Good in the Game Presented by the National Football Foundation - 10/22

Good morning, football fans! Why did Clemson running back Phil Mafah return for another season of college football after graduating? To make one more run with his Tigers, who are hitting their stride!

Paul Posluszny did Linebacker U proud

Paul Posluszny is a humble guy. He claims he doesn’t belong in the same sentence as other Penn State greats like Jack Hamm, Dennis Onkotz, Shane Conlan and LaVar Arrington, but he does belong.

Posluszny was Penn State’s first two-time captain in nearly 40 years from 2005-06, won the Bednarik Award twice, and left Happy Valley as the all-time leader in tackles — ahead of names like Hamm, Onkotz, Conlan and Arrington. Now he joins those names in the National Football Foundation College Football Hall of Fame.

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

Do you like pancakes? You can thank Chris Ward

Some might say that Orlando Pace invented the “pancake” block, but the origins of the term go back further than that.

The pure dominance that Ohio State left tackle Chris Ward was displaying in practice required a nickname, and “pancake” was born. Thousands of pancakes later, Ward is the latest member of the Buckeye program to be inducted into the NFF College Football Hall of Fame.

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

Toby Gerhart elevated Stanford to unthinkable heights

Toby Gerhart grew up the son of a high school football coach in Southern California, and dreamed of playing for his dad on Friday nights at Norco High School.

Once he accomplished that dream, Gerhart became one of the most accomplished running backs of his era, rushing for 3,522 yards and 44 touchdowns at Stanford from 2006-09.

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

Did you miss the first episode of the Good in the Game Podcast last week? It was a fantastic discussion between a pair of NFF College Football Hall of Fame members, two-time Heisman Trophy member Archie Griffin and show host LaVar Arrington!

The guys dive into Archie’s career; his influences as a kid; fumbling on his first career carry at OSU; playing for Woody Hayes; and what the game has meant to him on and off the field. Griffin, a 1986 College Football Hall of Fame inductee, has served on the NFF Board of Trustees since 2006.

Migration north in this week’s FWAA-NFF Super 16 Poll!

There is yet another new No. 1 team in this week’s FWAA-NFF Super 16 Poll with Oregon claiming the top spot this week. The Ducks followed up a win over No. 4 Ohio State on Oct. 12 with a 35-0 win at Purdue last Friday night.

🏈 Week 8 FWAA-NFF Super 16 Poll

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

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.

Dan Hampton — defensive tackle, Arkansas (1975-78)

“What would it take to start a Division I football program?”

Dr. Guy Bailey, President of the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, which sits in just about the southernmost tip of Texas in the city of Edinburg, had been wondering that since he took the job in the spring of 2014.

There would be plenty of hurdles – Hidalgo County, where UTRGV is located, is one of the poorer counties in the country. Ninety percent of his students don’t pay tuition or fees. There would need to be broad buy-in from the community, the students, the Board of Regents, and countless other groups.

Dr. Bailey also knew the benefits, though. He could see a football program injecting life into the campus he so deeply loves, and making a meaningful, lasting impact on the community if it chose to embrace it.

So he chased the dream. Now it’s 10 years later and 10 months before the UTRGV Vaqueros are scheduled to kick off their inaugural season, and every single season ticket has been claimed and the waitlist keeps getting longer.

. . . 

The National Football Foundation sat down with Dr. Bailey and UTRGV Athletic Director Chasse Conque this fall to discuss what it took to get to this point, and will share more of their story in upcoming publications of the Good in the Game newsletter.

Clemson’s Phil Mafah is one of the record-breaking 3,568 graduates playing college football this season. We recently caught up with the Tiger running back, fresh off a win against Virginia!

What was the biggest factor in deciding to play another season of college football after graduating?
“The biggest factor for me was graduation. I was able to graduate in May and I wanted to be able to leave my mark here at Clemson. I wanted to go into my senior year and really enjoy it and make memories. I wanted to empty the tank and be able to be a leader and captain on this team.” 

Why did you decide to major in business management?
“I knew that there were many different avenues I could go down with a business management degree and I know I want to be in the business world one day. Being able to learn the trades and skills I will need and the connections I’ve built with my professors will stick with me forever.”

What's your favorite class you've taken at Clemson, and why?
“My favorite class at Clemson was entrepreneurship with Hope Parnell.  She’s a great teacher and the subject really interested me. It was interesting to talk about building your own business. I learned a lot from that class and really enjoyed it.”

How will your degree benefit you in life after football?
“I know that having your degree opens a lot of doors for you in terms of job opportunities and prerequisites that you may need to have for an opportunity. I know the education that I’ve received and all that I’ve learned in four years will help me a lot.”

What is the key to balancing a full class schedule and football?
“The key is having a good routine and sticking to it. Maintaining discipline and doing the things you need to in order to be successful is important. You really have to prioritize what you want your life to be.”

"The sport was not very old when Red Grange played," National Football Foundation CEO Steve Hatchell told Sporting News. "That means people were saying, 'What is the sport? What are they playing?’" 

On Oct. 19, 1924, Grange captivated the nation with a legendary performance against Michigan and propelled college football into the national spotlight.

📰: Remembering Red Grange, the ‘Galloping Ghost’ who made a Caitlin Clark-like impact on football in 1924
^{The Sporting News}

Michael Ryan, a 1966 National Football Foundation National Scholar-Athlete, has passed away. He was 78.

Johnny Burrell, a three-year letterman at Rice from 1959-61 and member of the Rice Athletic Hall of Fame, has passed away. He was 83.

Former University at Albany head coach Bob Ford will receive the AFCA’s 2025 Amos Alonzo Stagg Award. The award is given to those “whose services have been outstanding in the advancement of the best interests in football.”

You can read more about Ford’s honor here.

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