Good in the Game 9/10

Good morning, football fans! How much fun was it this past weekend to watch the future crop of NFF Scholar-Athletes compete on Saturday and the past crop on Sunday?

Sundays with the NFF Scholar-Athletes

It’s nearly impossible to turn on an NFL game these days without seeing a former NFF National Scholar-Athlete/William V. Campbell Trophy finalist making plays — a total of 36 of those former college standouts are on NFL rosters or practice squads this season!

Five winners of the Campbell Trophy are included in that count: Detroit’s Jack Campbell (Iowa, 2022), Los Angeles’ Justin Herbert (Oregon, 2019), Baltimore’s Charlie Kolar (Iowa State, 2021), Denver’s Bo Nix (Oregon, 2023) and Las Vegas’ Christian Wilkins (Clemson, 2018).

Click here to see the full list!

An iconic game is headed to an iconic stadium!

NFF President Steve Hatchell & former Tulsa standout and Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Drew Pearson joined Shriners Children’s International Imperial Potentate Richard Burke last week to announce that the 100th edition of the East West Shrine Bowl will take place at AT&T Stadium on Jan. 30, 2025 in Arlington, Texas!

More than 200 NFF College Football Hall of Fame inductees have played in the East-West Shrine Bowl, including 86 NFF National Scholar-Athletes and seven recipients of the NFF Campbell Trophy.

Click here for more information on one of the most iconic games in our sport!

Learn more about the game with CFO’s Steve Shaw

The NFF works with College Football Officiating (CFO) throughout the year to make the game better and safer. As part of the relationship, the NFF is pleased to share with our readers the most recent CFO-NCAA Media Video, explaining some of the recent play calls in college football.

COME JOIN US IN LAS VEGAS!

The 66th National Football Foundation Annual Awards Dinner presented by Las Vegas will be here before we know it, and tickets are going fast — buy yours now to ensure you get the NFF discounted rate!

🏈 Buy your tickets now

RJ Oben — defensive line, Notre Dame

Notre Dame’s RJ Oben is one of the record-breaking 3,568 graduates playing college football this season. We recently caught up with the Fighting Irish defensive lineman to learn a little more about his work in the classroom!

What was the biggest factor in deciding to play another season of college football after graduating?
“I always want to keep getting better, and continuing to play football was important to me. Entering the transfer portal and choosing to play at another university, I believed in myself and my skills and wanted to maximize my potential and become the best player I can be. Notre Dame was the most conducive environment for me to do that.”

Why did you decide to major in economics with a minor in African & African American studies?
“I chose to major in economics because I am interested in business, and economics was the best way to tie together learning about finance and management and gain understanding of the market. In my African and African American Studies minor, I got to study a combination of various black art and literature, also learning from important black figures who helped shape society into how it is today. I also learned a lot about the African continent pre and post colonialism, and given that my dad is from Cameroon, learning more about the west African region was important to me.”

What's your favorite class you've taken at Notre Dame, and why?
“I took a class on the implications of artificial intelligence. It’s such a growing movement and innovation, and it’s important to see the implications and take a step back to learn more and gain a different perspective. There were people in the class who are professionals and have had multiple jobs, and they talked about how it’s been implemented and already being used. We all did case studies and it was interesting to learn what everyone did research on and what artificial intelligence can do.”

How will your degree benefit you in life after football?
“The skills from my undergraduate degree will help me in the business world and allow me to be involved in business ventures in the future. I’m now working towards my Master’s degree in Nonprofit Administration, which will help me learn tools to use my platform. If I start a nonprofit someday, I can work with organizations to help communities with resources I may gain from playing here and hopefully professionally.”

What is the key to balancing a full class schedule and football?
“The key is staying on top of your work and mapping out your schedule, knowing what work you have to do and always keeping up to date with assignments. You have to take time every day and know what you have to do the next day. Even if you’re falling behind, know where you’re falling behind. I take things one day at a time, but try to separate larger projects and assignments in increments. Being able to compartmentalize is important. From watching film, getting treatment and getting ready for practice, you have to be in the moment, focus on the task at hand and go 100 percent. Then, you can take a break and lock in and focus on different things.”

Reggie Bush, Mark Dantonio and LaMichael James will be enshrined forever in Pasadena!

Bush and James, both 2023 NFF College Football Hall of Famers, and Dantonio, a 2024 inductee, will be honored as Rose Bowl Hall of Famers this fall.

📰: Reggie Bush, Mark Dantonio and LaMichael James to be Inducted into the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame Class of 2024
^{Rose Bowl Hall of Fame}

New AFCA Executive Director Craig Bohl is headed to the Hall of Fame, too!

Bohl, who won 104 games and three national championships in 11 seasons as North Dakota State’s head coach, is set to be inducted into the North Dakota State University Bison Athletic Hall of Fame next week.

📰: AFCA Executive Director Craig Bohl to be Inducted into NDSU Athletic Hall of Fame
^AFCA

Former NFF Campbell Trophy finalist Manti Te’o (Notre Dame) and semifinalist Jason McCourty (Rutgers) have new gigs this fall!

Te’o has joined the NFL Network as an analyst, while McCourty has become a member of the ESPN crew.

Claude Felton has decided to call it a career.

Felton, a cornerstone of the University of Georgia Athletic Association since 1979, has been inducted into Georgia Athletics’ Hall of Fame this year and seen the 400 level of the press box at Sanford Stadium named after him.

Dr. Charley Johnson, former star quarterback at New Mexico State and in the NFL, has passed away. He was 85.

Diondre Overton, a wide receiver who won two national championships with Clemson, has passed away. He was 26.

Allen Aldridge, who played at Houston from 1990-93 before spending 20 years as the coach at Fort Bend Bush in the Houston area, has passed away. He was 52.

Up to this point, Oklahoma State football had honored four former players as part of its Ring of Honor, and they were all running backs — Bob Fenimore, Barry Sanders, Thurman Thomas and Terry Miller.

That trend, though, is over. Leslie O’Neal, a defensive lineman for the Pokes in the 1980s and a 2020 NFF College Football Hall of Famer, is now the fifth member!

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