics director at Iowa from 2014-17 after a highly successful 13-year tenure as athletics director at North Dakota State. Taylor helped oversee the Bison's transition from NCAA Division II to Division I and the emergence of an athletics program that would become a national power at the FCS level and now an FBS program. During his tenure, NDSU football captured three consecutive FCS national championships from 2011-13.
 
A 1980 business management graduate of Arizona State, Taylor earned his master's degree in sports administration from St. Thomas University in Florida in 1985. He began his career in the ticket office at Southern Methodist University in 1985-86 before joining the U.S. Naval Academy, where he spent 15 years in a variety of administrative roles before taking over at North Dakota State. His tenure at Navy also included serving as commissioner of the Collegiate Sprint Football League that includes Army, Navy, Penn, Princeton and Cornell. 
 
"Gene Taylor represents everything you want in an athletics director," said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. "He's a thoughtful leader who cares deeply about the student-athletes, coaches and people around him, and everywhere he has been, he has left the athletics program stronger than he found it. Gene has also been a steady and respected voice during a period of tremendous change in college athletics, and his commitment to doing things the right way has never wavered. He is incredibly deserving of the John L. Toner Award."
 
   
The NFF Chris Schenkel Award recognizes a broadcaster with a long and distinguished career broadcasting college football with direct ties to a specific school. Given annually since 1996, the award bears the name of its first recipient, Chris Schenkel, the renowned ABC Sports broadcaster who emceed the NFF Annual Awards Dinner for 28 consecutive years from 1968 to 1995.
 
Todd Ellis, the longtime "Voice of the Gamecocks," will receive the 2026 NFF Chris Schenkel Award in recognition of his distinguished broadcasting career and enduring connection to the University of South Carolina.
 
For more than four decades, Ellis has been closely identified with South Carolina football — first as one of the greatest quarterbacks in school history and, for the past 23 seasons, as the unmistakable radio voice chronicling the Gamecocks.
 
Ellis is currently in his 35th season overall with the Gamecock Sports Radio Network, having previously worked as a sideline reporter before moving into the booth. His broadcasting résumé also includes work as a color analyst and play-by-play announcer on Gamecock telecasts for Comcast Sports Southeast and on CBS bowl game radio coverage. In addition to calling the games, he hosts the "Shane Beamer Television Show" and "Carolina Calls with Shane Beamer," the coach's weekly radio call-in show.
 
Throughout much of his broadcasting career, Ellis has shared the booth with another legendary South Carolina quarterback, Tommy Suggs. The two have spent nearly three decades working together on Gamecock broadcasts, developing a chemistry rooted in their shared experiences as quarterbacks and their deep appreciation for the university. Suggs, now in his 54th season with the network, serves as the color analyst alongside Ellis, while Chet Tucker, in his fourth season with the crew in 2026, reports from the sidelines. Behind the scenes, Liz McMillan works as the Gamecock Sports Radio Network executive producer.
 
Ellis and Suggs' relationship dates to Ellis' playing days. When Ellis arrived at South Carolina in 1985, Suggs was already working alongside legendary play-by-play voice Bob Fulton, and the two spent time together during Ellis' freshman season for a feature on the records he and NFF College Football Hall of Famer Sterling Sharpe were breaking. Years later, the former Gamecock quarterbacks reunited in the radio booth, turning a relationship that began during Ellis' playing days into one of college football's longest-running broadcast partnerships.
 
Since taking over as South Carolina's radio play-by-play announcer in 2003, Ellis has provided the soundtrack for some of the most memorable moments in modern Gamecock football history, beginning with his first two seasons when NFF College Football Hall of Fame Coach Lou Holtz roamed the sidelines. Ellis was behind the microphone during the 2010–13 run under NFF College Football Hall of Fame Coach Steve Spurrier, when the Gamecocks went 42–11. During those four seasons, South Carolina won its only SEC East championship, made its only SEC Championship Game appearance, produced three consecutive 11-win seasons from 2011–13, completed a school-record five-game winning streak over rival Clemson and capped the run with a No. 4 final ranking in 2013, the highest in school history.
 
He called games featuring some of the most storied players in South Carolina history, including Jadeveon Clowney, Marcus Lattimore, Connor Shaw, Alshon Jeffery, Stephon Gilmore, Melvin Ingram and Deebo Samuel, while providing the call for many of the program's most memorable moments. Among them were the 2010 upset of No. 1 Alabama, Ace Sanders' 70-yard punt return against No. 5 Georgia in 2012, Jadeveon Clowney's iconic hit against Michigan in the 2013 Outback Bowl and the "Miracle at Mizzou" comeback later that year. More recently, Ellis called the Gamecocks' remarkable back-to-back upsets of No. 5 Tennessee and No. 8 Clemson to close the 2022 regular season.
 
A native of Greensboro, North Carolina, Ellis emerged as one of the nation's most highly recruited quarterbacks while starring at Page High School. A high school All-American, he was rated the nation's No. 1 recruit after leading Page to three consecutive state championships. After redshirting in 1985, Ellis became the Gamecocks' starting quarterback and rewrote the program's passing record book from 1986-89. A four-year letterman, he set more than 20 school passing records, finishing with a school-record 9,953 career passing yards and leading the Gamecocks to two bowl appearances.
 
Ellis earned his law degree from the University of South Carolina School of Law in 1995 and was admitted to the bar in both South Carolina and North Carolina. He has practiced law for more than 30 years, representing individuals and small businesses in cases involving personal injury, property damage, unfair trade practices, medical malpractice and business litigation.
 
Ellis' accomplishments have earned him numerous honors. He was selected as an SEC Football Legend in 1997 and named a University of South Carolina Outstanding Young Alumnus in 2003. He was inducted into the University of South Carolina Lettermen's Athletics Hall of Fame in 2005, the State of South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame in 2020 and the South Carolina Football Hall of Fame in 2025. In 2026, the South Carolina Broadcasters Association recognized Ellis with an Honorary Life Membership.
 
"Todd Ellis has been part of the fabric of South Carolina football for more than 40 years," said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. "He first made his mark as one of the great quarterbacks in Gamecock history, and then he found a way to stay connected to the game and the university he loves by becoming its voice. Generations of South Carolina fans have grown up listening to Todd call the games, and that kind of longevity and connection to one school is exactly what the Chris Schenkel Award was created to recognize."
 
 
   
Established in 2007, the NFF Legacy Award recognizes individuals and organizations that have made extraordinary contributions to the National Football Foundation and/or embody the NFF's mission of promoting the values of football, academic excellence and leadership.
 
   
For nearly four decades, Rick Baker helped shape the college football postseason as the steward of the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic, one of the game's most iconic postseason traditions, while strengthening its role as a force for good in the North Texas community.
 
Baker retired as president and CEO of the Cotton Bowl Athletic Association on April 30, 2026, concluding a remarkable 38-year tenure with the organization. During that time, he helped guide the Classic through enormous changes in college football, including new broadcast, conference and title sponsorship partnerships, the move to AT&T Stadium and ultimately its inclusion in the College Football Playoff.
 
Throughout Baker's tenure, the Cotton Bowl Athletic Association remained a longtime friend and supporter of the NFF and its mission, helping strengthen the Foundation's presence in North Texas and supporting its efforts to promote the values of college football.
 
"Rick has been a great friend to the National Football Foundation and someone who has spent his entire career making college football better," said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. "Rick has always made sure that the Cotton Bowl was more than just a game while protecting its traditions and expanding its impact in the community. We are extremely grateful for his friendship and everything he has done for college football over the years."
 
Baker joined the Cotton Bowl Athletic Association as director of marketing in 1988, assuming the role of executive director in 1992 and then president and CEO in 2010. As one of the deans of the bowl industry, he leveraged the Cotton Bowl's legendary reputation for hospitality to secure its place among the New Year's Six bowls and as a key part of the College Football Playoff, hosting both CFP semifinals and quarterfinals. The move to AT&T Stadium also positioned the Cotton Bowl Athletic Association to host the inaugural CFP National Championship at the stadium in January 2015, when Ohio State defeated Oregon, 42-20.
 
The Classic now generates an estimated $100 million in annual economic impact for North Texas, with its direct economic impact nearly doubling since the game moved to AT&T Stadium in 2010. The 2025 College Football Playoff Quarterfinal at the 90th Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic marked Baker's 38th Classic as a member of the CBAA staff. Baker also played an instrumental role in the creation and growth of the Cotton Bowl Foundation and Cotton Bowl Classic Hall of Fame. Since 2016, the Foundation has awarded more than $4 million to nonprofit organizations throughout North Texas.
 
Before joining the Cotton Bowl, Baker held athletics administration positions at SMU and the Southwest Conference from 1979-88. He earned his bachelor's degree from the University of Scranton in 1977 and a master's degree from Ohio University in 1979. A three-year baseball letterman at Scranton, Baker also spent two seasons in the Pittsburgh Pirates minor league system.
 
In 2026, Bowl Season honored Baker with its Wright Waters Legacy Award for his leadership and contributions to college football.
 
   
For 50 years, Chris Plonsky has been a trailblazer and tireless advocate for college athletics, building a career that helped bridge the worlds of men's and women's sports while emerging as one of the most respected administrators in the industry.
 
Now in her 38th year overall at the University of Texas, Plonsky serves as executive senior associate athletics director/chief of staff and the Longhorns' senior woman administrator for SEC and NCAA governance. Her current responsibilities include oversight of student-athlete academic and career services, sports medicine and performance, and compliance and risk management.
 
Plonsky previously served as Texas' women's athletics director from 2001-17, but her impact during that era extended well beyond women's sports. From 1993-2017, she held significant responsibilities across both men's and women's athletics, overseeing revenue-producing areas that included multimedia rights, sponsorships, marketing, television and trademark licensing.
 
A longtime friend and leader of the National Football Foundation, Plonsky served on the NFF Board of Directors and its Awards Committee from 2005-15 and has remained an emeritus director since 2015.
 
"Chris has always been all in when it comes to supporting the National Football Foundation and the values we believe in," said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. "Whether it was the Hall of Fame, our scholar-athletes, our academic programs or simply being there whenever we needed her, Chris has always found a way to help. We have been incredibly fortunate to have her as a friend and leader of the NFF."
 
Plonsky's influence extends throughout college athletics. She has served as president of NACDA, NACMA and Women Leaders in Sports, chaired the NCAA Division I Management Council and served on the board of the FBS ADs Association. Her national service has also included 28 years on the USA Basketball Board of Directors, and she currently chairs the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame Board of Trustees.
 
Before returning to Texas in 1993, Plonsky worked in athletics communications at Iowa State (1979-81) and Texas (1982-86) before spending seven years at the BIG EAST Conference (1986-93), ultimately serving as associate commissioner for administration.
 
Her contributions have earned widespread recognition, including induction into the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 2025 and selection by Sports Business Journal as a 2026 Champion: Pioneer & Innovator in Sports Business. Her honors also include induction into the NACMA and CoSIDA halls of fame and recognition as the 2023 WBCA Administrator of the Year and a 2023 Naismith Outstanding Contributor to Women's Basketball.
 
Born in Pittsburgh and raised in Greensburg, Pa., and northeast Ohio, Plonsky graduated magna cum laude from Kent State in 1979 with a journalism degree. She was a three-year basketball student-athlete, undergraduate KSU athletics media relations assistant and editor of The Daily Kent Stater.
 
   
From the field to the replay booth to the rule book, Steve Shaw has spent more than three decades working to make college football better, first as one of the game's most respected officials and ultimately as a national leader in modernizing officiating and shaping the rules of the sport.
 
Shaw retired Sept. 1, 2026, as the College Football Officiating (CFO) National Coordinator of Football Officials and secretary-rules editor of the NCAA Football Rules Committee. He had served as secretary-rules editor since 2017 and national coordinator since 2020, playing a critical role in developing competition rules and policies while promoting consistency in officiating across the country.
 
Shaw has also been a longtime friend and collaborator of the National Football Foundation. Under his leadership, the annual winter meeting of Division I conference coordinators for football officials has taken place each January at NFF headquarters in Irving, Texas. The NFF and CFO also collaborate annually to publicize college football's rule changes and educate the media, players, coaches and fans about their impact on the game.
 
"Steve has devoted his life to making college football better, and officiating is such a critical part of our game," said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. "He was a great official on the field, and then he took that experience and became a tremendous leader nationally. Steve understands the game, and he has always been willing to work with us to help people understand the rules. We are incredibly grateful for his friendship and everything he has done for college football."
 
Before assuming his national roles, Shaw served as the SEC coordinator of football officials beginning in 2011 and added the Sun Belt Conference in 2014, leading a joint program between the two conferences.
 
Shaw's officiating career began at the high school level, where he worked 14 seasons with the Birmingham Football Officials Association before moving into the collegiate ranks with the Gulf South Conference. He spent six seasons at the Division II level before beginning a 15-year run as an SEC referee. Widely regarded as one of the nation's top officials, Shaw earned 14 postseason assignments, including two BCS National Championship Games, three Rose Bowls, two Fiesta Bowls, an Orange Bowl and four SEC Championship Games.
 
As a national leader, Shaw helped modernize officiating mechanics and championed the use of technology to improve the game. He chaired the Collegiate Commissioners Association National Mechanics Committee, leading the rewrite of its mechanics manual and the introduction of mechanics for eight-person crews. He also helped pioneer wireless official-to-official communications and expanded the use of video to evaluate and develop officials.
 
A Tuscaloosa native and University of Alabama graduate, Shaw was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 2020. Following his retirement from his national officiating roles, he joined ESPN as a college football rules analyst.
 
   
For more than four decades, Herb Vincent has been one of college athletics' most trusted communications leaders, dedicating his career to promoting the game, telling its stories and helping navigate many of the most significant changes in college football.
 
Vincent will retire from the Southeastern Conference following the 2026 football season, concluding a 43-year career in college and professional sports. He has spent the past 13 years as the SEC's associate commissioner for communications, developing and managing the conference's communications strategies, serving as a conference spokesperson and acting as the primary liaison between the SEC office and communications staffs at its member institutions.
 
A longtime friend of the National Football Foundation, Vincent has worked closely with the NFF throughout his years at LSU and the SEC, supporting the Foundation's efforts to promote its initiatives while promoting candidates for the NFF College Football Hall of Fame and the Campbell Trophy.
 
"Herb has dedicated his entire career to supporting and promoting college football, and he has always been someone you can count on to make things happen for the good of the game," said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. "Whether at LSU or the SEC, Herb has been a great friend to the National Football Foundation and a tremendous resource for us over the years. He understands what makes college football special, and we are incredibly grateful for everything he has done for the game."
 
An LSU journalism graduate, Vincent got his start in athletics communications as a student working in the Tigers' sports information office. After graduating, he spent two seasons working in the public relations offices for the USFL's New Orleans Breakers and Los Angeles Express and one year as Assistant Sports Information Director and Director of Publications at the University of Southwestern Louisiana. He then joined the SEC staff as Assistant Director of Public Relations, remaining there until 1988, when he returned to LSU.
 
He spent the next 12 years at his alma mater, serving in increasingly prominent communications roles until 2000, when he became Vice President for Communications for the College Sports Southeast regional cable network in Birmingham. He rejoined the LSU staff in 2002, eventually overseeing communications and serving as the university's primary public relations officer before rising to Associate Vice Chancellor for University Relations. He then returned to the SEC in 2013 for a second stint at the conference headquarters, beginning what would become a 13-year capstone to his distinguished career.
 
A past president of College Sports Communicators, Vincent received the organization's Arch Ward Award in 2019 and has been inducted into its Hall of Fame. He is also a member of the LSU Alumni Hall of Distinction and LSU Manship School of Mass Communication Hall of Fame. In 2025, he received the Dave Dixon Louisiana Sports Leadership Award and was inducted into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame.
 
A native of North Little Rock, Arkansas, Vincent earned his journalism degree from LSU in 1983 and authored "The LSU Football Vault," chronicling the history of Tigers football, in 2008.
   
Few conferences embody the National Football Foundation's ideals of scholarship, leadership and a love of the game more completely than the New England Small College Athletic Conference, where some of college football's oldest traditions have flourished alongside an unwavering commitment to academic excellence.
 
"The NESCAC represents so much of what the National Football Foundation stands for, with the conference's mission explicitly stating that athletics must support the educational mission of its institutions," said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. "These schools have been playing football since the late 1800s, and they have never lost sight of why college athletics matter. We are proud to recognize the NESCAC with an NFF Legacy Award for showing how academics and athletics can work together to develop the next generation of leaders."
 
Founded in 1971, the NESCAC today consists of 11 highly selective colleges and universities united by the belief that intercollegiate athletics should operate in harmony with each institution's educational mission. The conference places responsibility for athletic policy with the presidents of its member institutions and has long maintained standards designed to keep athletics strong while preserving their proper role within the overall college experience.
 
Football's roots at NESCAC institutions extend much further than the founding of the conference itself. Every current football-playing member began competing before 1900, creating traditions and rivalries that span generations. Amherst and Williams first met on the gridiron in 1884, and their annual meeting, known as "The Biggest Little Game in America," remains one of college football's oldest rivalries. The game's historic stature helped Williams become the first Division III school to host ESPN's College GameDay when the Ephs hosted Amherst in 2007.
 
Other longstanding traditions include the Little Three competition among Amherst, Wesleyan and Williams, which traces its origins to 1899; the Colby-Bates-Bowdoin (CBB) Championship among Maine's three NESCAC schools, whose rivalries stretch to the late 19th century; and the in-state rivalry between Trinity and Wesleyan, which began in 1885.
 
In 1883, Wesleyan hosted Michigan in Hartford, defeating the Wolverines 14-6 in the only meeting between the two programs, allowing the Cardinals to claim an undefeated record against the winningest program in college football history.
 
That commitment to combining football with academic achievement is reflected in the NESCAC's remarkable connection to the NFF. Its institutions have produced 12 members of the NFF College Football Hall of Fame — seven players and five coaches — as well as 14 NFF National Scholar-Athletes. Hall of Famers from current NESCAC institutions include legendary players such as Amherst's Jack Hubbard and Freddie Scott, Trinity's Mickey Kobrosky, Tufts' William Grinnell, Wesleyan's Everett Bacon and Harry Van Surdam, and Williams' Benny Lee Boynton, along with distinguished coaches including Lloyd Jordan (Amherst), Tuss McLaughry (Amherst), Forest Evashevski (Hamilton), Charley Caldwell (Williams) and Dick Farley (Williams). That scholar-athlete tradition remains strong today, with 60 NESCAC football players posting GPAs of 3.5 or higher and earning College Sports Communicators Academic All-District honors during the 2025 season alone.
 
Middlebury's Mickey Heinecken, who guided the Panthers for 28 seasons, provides another powerful NFF-NESCAC connection. He helped establish the NFF Vermont Chapter in 1994, exemplifying the longstanding commitment of NESCAC leaders to advancing the game beyond the sidelines.
 
The influence of NESCAC football players has extended far beyond the gridiron. Bowdoin football player Paul Douglas became a renowned economist, decorated Marine and three-term U.S. senator; and Wesleyan's Emilio Daddario served with distinction in World War II before serving six terms in Congress. NFF National Scholar-Athlete Thomas Allen of Bowdoin became a Rhodes Scholar and six-term U.S. congressman, while fellow NFF National Scholar-Athlete David Thompson of Tufts became a prominent engineering executive.
 
The tradition of leadership extends across generations. Wesleyan's Bill Belichick became one of the most accomplished coaches in NFL history. Colby's Eric DeCosta, a 1993 graduate, has risen to executive vice president and general manager of the Baltimore Ravens, building a distinguished career in NFL personnel and management. Williams' George Steinbrenner became one of the most influential figures in professional sports as principal owner of the New York Yankees. Middlebury's Bill Shufelt co-founded the Athletic Brewing Company, the nation's leading nonalcoholic beer brand.
 
Countless other examples run throughout the conference's history, further illustrating how the lessons learned through football at NESCAC institutions have carried into leadership roles across business, government, the military and professional sports.
 
The 2026 season marks a historic new chapter as NESCAC football becomes eligible for the NCAA Division III Championship for the first time. While maintaining its traditional nine-game conference schedule, the team finishing atop the standings will earn the NESCAC's automatic berth in the 40-team championship, with other conference teams eligible for at-large selections.
 
As NESCAC football enters this new era, the conference remains grounded in the philosophy that has defined it for generations: that football can be a powerful part of the educational experience and a vehicle for developing leaders.
   
First presented in 1988, the NFF Chapter Leadership Awards annually recognize five individuals, one from each region of the country, for their commitment, generosity and leadership at the local level in fulfilling the NFF's mission of Building Leaders Through Football. With 120 chapters and more than 12,000 members, the NFF Chapter Network impacts more than 500,000 student-athletes at 5,000 high schools in 47 states each year, recognizing more than 3,500 scholar-athletes and distributing more than $1 million in scholarships.
 
   
For Bart Curtis, a 42-year career as a high school football coach and educator has gone hand in hand with a commitment to advancing the game and creating opportunities for young people throughout the Michiana community.
 
Curtis and his wife, Sara, began attending the NFF Moose Krause Chapter's annual banquet in 1998, and his involvement deepened after the chapter honored him with its Contributions to Football Award in 2006. Three years later, Curtis and fellow coach Bill Sharpe were asked to serve as liaisons between the chapter and local coaches, and Curtis subsequently joined the chapter's board.
 
A career educator, Curtis spent 36 of his 42 years in coaching as a head football coach at four different high schools. He also spent 15 years as a high school teacher and 22 years as an administrator. As a player, Curtis competed at NorthWood High School in Nappanee, Indiana, and at Manchester College in North Manchester, Indiana.
 
Through the Moose Krause Chapter, Curtis has helped continue one of the region's great football traditions. Founded as the South Bend Chapter, the organization honored seven scholar-athletes at its inaugural banquet in 1974 and has since recognized more than 400 high school students for excellence in the classroom, on the football field and in their communities. The chapter annually honors approximately 25 scholar-athletes while also recognizing current and former coaches for their contributions to the game.
 
Over the past half century, the chapter has provided more than $1 million in scholarships, and today it awards six scholarships ranging from $1,000 to $2,500. Curtis takes particular pride in the annual banquet, now a Michiana tradition for more than five decades, and the opportunity it provides to celebrate deserving young people alongside their families, coaches and community.
 
Curtis and his wife of more than 36 years, Sara, have three children, Michael, Hannah and Brian, and three grandchildren, Kennedy, Isabelle and Oak.
 
   
For Greg Draddy, service to the National Football Foundation and its Westchester Chapter represents both a personal commitment and a family tradition spanning more than half a century.
 
Draddy follows in the footsteps of his great-uncle, Vincent dePaul Draddy, and his father, Bill Draddy, in leading the Westchester Chapter. Vincent Draddy joined the national NFF Board in 1957, serving for 33 years, including 19 years as chairman. He founded the Westchester Chapter in 1973, further extending his impact as one of the most influential figures in NFF history. Bill Draddy subsequently took the reins of the Westchester Chapter from his uncle, guiding its efforts for 20 years.
 
Greg has continued that remarkable legacy, extending the Draddy family's leadership and service to the chapter to 53 years. During that time, the Westchester Chapter has recognized more than 680 scholar-athletes and awarded nearly $1 million in scholarships, carrying forward the NFF's mission of using football to develop the next generation of leaders.
 
Greg's own connection to the NFF began as a student-athlete. A standout football player, he was recognized as an NFF Westchester Golden Dozen Scholar-Athlete in 1989 before attending the College of the Holy Cross, where he played four years of football from 1989-93. He earned his bachelor's degree in history from Holy Cross before receiving his Juris Doctor from Suffolk University Law School.
 
Professionally, Draddy has spent 25 years in the insurance industry, providing strategic advice and guidance to businesses and executives on managing risk. A New York native, Draddy lives in Rye, New York, with his wife and their three young-adult children.
 
Through his leadership of the Westchester Chapter, he continues a family tradition that began with Vin Draddy more than five decades ago — recognizing outstanding scholar-athletes and advancing the values of scholarship, leadership and football throughout the Westchester community.
 
   
Paul Glagola's relationship with the National Football Foundation has spanned more than three decades, beginning in 1991 when he was named the Greater Baltimore Chapter's Grand Prize Scholar-Athlete and subsequently became the NFF's first Eastern Region National High School Scholar-Athlete.
 
Glagola returned to the Greater Baltimore Chapter in 2003, serving as president from 2006-17 and helping oversee one of the NFF Chapter Network's largest scholar-athlete recognition programs. During his tenure, the chapter's annual banquet honored more than 80 scholar-athletes each year before crowds exceeding 1,000 and awarded $20,000 annually in scholarships.
 
Founded in 1961, the Greater Baltimore Chapter has long been a leader in promoting amateur football throughout Baltimore and the surrounding region. The branch staged its first annual Scholar-Athlete Awards Dinner in 1964, and it annually recognizes a scholar-athlete from each football-playing high school in Baltimore City and Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Frederick, Harford and Howard counties. More than 3,900 scholar-athletes have been honored through the years, with more than 56,000 people attending the event and over $570,000 in scholarships awarded.
 
Glagola's contributions have extended beyond the chapter level. He served on the NFF Chapter Council of Presidents and the NFF District Screening Committee for the College Football Hall of Fame, and he helped facilitate a partnership between Under Armour and the national organization.


A 1995 graduate of the University of Virginia, Glagola played quarterback for the Cavaliers before serving as a student assistant and later a graduate assistant coach under NFF College Football Hall of Fame coach George Welsh through 1998.
 
Professionally, Glagola serves as vice president of client integration at Thrive Networks, a global managed services provider specializing in IT, cloud and AI solutions.
 
   
Ray Ma'ae has played an instrumental role in revitalizing the NFF Hawaii Chapter, helping restart the organization in 2024 after a seven-year period of inactivity and reestablishing its presence as an important resource for student-athletes across the islands.
 
As chapter president, Ma'ae has focused on creating opportunities for Hawaii student-athletes who face the significant expense of traveling to mainland camps and showcases to gain recruiting exposure. Working alongside an active board of directors, he has helped develop two signature chapter events that have resulted in nearly 300 college scholarship offers to participating student-athletes since the chapter's relaunch.
 
Ma'ae and the chapter have also been at the forefront of the growth of girls flag football in Hawaii. In December 2024, the chapter created the state's first free high school girls flag 7-on-7 clinic and game, providing a preview of the spring 2025 launch of sanctioned high school girls flag football in Hawaii. The sport has since expanded to 44 public schools statewide.
 
Ma'ae's commitment to mentoring young people through athletics stretches back decades. He previously co-owned a Hawaii youth sports organization that provided training and competition in tackle football, flag football, rugby, wrestling and boxing, building on his own lifelong involvement in athletics. He also serves as a regional scout for the Military Appreciation Bowl National Combine.
 
Away from football, Ma'ae spent 38 years as a correctional officer lieutenant for the State of Hawaii. He is also a sixth-degree Kajukenbo black belt and previously owned a self-defense school. Ma'ae and his wife, Leilani, reside in Kapolei, Hawaii. They have three children and five grandchildren.
 
   
A native Tennessean with a deep commitment to his community, Joe Thompson has played a significant role in recognizing and supporting student-athletes throughout the eastern part of the state as president of the NFF East Tennessee Chapter.
 
Working closely with the University of Tennessee, Thompson and the East Tennessee Chapter have helped make a profound impact on amateur football throughout the region. The chapter annually stages its awards banquet in conjunction with Tennessee's spring football game, bringing together the local football community to celebrate high school scholar-athletes who have distinguished themselves on the field, in the classroom and in their communities.
 
The banquet also recognizes individuals who have positively impacted amateur football with the chapter's Amateur Football Awards, Community Service Awards and Distinguished American Award. The Knoxville Quarterback Club presents the Lindsey Nelson Broadcasting Award and the General Robert R. Neyland Trophy as part of the event. The East Tennessee football community also boasts a remarkable NFF College Football Hall of Fame legacy with 27 inductees, including 23 players and four coaches, highlighted by Bowden Wyatt, one of only four individuals ever inducted as both a player and a coach.
 
A graduate of the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Thompson has spent his entire life in Memphis and Knoxville. Professionally, he serves as a managing director at Raymond James & Associates, overseeing the firm's retail operations in Knoxville and the Tri-Cities region of Tennessee.
 
Thompson has devoted considerable time to charitable and civic organizations throughout East Tennessee. He currently serves as chairman of the board of the East Tennessee Historical Society Foundation, helping preserve the region's rich history. He also served as chairman of the 2014 and 2022 Medal of Honor Conventions in Knoxville, working closely with the Congressional Medal of Honor Society and its Foundation to protect, preserve and perpetuate the legacy of the Medal of Honor and its recipients.
 
His extensive record of community service also includes serving as chairman of the boards of directors for the American Red Cross of the Tennessee Valley and the East Tennessee Historical Society.
 
Thompson and his wife, Becky, have two children, Madeline and Harrison.
  
ABOUT THE NATIONAL FOOTBALL FOUNDATION & COLLEGE HALL OF FAME
Founded in 1947 with early leadership from General Douglas MacArthur, legendary Army coach Earl "Red" Blaik, and journalist Grantland Rice, the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) is a nonprofit organization that leverages the power of amateur football to build leaders. With 120 chapters in 47 states, the NFF oversees initiatives such as the NFF College Hall of Fame, the NFF William V. Campbell Trophy®, the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards Presented by Fidelity Investments®, Future For Football, and I Played. Learn more at footballfoundation.org and follow @NFFNetwork on X, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.