April 27, 2016

The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) announced today the members of the 2016 NFF Hampshire Honor Society, which is comprised of college football players from all divisions of play who each maintained a cumulative 3.2 GPA or better throughout their college career.

The University of South Carolina was represented by Landon Ard and T.J. Gurley. Ard graduated in May 2015 with a degree in sport and entertainment management, while Gurley will graduate next week with a degree in integrated technology.

A total of 868 players from 275 schools qualified for membership as the society celebrates its 10th year, setting a new record for the number of players honored during the history of the program.

“The number of colleges and universities who embrace the Hampshire Honor Society continues to increase each year,” said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. “Over the past decade, it has become 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.”

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 who play football at the 775 colleges and universities with football programs nationwide. The 868 players honored in 2016 is a new high water mark, eclipsing the previous record of 838 honorees in 2014. The initiative has honored 6,620 student-athletes since its inception, and the program has experienced growth every year in either members or school participation since its launch in 2007.