Good in the Game 11/19

These 16 Faculty Athletic Representatives are the backbone of their departments!

November 19, 2024

Good morning, football fans! Give one more round of applause for all of the College Sports Communication Professionals out there — we could not do our job without them!

Armanti Edwards helped put App State on the map

Appalachian State quarterback Armanti Edwards re-wrote several school and NCAA record books during his time in Boone, but it isn’t the individual accomplishments that he looks back at all these years later — it’s the team success the Mountaineers had.

"Definitely that first title that I was a part of against UMass. That was my first time being a part of a team that finished on top," Edwards said. "Obviously being a part of beating Michigan is a big one. There's just so many games. I have a lot of conference games that are very memorable, rivalry games against Wofford, Georgia Southern. The '07 playoff game against Richmond, and of course my second title, but the — third back-to-back-to-back — against Delaware to finish off the three-peat."

Click here to read more about Edwards’ legacy in his 2024 College Football Hall of Fame Spotlight!

Thank you for serving student-athletes nationwide

The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame has announced the 16 Faculty Athletics Representatives who will be honored as part of the 2024 NFF Faculty Salutes Presented by Fidelity Investments®!

As part of the initiative, each school with a member of the 2024 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class Presented by Fidelity Investments® receives recognition for their faculty athletics representative, and a $5,000 donation per school (a total of $80,000 this year) from Fidelity is made to support the academic support services for student-athletes at the schools. Including this year's honorees, the salutes have recognized 198 FARs since the program's inception, and Fidelity has made a total of $990,000 in donations.

Click here to learn more about the recipients!

“When you look at what the Campbell Trophy is all about, and all the other finalists out there, everybody who’s ever been in that conversation and what the award stands for, it’s a big deal.”

— Notre Dame linebacker Jack Kiser

“I’ve been blessed in so many ways. The community here in Las Vegas and before in Fayetteville have loved on me and given me everything that I wished for…So it was my will and my duty to give back.”

— UNLV linebacker Jackson Woodard

Good in the Game Podcast host LaVar Arrington was joined last week on the show by a pair of William V. Campbell Trophy finalist linebackers, Notre Dame’s Jack Kiser and UNLV’s Jackson Woodard. LaVar chatted with each about their play on the field, their achievements in the classroom and what the Campbell Trophy means to them.

Big Ten, SEC reign in this week’s FWAA-NFF Super 16 Poll!

Eight of the top-10 teams in this week’s FWAA-NFF Super 16 Poll reside in either the Big Ten or the SEC, including each of the top six!

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!

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.

Photo: Baker & Emily Mayfield Foundation

When Jake Owens arrived back at Space Coast High School in Brevard, Fla. in February, he quickly found out the program needed about 60-70 new helmets in order to field a team.

Owens’ mother, Stephany, a huge Oklahoma Sooners fans, put in a call to the Baker & Emily Mayfield Foundation for help. The Mayfields donated $17,900 worth of equipment to the program, which is experiencing their most success in years this fall.

Photo: Brendon Pricco/Cronkite News

After a brief coaching stint in the XFL, Hines Ward thought his coaching days were over when the league merged with the UFL.

Then Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham gave him a call, asking if he had any interest in joining his staff as the receivers coach. That call, and this season, has reinvigorated Ward.

Gerry Faust, head coach at Notre Dame from 1981-85 and at Akron from 1986-94 who compiled 73 wins during those two stints, has passed away. He was 89.

Charlie Evans, who played collegiately at the University of Utah and the University of Southern California before spending four seasons in the NFL, has passed away. He was 76.

College football is a way of life…and death!

ESPN’s Andrea Adelson recently highlighted the large, and seemingly growing, number of fans who want their ashes buried at their favorite stadium.

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