Irving, TX – Five Austin Peay State University (APSU) football student-athletes were honored by the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) as members of the 2022 Hampshire Honor Society.
Defensive lineman Damion Barber, offensive lineman Garrett Bell, linebacker Jack McDonald, linebacker Hunter Scholato, and tight end William Wilcox each received recognition on the 2022 list. With their addition, 42 Austin Peay State University football student-athletes have been named to the NFF Hampshire Society all time.
Austin Peay State University’s five honorees led all Ohio Valley Conference and ASUN Conference programs.
Barber, of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, compiled a 3.3 GPA while majoring in general studies. He appeared in 10 games and made a pair of starts for the Governors during the 2021 season, recording eight tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss while providing an imposing presence on the interior of the defensive line.
A native of Hoover, Alabama, Bell posted a 3.76 GPA while majoring in management. He also made four starts at left tackle and appeared in 10 games on the offensive line in 2021. Bell played in 27 games during his Austin Peay career, including 12 games during the Govs’ 2019 OVC Championship season. The 6-3, 290-pound lineman appeared off the bench in the final eight games of the 2019 season, including all three FCS Playoff games.
A 2020-21 and 2021 CoSIDA Academic All-District selection, McDonald recorded a 3.57 GPA while working on his bachelor’s in marketing and earned a 4.0 GPA while pursuing his master’s in management. McDonald was a 2021 Second Team All-OVC selection, a 2020-21 First Team All-OVC selection, and a 2019 Honorable Mention HERO Sports Sophomore All-American.
Since McDonald’s move to the linebacker position in 2019, he ranked second among FCS tacklers with 259 takedowns, trailing only North Dakota State’s Jackson Hankey (267). McDonald racked up 71 total tackles, 6.0 tackles for loss, two interceptions, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery in his final season as a Governor.
p470center[
Hailing from Hendersonville, Tennessee, Hunter Scholato earned a 3.35 GPA while working on a bachelor’s in management and has earned a 3.33 GPA while pursuing a master’s in education. Scholato enjoyed his best season as a Governor in 2021, picking up 14 tackles and a half-tackle for loss while playing in nine games.
A Clarksville native, Wilcox transferred to Austin Peay prior to the 2020-21 season and worked towards a 3.72 GPA while pursuing a master’s in information assurance and security. Wilcox appeared in nine games for the Governors during his time in Clarksville.
