NFF Press Release

IRVING, Texas – Slippery Rock University quarterback Noah Grover was selected as one of just 13 NCAA Division II players to be named as national semifinalists for the prestigious William V. Campbell Trophy^® when the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame announced the complete list of national semifinalists Wednesday.
 
The William V. Campbell Trophy^® is known as the "Academic Heisman" and is the highest academic honor a college football player can win. Each year, the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame select between 12-14 national finalists from all levels of college football that become members of the National Scholar-Athlete Class. Those finalists will receive an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship from Fidelity Investments and will be invited to Las Vegas for the annual awards dinner and College Football Hall of Fame induction Dec. 6.
 
Slippery Rock has had two national finalists in the last five years with Marcus Martin earning the honor in 2017 and Henry Litwin being recognized in 2021. The Rock are the only school in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference to ever have a Campbell Trophy^® finalist and are one of just two schools in the NCAA Division II's Super Region One with a finalist, as Ashland (Ohio) has one former honoree. SRU is one of just eight current NCAA Division II institutions to ever have multiple finalists.
 
A total of 156 players were announced Wednesday as national semifinalists, including 73 from the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), 37 from the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), 13 from Division II, 29 from Division III and four from the NAIA.
 
"These 156 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. "During the past seven decades, the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards have recognized 891 college football players who excelled as the best our great sport has to offer. This year's semifinalists build on the tradition, further illustrating the power of football in developing the next generation of influential leaders."
 
Nominated by their institution's Athletic Communication Offices, 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 finalists for the award are 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.
 
Grover, a graduate student from Phoenix, Arizona, already earned his undergraduate degree from Slippery Rock when he graduated in May of 2022 with a degree in industrial and systems engineering and a minor in mathematics. He finished his undergraduate education with a sterling 3.875 GPA.
 
A two-time PSAC Scholar-Athlete and a two-time Division II Athletic Directors Association Academic Achievement honoree, Grover is currently enrolled in post-baccalaureate classes at SRU while finishing his final season of playing eligibility.  
 
On the field, Grover took over as the SRU starting quarterback for the final four games of the 2021 season and wasted little time in making his mark. He threw for 439 yards with an SRU program record eight touchdowns in his first career start at Gannon, the most TD passes by any player in Division II in a single-game in nearly a decade. He followed that up with 466 passing yards and four touchdowns in an upset win over undefeated and third-ranked Cal U to clinch the PSAC West title.
 
Grover, who was named a team captain this fall by his peers, is off to a 4-0 start this fall and has Slippery Rock ranked No. 8 in Division II. Through eight games as a starter, Grover has thrown for 2,648 yards and 24 touchdowns. He is averaging 331 passing yards per game and 3.0 passing touchdowns per game in those eight starts, three of which came against teams ranked in the top 16 nationally.
 
In addition to his performance in the classroom and on the field, Grover is also heavily involved in service on the SRU campus. He was a co-founder and currently serves as president of "Team Rock," a student-athlete faith-based organization that meets every Sunday on campus. Grover actively recruits fellow student-athletes to join the organization and makes it part of his daily mission to spread positivity through a Christian faith-based approach to his life. He also volunteers annually on Dr. Seuss Day to read to children in local elementary schools and has worked multiple youth camps and clinics.
 
"Noah is a tremendous young man that is a true leader on and off the field for our program," said SRU head coach Shawn Lutz. "He is one of the brightest kids on campus, not just in the classroom but with the way he handles himself. He never gets overly emotional and brings an extremely positive approach to life. His Christian faith is on full display in everything he does and he has become a leader for our student-athletes in all sports at SRU through his work with Team Rock."
 
The National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame will announce the 12-14 national finalists for the Campbell Trophy^® Oct. 26.

Grover and his teammates will be back in action Oct. 1 with a 2 p.m. kickoff on the road at Indiana University (Pa.) Complete game notes available HERE.
 
 


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