What do we have included in this week’s National Football Foundation Footballetter?

🏈 Comedian Josh Mancuso tells his ‘I Played’ story
🏈 Gearing up for this week’s NFL Draft
🏈 Bobby Bowden honored in Tallahassee
🏈 And much more!

College football players are members of the greatest fraternity in the world. Check out the National Football Foundation’s ‘I Played’ roster and submit your story to join today!

Members who recently submitted their ‘I Played’ story: 

• Jeffrey Fette, West Virginia — Construction Code Enforcement/Plans Examiner, City of Hardeeville, S.C.

• Thomas Freeman, Akron — Former Managing Partner of Grant Thornton’s Cleveland office

• Brian Rolle, Ohio State — Engineer, 3S Incorporated

Name: Josh Mancuso
Profession: Comedian and Actor

There are good things happening all over the game of football. The National Football Foundation has asked individuals to share an example of something they see happening within our sport that is good for the game. Here are their answers!

. . .

“Where I grew up, kids didn’t go to college. They didn’t go and become orthopedic surgeons. When I was in high school, I wouldn’t have been the guy you had picked to do those things. But football gave me the confidence to get out of my comfort zone.”

— Gregg Carr, 2025 NFF College Football Hall of Fame inductee

The Pick Is In!

The 2026 NFL Draft gets underway Thursday, April 23, at 8 p.m. ET at Acrisure Stadium and Point State Park in Pittsburgh. More than 45 draft prospects have been recognized by the NFF for their accomplishments as scholar-athletes, either as nominees for the NFF Campbell Trophy® or as members of the 2026 NFF Hampshire Honor Society. The event continues with Rounds 2–3 on Friday at 7 p.m. ET and concludes with Rounds 4–7 on Saturday at Noon ET.  NFF Annual Awards Dinner emcee Charles Davis will provide analysis as part of the telecast team on NFL Network, while NFF College Football Hall of Fame coach Nick Saban will appear on ABC. NFF College Football Hall of Fame inductees scheduled to announce selections during the event include Shane Conlan (Penn State), Jimbo Covert (Pittsburgh), Tony Dorsett (Pittsburgh), Mark Ingram (Alabama, 2026 electee), Calvin Johnson (Georgia Tech), Paul Posluszny (Penn State), and Brian Westbrook (Villanova). Posluszny was also an NFF National Scholar-Athlete and a Campbell Trophy® finalist.

Now Arriving at Bobby Bowden-Tallahassee International Airport

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has announced the dedication of Bobby Bowden-Tallahassee International Airport after longtime Florida State head coach Bobby Bowden! Bowden was a 2006 NFF College Football Hall of Fame coach and NFF Gold Medal recipient.

Northern California Honors Scholar-Athletes

The NFF Northern California Chapter held its annual banquet on March 14, honoring 24 high school scholar-athletes for their accomplishments on and off the field. Andrew Luck, a 2022 NFF College Football Hall of Fame inductee from Stanford, and Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele, the former Cal quarterback, were both presented the Glenn “Pop” Warner Memorial Trophy. Honoring the top college player in the West, the trophy returned after a nearly two-decade hiatus. Sagapolutele received the 2025 honor, while Luck was recognized retroactively for his standout 2010 season.

Throw Those Caps in the Air

NFF College Football Hall of Fame inductee Troy Vincent (Wisconsin) will deliver the 239th commencement program at Franklin & Marshall College on May 9 in Lancaster, Pa. NFF Campbell Trophy Finalist Colt McCoy (Texas) will deliver the keynote address at his alma mater’s 143rd Commencement Ceremony May 9 at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin.

In the most recent episode of the NFF Podcast, host LaVar Arrington sits down with Sterling Doty, head coach at Stephenville High School in Texas. Stephenville was announced as the winner of this year’s Hatchell Cup by the National Football Foundation. LaVar and Coach Doty discuss getting into the game, what football has done for him in his life and what he wants his legacy to be.

Bob Novogratz, a 2026 NFF College Football Hall of Fame electee who starred at Army West Point from 1957-58, has passed away. He was 89.

A First Team All-American in 1958 at offensive guard, Novogratz embodied the toughness, versatility, and endurance that defined Army football in its golden era, emerging as one of the most dominant linemen of the time as part of Army's last undefeated season.

Click here to read more about the life and legacy of Bob Novogratz.

• Kelvin Broadhurst, a player at North Carolina A&T, has passed away. He was 20.

• Janet Casciola, the wife of Bob Casciola who served as president of the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame from 1996 to 2004, has passed away. She was 90.

• Thomas Corontzos, who played collegiately at Wyoming, has passed away. He was 56.

• Pat Curry, who played collegiately at Montana, has passed away.

• Garner Ekstran, who played collegiately at Washington State and professionally in the CFL, has passed away. He was 86.

• LeRoy Evans, who played collegiately at Purdue, has passed away. He was 94.

• John Fitzgerald, who played collegiately at Boston College and won multiple Super Bowls with the Dallas Cowboys, has passed away. He was 77.

• Robert Fredrick, who played collegiately at Northwestern, has passed away. He was 87.

• Trent Hunter, who played collegiately at Texas A&M, has passed away. He was 36.

• Rod Martin, who played collegiately at USC and won a Super Bowl with the Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders, has passed away. He was 72.

• Henry Mason, a longtime college football coach who spent nearly 30 years at Wisconsin, has passed away. He was 70.

• Dave McGinnis, who played collegiately at TCU and spent 31 seasons in the NFL as a coach and broadcaster, has passed away. He was 74.

• Steven Miller, an assistant strength coach at Arizona State who also played collegiately for the Sun Devils, has passed away. He was 29.

• Pat Minitti, who played collegiately at Arizona State, has passed away. He was 82.

• Patrick Muldoon, who played collegiately at Southern California and later became a Hollywood actor, has passed away. He was 57.

• Browning Nagle, who played collegiately at Louisville, has passed away. He was 57.

• Chris Payton-Jones, who played collegiately at Nebraska, has passed away. He was 30.

• Dick Ryerson, who played collegiately at Oklahoma, has passed away. He was 93.

• John Sand, who played collegiately at Monmouth College and Northwestern, has passed away. He was 88.

• George Slender, who played collegiately at Oregon, has passed away. He was 85.

• Butch Wilson, who played collegiately at Alabama and won a national championship with the Tide, has passed away. He was 84.

June 1 — Release of the 2027 NFF College Football Hall of Fame Ballot

June 16 — Announcement of the 2026 NFF High School Team of Distinction

July 23-25 — NFF Campbell Trophy® Summit at Stanford University

September 23 — Announcement of the 2026 NFF Campbell Trophy® Semifinalists

October 21 — Announcement of the 2026 NFF Campbell Trophy® Finalists

December 8 — 68th NFF Annual Awards Dinner Presented by Las Vegas at Bellagio Resort & Casino

December 8 — Announcement of the winner of the 37th NFF William V. Campbell Trophy®

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