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Brandon Ellsworth

Â鶹ÊÓƵ¹ÙÍø football player Brandon Ellsworth is one of 181 national semifinalists for the 2017 William V. Campbell Trophy given by the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame.

The award, presented by Fidelity Investments®, recognizes individuals from across all NCAA and NAIA divisions as the absolute best football scholar-athletes in the nation.

The NFF will announce between 12 and 14 finalists on November 1, and each of them will receive an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship as a member of the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class, presented by Fidelity Investments.

The finalists will travel to New York City for the 60th NFF Annual Awards Dinner on Dec. 5, 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 28th William V. Campbell Trophy® and have his postgraduate scholarship increased to $25,000.

Ellsworth is a senior defensive end from Webberville, Michigan (Fowlerville HS). He has made 13 tackles this season for the 2-1 Flying Dutchmen, including 2 ½ sacks.

Hope kicks off pursuit of a Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association title this Saturday with a 2 p.m. game at Olivet College.

Ellsworth holds a 3.87 grade point average while pursuing a major of biology. He plans to go to medical school after graduating from Â鶹ÊÓƵ¹ÙÍø.

Ellsworth is one of 33 NCAA Division III semifinals and two from the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association along with Alma College’s Lars Murray. 

"These 181 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. "It is important for us to showcase their success 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, which is endowed by HealthSouth. This year's postgraduate scholarships will push the program's all-time distribution to more than $11.3 million. Since 2013, the Campbell Trophy® has been prominently displayed inside its official home at the New York Athletic Club.