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IRVING, Texas — UTSA senior Yannis Routsas has been named a semifinalist for the William V. CampbellTrophy®, the National Football Foundation & College Football Hall of Fame announced Wednesday.
The award recognizes an individual as the absolute best football scholar-athlete in the nation. Fidelity Investments is a proud partner of the Campbell Trophy®.
One of 63 semifinalists from the Football Bowl Subdivision, Routsas graduated in May with 3.51 GPA and a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering with a minor in mathematics. A two-time member of the UTSA Dean's List, he has appeared on the Conference USA Commissioner's Honor Roll four times.
The Houston native has been involved in several engineering projects, including a pressure and force application kicking cleat and a level-wind guided winch that earned first place at the Center for Innovation and Technology Entrepreneurship Competition $100K Student Technology Venture Competition at the UTSA College of Engineering Technology Symposium.
Active in community service, Routsas has volunteered at Haven for Hope and with the For The Kids Dance Marathon. He also is a member of the UTSA Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and has participated in UTSA's Rowdy Readers program.
A member of the Ray Guy Award watch list, Routsas has punted 22 times for an average of 43.2 yards per punt this season and four of his punts have sailed 50-plus yards, including a career-long 63-yarder against Baylor. One of 10 semifinalists for the Ray Guy Award last season, he has pinned opponents inside their own 20-yard line five times and five of his punts have resulted in a fair catch.
The UTSA record holder for single-season (42.0/2016) and career (41.1) punting average and punts (201), Routsas has boomed four punts of 60-or-more yards, 30 of 50-plus yards, 67 inside the 20 and 64 that have induced a fair catch during his career.
The NFF will announce 12-14 finalists on Oct. 31, and each of them will receive an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship as a member of the 60th NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class. The finalists will travel to New York City for the 61st NFF Annual Awards Dinner on Dec. 4, where their accomplishments will be highlighted in front of one of the most powerful audiences in all of sports. Live during the event, one member of the class will be declared as the winner of the 29th William V. Campbell Trophy®and have his postgraduate scholarship increased to $25,000.
Nominated by their schools, which are limited to one nominee each, candidates for the awards must be a senior or graduate student in their final year of playing eligibility, have a GPA of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale, have outstanding football ability as a first team player or significant contributor and have demonstrated strong leadership and citizenship. The class is selected each year by the NFF Awards Committee, which is comprised of a nationally recognized group of media, College Football Hall of Famers and athletics administrators.
"These 179 impressive candidates truly represent the scholar-athlete ideal," said NFF Chairman Archie Manning, whose sons Peyton (Campbell Trophy®winner) and Eli were named NFF National Scholar-Athletes in 1997 and 2003, respectively. "For 60 years, the NFF National Scholar-Athlete program has showcased more than 800 college football players who have been successful on the football field, in the classroom and in the community. This year's semifinalists further illustrate the power of our great sport in developing the next generation of influential leaders."
Named in honor of the late Bill Campbell, former chairman of Intuit, former player and head coach at Columbia University and the 2004 recipient of the NFF's Gold Medal, the Campbell Trophy®is a 25-pound bronze trophy and increases the amount of the recipient's grant by $7,000 for a total postgraduate scholarship of $25,000. This year's postgraduate scholarships will push the program's all-time distribution to more than $11.5 million.
"The NFF would like to personally congratulate each of the nominees as well as their schools and coaches on their tremendous accomplishments," said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. "We are extremely proud to highlight each semifinalist's achievements, showcasing their ability to balance academics and athletics at the highest level. The NFF Awards Committee will have an incredibly difficult task in selecting the finalists from this outstanding group of candidates."
-UTSA-