60th National Football Foundation Annual Awards Dinner to be Broadcast on ESPN3
11/21/2017 11:46:00 AM | Football
2017 NFF Annual Awards Dinner with recognition of senior safety Marlon Walls as a NFF National Scholar-Athlete and the announcement of the William V. Campbell Trophy® to be streamed live everywhere via the ESPN app
IRVING, Texas – The 2017 National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame's 60th Annual Awards Dinner, where Stephen F. Austin senior safety Marlon Walls will be recognized as a NFF Scholar-Athlete, will be streamed live on ESPN3 available everywhere via the ESPN app. The decorated event, which has one of the most powerful audiences in all of sports, is being held Tuesday, Dec. 5 at the New York Hilton Midtown in downtown New York City and will get started at 7:30 p.m. CST.
Walls, who just completed his fourth season suiting up for the Lumberjacks, was named a finalist for the prestigious 2017 William V. Campbell Trophy® presented by Fidelity Investments®. The award, regarded as the academic equivalent of the Heisman Trophy, is given annually to the absolute football best scholar-athlete in the nation. Walls was named one 13 finalists out of a semifinalist pool of 181 and is the only national scholar-athlete with a perfect 4.0 grade point average. As part of being a member of the elite NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class, Walls will receive a $18,000 postgraduate scholarship and has a chance for that scholarship to be increased to $25,000 with the announcement of the 28th William V. Campbell Trophy® winner on Dec. 5.
Walls is the first SFA football player to be named a finalist for the Campbell Trophy®, while becoming just the ninth Southland Conference student-athlete to earn the distinction of NFF National Scholar-Athlete and the first since 2011.
His academic highlights can be watched live with the special awards dinner ceremonies taking place from 7:30-9:30 p.m. CST on Dec. 5. The winner of the 28th William V. Campbell Trophy® will be announced live during the event between 7:40 and 8 p.m. CST.
A press conference featuring Walls and the other Campbell Trophy® finalists the morning of Dec. 5 will also be streamed live on ESPN3 available via the ESPN app. The press conference will get underway at 8 a.m. CST from the third-floor Trianon Ballroom at the New York Hilton Midtown with announcements of the 2017 Wuerffel Trophy recipient, Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year and the finalists for the 2017 Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award. NFF major award recipients will go at approximately 8:45 a.m. CST, followed by the College Football Hall of Fame Class at 9 a.m. and NFF Campbell Trophy® finalists at 10:15 a.m., where Walls will have an opportunity to speak with the media.
ESPN broadcaster Joe Tessitore will emcee the 60th NFF Annual Awards Dinner for the first time, securing his place among a prestigious list of individuals who have donated their skills to host the fabled event.
As the culmination of the 2017 regular season, the 60th NFF Annual Awards Dinner provides the stage for the induction of the 2017 College Football Hall of Fame Class; the awarding of the 2017 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards, presented by Fidelity Investments; the announcement of the winner of the 28th William V. Campbell Trophy®, presented by Fidelity Investments and prominently showcased at its official home inside the New York Athletic Club; and the presentation of several major awards.
The recipients of the 2017 NFF Major Awards include UCLA Athletics Director Dan Guerrero (NFF John L. Toner Award for excellence in athletics administration) and the Voice of the UTEP Miners Jon Teicher (NFF Chris Schenkel Award for excellence in broadcasting).
The 2017 College Football Hall of Fame Class includes: Bob Crable (Notre Dame), Marshall Faulk (San Diego State), Kirk Gibson (Michigan State), Matt Leinart (Southern California), Peyton Manning (Tennessee), Bob McKay (Texas), Dat Nguyen (Texas A&M), Adrian Peterson (Georgia Southern), Mike Ruth (Boston College), Brian Urlacher (New Mexico) and coaches Danny Ford (Clemson, Arkansas), Larry Kehres (Mount Union [Ohio]) and Steve Spurrier (Duke, Florida, South Carolina).
The finalists of the Campbell Trophy®, comprised of the 2017 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class presented by Fidelity Investments, include Sam Benger (Carnegie Mellon [Pa.]), Braxton Berrios (Miami [Fla.]), Mason Hampton (Boise State), Justin Jackson (Northwestern), Micah Kiser (Virginia), Justin Lea (Jacksonville State), Brad Lundblade (Oklahoma State), Marcus Martin (Slippery Rock [Pa.]), Chandon Sullivan (Georgia State), Blaise Taylor (Arkansas State), Marlon Walls (Stephen F. Austin), Chris Weber (Nebraska), and Jake Wieneke (South Dakota State).
-SFA-
Players Mentioned
S
/ Football12.15.25 | Weekly Press Conference- Football
Monday, December 15
12.12.25 | SFA @ MSU Postgame Press Conference
Saturday, December 13
12.8.25 | Weekly Press Conference- Football
Monday, December 08
12.6.25 | FCS Playoff Round 2 vs ACU Postgame Press Conference
Monday, December 08
