The National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame announced today that Henderson State's Kevin Rodgers is one of 17 recipients of the 2014 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards, presented by Fidelity Investments®.
 
The 17 honorees also comprise the list of finalists for the 2014 William V. Campbell Trophy, presented by Fidelity Investments and prominently displayed at its official home inside the New York Athletic Club.

The Campbell Trophy, which is celebrating its 25th Anniversary in 2014, recognizes an individual as the absolute best football scholar-athlete in the nation, and it will be presented live to one member of the class on Dec. 9 during the 57th NFF Annual Awards Dinner.

Rodgers is one of two student-athletes from NCAA Division II and the lone representative from the state of Arkansas and Great American Conference.

"Kevin Rodgers epitomizes what it means to be a scholar-athlete and I am thrilled that once again the nation will see the caliber of person he is and how fortunate we are to have him representing Henderson State University," said Director of Athletics Shawn Jones. "The National Football Foundation National Scholar-Athlete Award only goes to the very best and brightest, and all of us who know Kevin certainly feel that he belongs amongst this esteemed group of football student-athletes"
Rodgers will travel to New York City to be honored Dec. 9 during the 57th NFF Annual Awards Dinner at the Waldorf Astoria where his accomplishments will be highlighted in front of one of the most powerful audiences in all of sports.
 
"We are extremely proud to announce this year's National Scholar-Athlete Class," said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. "These young men have an unrelenting commitment to excellence in all aspects of their lives, and they represent all that is right in college football.
 
The graduate-student from Rockwall, Texas will receive an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship and is a finalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy, which recognizes an individual as the absolute best scholar-athlete in the nation. The recipient of the Campbell Trophy will also be honored at the NFF Board of Directors meeting and at a reception hosted by the New York Athletic Club on Wednesday, Dec. 10.
 
Named in honor of Bill Campbell (the chairman of Intuit, a former player and head coach at
Columbia University, and the 2004 recipient of the NFF's Gold Medal), the award comes with a 25-pound bronze trophy and a $7,000 increase in postgraduate funds for a total scholarship of $25,000.
 
 "Jack Ford and the NFF Awards Committee did an excellent job in selecting this year's National Scholar-Athletes," said NFF Chairman Archie Manning, whose sons Peyton (Campbell winner) and Eli were NFF National Scholar-Athletes in 1997 and 2003, respectively. "Selected from an impressive group of semifinalists, they should be extremely proud of their accomplishments, as they have undoubtedly distinguished themselves as some of the best student-athletes in the country. Each of these men is also a leader in his respective community, and we know that they have only begun to reach their potential."

The most prolific quarterback in Henderson State history, Rodgers, was twice named GAC Male Athlete of the Year (2012-13 and 2013-14), GAC Male Scholar Athlete of the Year (2013-14) and GAC Offensive Player of the Year (2012 and 2013).
 
Rodgers is the all-time leader in the state of Arkansas in career passing yards with 12,510 yards and touchdown passes with 115.

Chosen to the AllState/AFCA Good Works Team voted as the team captain in 2013, Rodgers has a 31-4 record as HSU's starting quarterback. Rodgers Holds the HSU and GAC career records for passing yards (12,510), touchdowns (115), completions (929), completion percentage (.668), and total offense (12,467).

In December of 2013, Rodgers graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor's of Business Administration in Finance. He is currently pursuing his Master's in Business Administration and plans on attending law school.

Rodgers is the second player from Henderson State to receive the NFF Scholar-Athlete Award.

In 1998, Academic All-American and Gulf South Conference Commissioner Trophy winner Lee Daily was a recipient of the NFF Scholar-Athlete Award. Daily was a four-year letterman at Henderson where he played linebacker and totaled 302 tackles during his career.

Selected from a nationwide pool of 169 exceptional semifinalists from among all NCAA divisions and the NAIA, the 17 class members are:
  
SCHOLAR-ATHLETE            POS     SCHOOL                   GPA       MAJOR
TERRY BAGGETT                 RB        Army                         3.37       Chemical Engineering
AUSTIN DAMASCHKE          QB       Concordia (Wis.)        3.67       Biomedical Science
AUSTIN HASQUET                LB        Northern Arizona         3.97       Biomedical Science
DAVID HELTON                    LB        Duke                         3.64       Psychology
TAYLOR KELLY                    QB       Arizona State             3.31       Education
NATE LEONARD                  C          UT- San Antonio         3.99       Physical Education
TYLER LOCKETT                  WR       Kansas State             3.24       Business Management
MIKE MANCINI                     S          Trinity (Conn.)             3.82       Neuroscience
CHARLES MOORE               S          Tarleton State             3.83       Kinesiology
MARK MURPHY                   S          Indiana                       3.85       Informatics
JORDAN RICHARDS            S          Stanford                    3.31       Public Policy
KEVIN RODGERS                QB       Henderson State        3.82       Business Administration, Finance
MIKE SADLER                     P          Michigan State           3.97       Applied Engineering Sciences
CALEB SCHAFFITZEL          S          Missouri State            3.93       Wildlife Conservation & Mgt.
TYLER VARGA                     TB        Yale                           3.56       Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
BRANDON VITABILE            C          Northwestern              3.56       Economics
ZACH ZENNER                     RB        South Dakota State    3.87       Biology

NOTES ABOUT THE 2014 NATIONAL SCHOLAR-ATHLETE CLASS
 
3.69 Average GPA
12-of-17 Team Captains, including six players who have been captains for two or more years
15-of-17 Academic All-Conference Athletes
15-of-17 All-Conference Athletes (including one all-independent selection)
8 Academic All-America Selections (Baggett, Hasquet, Leonard, Murphy, Richards, Sadler, Schaffitzel, Zenner)
2 Conference Scholar-Athletes of the Year (Leonard, Rodgers)
6 All-America Picks (Lockett, Rodgers , Sadler, Schaffitzel, Varga, Zenner)
4 Conference Players of the Year (Damaschke, Lockett, Rodgers , Zenner)
9 School Record Holders (Baggett, Damaschke, Kelly, Leonard, Lockett, Rodgers , Schaffitzel, Varga, Zenner)
5 Players Currently Working on Postgraduate Degrees (Kelly, Rodgers , Sadler, Schaffitzel, Vitabile)
5 Members of Nationally Ranked Teams* (as of 10/26) (Kelly, Lockett, Rodgers, Sadler, Zenner)
9 Offensive Players (Baggett, Damaschke, Kelly, Leonard, Lockett, Rodgers, Varga, Vitabile, Zenner)
7 Defensive Players (Hasquet, Helton, Mancini, Moore, Murphy, Richards, Schaffitzel)
1 Special Teams Player (Sadler)

Full National Football Foundation Release - Click Here