1. University of Dubuque
2. News and Events
3. News Archive
4. 2015-16

Snitker Named Semifinalist of 2015 Campbell Trophy

Sep 24, 2015

 ‌

IRVING, Texas (Sept. 24, 2015) – The University of Dubuque's Blaine Snitker (LB, 6-1, 224, Sr., Waukon, Iowa/Waukon HS) has been named a semifinalist of the coveted 2015 National Football Foundation National Scholar-Athlete Awards, presented by Fidelity Investments. Snitker is one of top 135 nation's top players to vie for a share of the $300,000 in postgraduate scholarships as a candidate for this prestigious honor. He joins three other Spartans to be named a semifinalist, Tyson Carter (2013), Wyatt Hanus (2012) and Michael Zweifel (2011). Zweifel was named a finalist for the Campbell Trophy and used his scholarship to earn a master's degree in kinesiology from the University of Texas-Tyler.

Recognizing one of the most impressive groups of scholar-athletes in the history of college football, The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) proudly announced today the 135 semifinalists for the 2015 William V. Campbell Trophy, presented by Fidelity Investments^® and prominently displayed inside its official home at the New York Athletic Club, which recognizes an individual as the absolute best football scholar-athlete in the nation.

The NFF will announce 15 finalists on Oct. 29, and each of them will receive an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship as a member of the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class, presented by Fidelity Investments. The finalists will travel to New York City for the 58^th NFF Annual Awards Dinner on Dec. 8, where their accomplishments will be highlighted in front of one of the most powerful audiences in all of sports. At the event, one member of the class will be declared in dramatic fashion the winner of the 26th William V. Campbell Trophy and have his postgraduate scholarship increased to $25,000.

“These 135 impressive candidates truly represent the scholar-athlete ideal,” said NFF Chairman Archie Manning whose sons Peyton (Campbell Trophy winner) and Eli were named NFF National Scholar-Athletes in 1997 and 2003, respectively. “It is important for us to showcase their success on the football field, in the classroom and in the community. This year’s semifinalists further illustrate the power of our great sport in developing the next generation of influential leaders.”

Named in honor of Bill Campbell, the chairman of Intuit, former player and head coach at Columbia University and the 2004 recipient of the NFF’s Gold Medal, the Campbell Trophy is a 25-pound bronze trophy and increases the amount of the recipient’s grant by $7,000 for a total postgraduate scholarship of $25,000. A total distribution of more than $300,000 in scholarships will be awarded at the NFF Annual Awards Dinner, pushing the program’s all-time distribution to more than $11 million.

“The NFF would like to personally congratulate each of the nominees as well as their schools and coaches on their tremendous accomplishments,” said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. “We are extremely proud to highlight each semifinalist’s achievements, showcasing their ability to balance academics and athletics at the highest level. The NFF Awards Committee will have an incredibly difficult task in selecting the finalists from this outstanding group of candidates.”

Nominated by their schools, which are limited to one nominee each, candidates for the awards must be a senior or graduate student in their final year of eligibility, have a GPA of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale, have outstanding football ability as a first team player or significant contributor and have demonstratedstrong leadership and citizenship. The class is selected each year by the NFF Awards Committee, which is comprised of a nationally recognized group of media, College Football Hall of Famers and athletics administrators.

2015 NFF WILLIAM V. CAMPBELL TROPHY SEMIFINALISTS NOTES

• 135 Nominations
• 56^th Year of the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Program
• 3.60 Average GPA
• 52 Nominees with a 3.7 GPA or Better
• 83 Team Captains
• 59 All-Conference Picks
• 24 Academic All-America Selections
• 8 All-America Selections
• 56 Nominees from the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS)
• 23 Nominees from the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (FCS)
• 20 Nominees from NCAA Division II
• 27 Nominees from NCAA Division III
• 9 Nominees from the NAIA
• 71 Offensive Players
• 52 Defensive Players
• 12 Special Teams Players

Launched in 1959, the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards program became the first initiative in history to award postgraduate scholarships based on both a player’s academic and athletic accomplishments, and it has recognized 804 outstanding individuals since its inception. The Campbell Trophy, first awarded in 1990, adds to the program’s prestige, having previously honored two Rhodes Scholars, a Rhodes Scholar finalist, two Heisman Trophy winners and five first-round NFL draft picks.

In 2011, the NFF and Fidelity launched a multi-year initiative between the two organizations to celebrate the scholar-athlete ideal and a joint commitment to higher education. As part of the initiative, Fidelity became the first presenting sponsor of the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards program. In 2014, Fidelity Investments became the presenting sponsor of the Campbell Trophy. Fidelity also helped launch the NFF Faculty Salutes, which recognize the contributions of the faculty athletics representatives at each of the institutions with an NFF National Scholar-Athlete. As part of the initiative, the NFF presents each of the faculty representatives with a plaque, and Fidelity donates $5,000 for the academic support services at each school.

The past recipients of the William V. Campbell Trophy include: Air Force’s Chris Howard (1990); Florida’sBrad Culpepper (1991); Colorado’s Jim Hansen (1992); Virginia’s Thomas Burns (1993); Nebraska’sRob Zatechka (1994); Ohio State’s Bobby Hoying (1995); Florida’s Danny Wuerffel (1996); Tennessee’s Peyton Manning (1997); Georgia’s Matt Stinchcomb (1998); Marshall’s Chad Pennington(1999); Nebraska’s Kyle Vanden Bosch (2000); Miami (Fla.)’s Joaquin Gonzalez (2001); Washington University in St. Louis (Mo.)’s Brandon Roberts (2002); Ohio State’s Craig Krenzel (2003); Tennessee’sMichael Munoz (2004); LSU’s Rudy Niswanger (2005); Rutgers’ Brian Leonard (2006); Texas’ Dallas Griffin (2007); California’s Alex Mack (2008); Florida’s Tim Tebow (2009); Texas’ Sam Acho (2010); Army West Point’s Andrew Rodriguez (2011); Alabama’s Barrett Jones (2012); Penn State’s John Urschel (2013); and Duke’s David Helton (2014).

2015 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards Candidates, presented by Fidelity Investments