Austin Peay Sports Information
Dallas, TX – Seven senior Austin Peay State University football players part of The 2014 National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) Hampshire Honor Society, comprised of college football players from all divisions who maintain a 3.2 GPA or better.
Defensive lineman Reese Bulmash, linebacker/fullback Josh Carroll, offensive lineman Kyle Harrison, linebacker Jared Sexton, defensive end Iosua Siliva, offensive tackle Ben Stansfield and offensive tackle Gavin Willisson were chosen.
Bulmash owns a 3.35 GPA In biology with a leadership science and chemistry minor; Josh Carroll has a 3.82 GPA in health and human performance (K-12 teaching); Harrison possesses a 3.33 GPA in communication: sports broadcasting; Sexton owns a 3.63 GPA in biology with a professional education minor; Siliva holds a 3.89 GPA in agricultural-sustainable development; Stansfield graduated with a 3.97 GPA in psychology with a general business minor; Gavin Willisson graduated with a 3.83 GPA in health and human performance (applied exercise science).
A record 838 players from 267 schools qualified for membership in the society’s eighth year, marking the highest school participation in the history of the program, which began in 2007.
The NFF Hampshire Honor Society capitalizes on the NFF’s current National Scholar-Athlete program 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 who play football at the more than 700 college and universities with football programs nationwide. The initiative has honored more than 4,900 student-athletes since its inception.
Jon F. Hanson, the chairman and founder of The Hampshire Companies, provided the endowment 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 a chairman emeritus. Each player awarded with membership in this year’s Honor Society will receive a certificate commemorating their achievement.
The Hampshire Honor Society represents a powerful component in the organization’s rich history as an innovator in promoting the scholar-athlete ideal. Launched in 1959 with a donation from Hall of Fame coach Earl “Red” Blaik, the NFF’s National Scholar-Athlete Awards, presented by Fidelity Investments, became the first initiative in history to grant postgraduate scholarships based on a player’s combined academic success, football performance and community leadership. And, since its inception, the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards program has awarded $10.4 million to 787 top scholars and community leaders.
