Dallas, Texas----The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) has named Wingate University tight end
Ryan Webber (Concord, N.C.) to the 2010 NFF Hampshire Honor Society, comprised of college football players from all divisions of play who each maintained a 3.2 GPA or better. A total of 620 players from 246 schools qualified for membership in the society’s fourth year, an 80 percent increase from the inaugural class in 2007.
“The NFF’s mission is to build leaders through football; this year’s Hampshire Honor Society members are living proof of that charge,” NFF Chairman
Archie Manning says. “Each of these young men has showcased a strong desire to succeed on and off the football field; we are certainly proud to honor them for their accomplishments as the next generation of our nation’s leaders.”
Webber was a semifinalist for the 20th anniversary William V. Campbell Trophy presented by the National Football Foundation. He is a two-time ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District III first team selection. He earned the 2008 Charlotte Touchdown Club Scholarship. At Wingate’s recent 2010 Commencement Exercises, he graduated cum laude with a B.S. degree in Sport Management.
In 2009, Webber was named to the Daktronics All-Super Region 2 football second team. In addition, he earned second team All-SAC honors for the second consecutive year. Webber finished his senior year with 20 catches for 191 yards and one touchdown. The Jay M. Robinson graduate had a season high four receptions for 45 yards in Wingate’s season-opening win over West Georgia. Webber capped the year with his touchdown reception at Mars Hill in the season finale. In 2008, Webber had 26 receptions for 408 yards and six touchdowns.
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 and further strengthening 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.
Jon F. Hanson, the chairman and founder of The Hampshire Companies, provided an 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.
“The Hampshire Honor Society’s success is a direct reflection of Jon Hanson’s generosity and continued belief in the scholar-athlete ideal,” NFF President & CEO
Steve Hatchell says. “We thank him and those who serve on the society’s advisory committee for helping us empower this most important initiative; we encourage every football-playing school in the country to get involved in the future.”
Qualifications for membership in the NFF Hampshire Honor Society include:
Being a starter or a significant substitute in one’s last year of eligibility at an accredited NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision, Football Championship Subdivision, Division II, Division III or an NAIA college or university;
Achieving a 3.2 cumulative grade point average throughout entire course of undergraduate study; and
Meeting all NCAA-mandated progress towards degree requirements.
The Hampshire Honor Society becomes the latest component of the organization’s efforts to promote combined athletic and academic success. Launched in 1959 with a donation from Hall of Fame coach Earl “Red” Blaik, the NFF’s National Scholar-Athlete Awards program became the first initiative in history to grant postgraduate scholarships based on a player’s combined academic success, football performance and community leadership.
Since its inception, the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards program has awarded $9.2 million to 724 top scholars and community leaders. Currently, the NFF distributes more than $300,000 a year at the national level through the program to 15 individuals. Each winner of a National Scholar-Athlete Award receives an $18,000 post-graduate scholarship.
Additionally, the Campbell Trophy (endowed by HealthSouth) is given to one member of each year’s class as the absolute best. The winner of the Campbell, claimed by Florida quarterback
Tim Tebow in 2009, receives a total scholarship of $25,000 and a 24-inch, 25-pound bronze trophy. Through its chapter network, the NFF awards an additional $800,000 to local high school student-athletes, bringing the NFF’s annual scholarship total to more than $1.1 million.
WINGATE UNIVERSITY
Founded in 1896, Wingate University is a private four-year co-educational institution of 2,159 students offering active learning opportunities through personalized instruction, world travel, career discovery and community service.
Wingate offers 34 undergraduate majors in arts and sciences, business, communication, education, fine arts, music and sport sciences. It also offers graduate degrees in business, education, physician assistant studies and sport administration. In addition, the school awards the doctor of pharmacy and the doctor of education degrees.
Bulldog student-athletes compete in 19 NCAA Division II sports. Wingate University has won the South Atlantic Conference Echols Athletic Excellence Award for the past four years.
Wingate University is ranked number three among NCAA Division II Academic All-America® producing schools in the 2000’s with 34 honorees during this millennium. Only Pittsburg State (Kan.) University and Truman State (Mo.) University have produced more Academic All-America® honorees during this time period. Wingate’s 43 Academic All-America® honorees (lifetime) is tops among all SAC schools.