Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the NCAA granted an extra year of eligibility to all 2020 fall athletes. Many student-athletes have decided to take advantage of this, and they are returning to the field in 2023, leading to another high number of graduates this season.
The numbers include 1,840 players from 113 schools in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), 713 players from 62 schools in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), 265 players from 24 schools in Division II, 118 players from 32 schools in Division III and 14 players from four schools in the NAIA.
New Haven (CT), which plays in Division II, leads all schools nationwide with 36 players having already earned their degrees. Central Florida and Samford both are fielding 29 players, leading the FBS and FCS divisions, respectively.
Nearly every FBS school that responded reported a double-digit number of graduates, with the following schools joining Central Florida (29) with at least 20: Coastal Carolina (25), Charlotte (25), Northwestern (25), Cal (24), Duke (24), Notre Dame (24), Auburn (23), Florida Atlantic (23), North Texas (23), Texas State (23), Toledo (23), UMass (23), Washington (23), Arizona State (22), UCLA (22), West Virginia (22), Kent State (21), Ohio (21), Oklahoma State (21), Purdue (21), Rice (21), South Alabama (21), South Carolina (21), Arkansas (20), Cincinnati (20), Colorado (20), East Carolina (20), James Madison (20), Mississippi State (20), Missouri (20), Texas Tech (20) and Virginia (20).
Joining the FCS leader Samford (29) with at least 15 graduates on the roster this season are Montana (26), Campbell (22), Tennessee at Chattanooga (22), Towson (21), Southern (18), Elon (17), NC Central (17), Tennessee State (17), Youngstown State (17), North Dakota State (16), Sacramento State (16), Weber State (16), Austin Peay State (15), Indiana State (15), Sacred Heart (15) and Villanova (15).
The following Division II programs joined national leader New Haven [CT] (36) with at least 10 graduates on their fall rosters: Colorado School of Mines (27), Valdosta State, GA (20), Emporia State, KS (14) Benedict College, SC (13), Concordia-St. Paul, MN (13), Lock Haven, PA (13) Wayne State, MI (12), Indianapolis, IN (11) and Augustana, SD (10).
North Central (IL) topped all the Division III programs that responded with 10 graduates on its football roster while Trinity (CT) had nine and Case Western Reserve (OH) and Misericordia (PA) reported seven each. Southeastern (FL) listed five graduates to lead the NAIA respondents.
Publishing a list of the graduates playing college football is just one of the NFF's long list of initiatives designed to promote the scholar-athlete ideal, dating back to 1959 and the launch of the highly prestigious NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards Presented by Fidelity Investments. Other key components of the NFF efforts to promote the scholar-athlete ideal include The William V. Campbell Trophy®, the NFF Faculty Salutes presented by Fidelity Investments, the NFF Hampshire Honor Society, the NFF Team of Distinction and the NFF Hatchell Cup presented by the Original Bob’s Steak & Chop House and the National High School Academic Excellence Awards presented by the Rose Bowl Legacy Foundation. |
