9/23: Army-Navy Steps Into The Spotlight

Good in the Game 9/23

September 23, 2025

Good morning, football fans! The National Football Foundation is set to announce the 2025 William V. Campbell Trophy Semifinalists TOMORROW!

Does it get more American than America’s Game? The National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame have announced the Army-Navy Game, presented by USAA, will be honored as the recipient of the 2025 NFF Distinguished American Award!

The official recognition will occur Dec. 9 during the 67th NFF Annual Awards Dinner Presented by Las Vegas at the Bellagio Resort & Casino.

🏈 CLICK HERE to read more about this year’s NFF Distinguished American Award

"If you're not thinking about quitting, we're not working you hard enough."

Those words resonated with Gregg Carr. They came from Pat Dye, his Hall of Fame coach whose first season leading Auburn coincided with Carr's first season playing for the Tigers. Dye had lofty goals when he arrived on the Plains. But he reminded his players every step of the way that they would have to pay the price to reach those goals. As for what that meant?

“We learned pretty quickly,” Carr said. “Paying the price was really just learning the basics of tackling and blocking and working hard and being well-conditioned and being tougher and grittier than everybody else. And during that four-week process of spring football, we lost a lot of talented players who quit the football team.”

🏈 CLICK HERE to read Greg Carr’s 2025 College Football Hall of Fame Spotlight

The National Football Foundation Hall of Fame On-Campus Salutes Presented by Fidelity Investments — A Hallowed Tradition Stretching Back to 1951!

. . .

Urban Meyer — head coach, Utah

Georgia jumped up to No. 2 in this week’s FWAA-NFF Super 16 Poll, while Miami (FL) joins the top-five! Check out the Week 4 poll below!

In the latest episode of the Good in the Game Podcast, host LaVar Arrington sits down with the legend of Fort Worth, former TCU head coach Gary Patterson. Coach and LaVar discuss how Gary got to TCU, his philosophy in teaching the game and what he wants his legacy to be when it's all said and done.

Join us to celebrate college football legends at one of the sport's grandest traditions!

The highlight of the Awards Dinner will be the induction of the 2025 College Football Hall of Fame Class, where 18 legendary players and four acclaimed coaches take their place amongst the greatest of all time. The inductees proudly represent every region of the country, 28 collegiate institutions, 11 conferences, and seven decades.

Rick Gosselin, the award-winning writer and former Dallas Morning News columnist, has penned a new book: “The Team That History Forgot: The 1960s Kansas City Chiefs.” With a nod to the Chiefs place as the NFL’s newest dynasty, Gosselin takes a deep dive into the franchise's struggles and triumphs during its early years in the 1960s, including an appearance in Super Bowl I and a team that featured College Football Hall of Fame inductees Bobby Bell (Minnesota), Buck Buchanan (Grambling State), Chris Burford (Stanford), Mike Garrett (USC), and E.J. Holub (Texas Tech).

Baylor paid tribute this past weekend to JJ Joe, the legendary Bears QB, who passed away in February at the age of 54. Joe, a beloved figure on campus and the radio broadcast partner of 2024 NFF Chris Schenkel Award winner John Morris, was memorialized before the Baylor game against Arizona State. Joe’s family took part in the ceremony, which included a video tribute and a moment of silence prior to the pregame invocation. The team wore a helmet sticker as well.

College football is headed to London next fall, with Arizona State and Kansas in discussions to meet at Wembley Stadium!

D.D. Lewis, the 2001 College Football Hall of Fame inductee who starred at Mississippi State from 1965-67, passed away Sept. 16. He was 79.

Despite playing on losing teams that went 7-23 during his three varsity seasons, Lewis was recognized as a star. He earned First Team All-SEC accolades twice and First Team All-America honors once in 1967. His senior year, he was also named the SEC Defensive Player of the Year.

CLICK HERE to read more about the life and legacy of D.D. Lewis.

Bobby Grier, who coached at both Eastern Michigan and Boston College before spending more than 40 seasons in the NFL with New England, Houston and Miami, has passed away. He was 82.

James Fahnhorst, who was a first-team All-Big Ten player at Minnesota and a three-time Super Bowl champion with the San Francisco 49ers in the 1980s, has passed away. He was 66.

Shawn Clark, the offensive line coach at UCF and former head coach at Appalachian State, passed away unexpectedly on Sept. 21. He was 50.

Willie Parker, A member of the Arkansas Pine Bluff Hall of Fame who spent four seasons with the Houston Oilers, has passed away. He was 80.

Name: Josh Mancuso
Occupation: Actor, Comedian
Collaborations: National Football Foundation, ESPN, CBS Sports, Davey O’Brien Award

How has football impacted your life?
“I’ve got a Bachelors degree and a Masters degree, but where I feel like I developed most of my leadership skills was on the football field.”

Share your football story with us! We want to know what football means to you, the lessons you learned, and the opportunities it provided.

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September 24 — Announcement of the 2025 Campbell Trophy® Semifinalists

October 22 — Announcement of the 2025 Campbell Trophy® Finalists and the 2024 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class, presented by Fidelity Investments

December 9 — 67th NFF Annual Awards Dinner Presented by Las Vegas at Bellagio Resort & Casino

December 9 — Announcement of the winner of the 36th NFF William V. Campbell Trophy® during the 67th NFF Annual Awards Dinner Presented by Las Vegas

January 19, 2026 — CFP National Championship at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida

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