Five former Clemson student-athletes — offensive lineman Matt Bockhorst, long snapper Jack Maddox, linebacker Baylon Spector, punter Will Spiers and wide receiver/holder Will Swinney — were named Wednesday to the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame’s NFF Hampshire Honor Society. Additional information from the National Football Foundation is included below.
IRVING, Texas (April 13, 2022) – The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) announced today the members of the 2022 NFF Hampshire Honor Society, which is comprised of college football players from all divisions of the NCAA, NAIA and sprint football who each maintained a cumulative 3.2 GPA or better throughout their college careers.
An elite group of 1,559 players from 313 schools qualified for membership in 2022, the Society’s 16th year. The 1,559 honorees are the second most in a single year during the program’s history. The initiative has now honored 14,640 student-athletes since its inception.
“As the National Football Foundation celebrates its 75th anniversary in 2022, we are pleased to honor another impressive group of athletes as part of this year’s Hampshire Honor Society,” said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. “Over the last 16 years, the Hampshire Honor Society has served as 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.”
Nominated by their respective schools, members of the NFF Hampshire Honor Society must have:
– Completed their final year of playing eligibility in Fall 2021;– Graduated players, who have remaining eligibility but will not return to collegiate play (e.g. declared for NFL Draft or retired from football), may also be nominated.– Attained a minimum undergraduate cumulative GPA of 3.2 (4.0 scale);– Met all NCAA/NAIA-mandated progress towards degree requirements; and– Been starters or significant contributors throughout the 2021 season.
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 771 colleges and universities with football programs nationwide.
Division III’s Massachusetts Institute of Technology led all programs with 22 members in 2022, tying Yale (2018) for the single-year mark for most honorees from one school. Coastal Carolina, Northwestern and Stanford led all FBS programs with 10 members each while Harvard led all FCS schools with 18 honorees. Hillsdale (MI) was the Division II leader with 14 members, Peru State (NE) led the NAIA with nine honorees and the Cornell Sprint Football team topped the Collegiate Sprint Football League with 11.
Fifty-two schools had at least nine honorees in 2022, including Brown, Carnegie Mellon (PA), Catholic (DC), Central (IA), Chadron State (NE), Chicago (IL), Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (CA), Coastal Carolina, Columbia, Cornell, Cornell Sprint Football, Dartmouth, Davidson, Dayton, DePauw (IN), Franklin & Marshall (PA), Gustavus Adolphus (MN), Hardin-Simmons (TX), Harvard, Hendrix (AR), Hillsdale (MI), Illinois, Iowa State, Ithaca (NY), Johns Hopkins (MD), Kalamazoo (MI), Lake Forest (IL), Loras (IA), Macalester (MN), Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Northern Iowa, Northwestern, Ohio Northern, Peru State (NE), Pomona-Pitzer (CA), Redlands (CA), Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (NY), Rochester (NY), Rose-Hulman (IN), Saint John’s (MN), Sioux Falls (SD), St. Lawrence (NY), St. Thomas, Stanford, Stonehill (MA), Texas A&M-Commerce, Tufts (MA), Union (NY), Washington & Jefferson (PA), Washington Univ. in St. Louis (MO), Wheaton (IL) and Williams (MA).
Jon F. Hanson, the chairman and founder of The Hampshire Companies, provided the funds to launch the NFF Hampshire Honor Society in 2007. He made the contribution as part of his legacy to the organization after serving as NFF Chairman from 1994-2006. He currently serves the organization as chairman emeritus. Each player awarded with membership in this year’s Honor Society will receive a certificate commemorating his achievement.
“It was my great privilege to endow the NFF Hampshire Honor Society, which has greatly increased the number of college student-athletes the NFF has been able to recognize during the past 16 years,” said Hanson. “Nationwide there are thousands of football players excelling in the classroom, and they are going on to become great leaders.”
“We have honored more than 14,000 student-athletes in the last 16 years thanks to Jon Hanson’s generosity,” said NFF Chairman Archie Manning. “We are grateful for his passionate belief in the scholar-athlete ideal, and the Hampshire Honor Society allows us to showcase the names of tomorrow’s leaders while inspiring future generations to follow in their footsteps.”
Twenty-five colleges and universities have had at least one player in all 16 years of the NFF Hampshire Honor Society (2007-22), including Brigham Young, Brown, Bucknell, Columbia, Dayton, Iowa, Johns Hopkins (MD), Kentucky, Lafayette, Minnesota, Minnesota Duluth, North Dakota, North Dakota State, Northern Iowa, Penn State, Redlands (CA), Saint John’s (MN), SMU, South Dakota State, Washington Univ. in St. Louis (MO), Wayne State (MI), West Virginia, Wingate (NC), Yale and Youngstown State.
The Hampshire Honor Society represents an important component in the organization’s rich history as an innovator in promoting the scholar-athlete ideal, which began in 1959 with the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards. Click here to learn more.
