Duo are among 16 finalists for Campbell Trophy, honoring nation’s top football scholar
Two local players are among the 16 finalists for the William V. Campbell Trophy, awarded to the nation’s top scholar-football player. Navy guard John Dowd and Army linebacker Andrew Rodriguez, a 2008 graduate of Ireton, were selected from a pool of 127 semifinalists in the NCAA and NAIA.
Dowd, who is studying mechanical engineering, has a 3.91 GPA and is on pace to become Navy’s first two-time first-team Academic All-American. Rodriguez, also a mechanical engineering major, is the only candidate with a GPA exceeding 4.00, carrying a 4.14.
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All 16 finalists receive an $18,000 scholarship award to continue their post-graduate education. They will be honored on Dec. 6 at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City, where a national winner will receive a trophy and additional $25,000 scholarship.
Past National Scholar-Athletes include former NFL standout Derrick Brooks (Florida State); actor Mark Harmon (UCLA); NASA astronaut Leland Melvin (Richmond); former Dateline NBC anchor Stone Phillips (Yale); chairman of Augusta National Golf Club Billy Payne (Georgia); famed NFL quarterbacks Peyton Manning (Tennessee), Eli Manning (Mississippi), and Steve Young (BYU); and Heisman Trophy winners Terry Baker (Oregon State), Gary Beban (UCLA), Doug Flutie (Boston College) and Tim Tebow (Florida).
