Newtown, Conn., senior offensive lineman one of 20 from NCAA Division II and two from the NE10 named among record 199 semifinalists by National Football Foundation
NFF Campbell Trophy Semifinalists Announcement
EASTON, Mass. (October 1, 2020) - For the seventh time over the last eight years, the Stonehill College football program has placed one of its top student-athletes among the semifinalists for the William V. Campbell Trophy®, presented by Mazda, the National Football Foundation (NFF) and College Football Hall of Fame announced today.
Senior offensive lineman Derek Ivey, a CoSIDA Academic All-America® first team selection, has been named among an impressive record 199 semifinalists across all levels of college football, including 20 from NCAA Division II, and is one of two from the Northeast-10 Conference as part of six from Super Region 1. Ivey has earned a 3.93 cumulative grade point average as an economics major and mathematics minor at Stonehill, having recorded a 4.0 semester GPA twice.
In addition to being named just the third Academic All-American® in program history last fall and first, first team honoree, Ivey was first selected to the CoSIDA Academic All-District® first team for Super Region 1. He is one of just three first team Academic All-Americans® in Stonehill history overall and was its first since 2000. Ivey has been named to the Dean's List at Stonehill all six semesters and received the St. Thomas Aquinas, Patron Saint of Students, Medal in the spring for having the highest cumulative GPA on the football team. He has been inducted into Omicron Delta Epsilon and Lambda Epsilon Sigma Honor Societies as well.
Ivey, an NE10 Academic All-Conference selection last fall, has been named to the NE10 Academic Honor Roll all six semesters, with Academic Excellence status for having a 4.0 GPA two semesters and Academic Distinction status four semesters for having a semester GPA between 3.50 and 3.99. He has been named to the Athletic Director's Honor Roll six semesters and is a two-time Division II ADA Academic Achievement Award recipient for having a cumulative GPA of 3.50 or higher. Ivey was a Teaching Assistant at Boston College this summer for a course in Empirical Money and Banking and is an Economics Club member at Stonehill. He was Portfolio Manager in Semester Asset Portfolios class; whose portfolio outperformed the S&P 500 when comparing annualized returns. He has also volunteered his time with My Brother's Keeper in Easton.
On the field, Ivey started all ten games at right tackle for Stonehill in 2019, as the Skyhawks finished 6-4, including a 5-3 mark in the NE10 to finish third in the standings – just a game out of first place. He was a member of a Stonehill offensive line that blocked for the top-ranked offense in the NE10, averaging an NE10-best 415.8 yards of offense per game (21st nationally), including 193.7 rushing yards (2nd NE10) and 222.1 passing (4th). The Skyhawks ranked second in the NE10 for team pass efficiency (141.04) and fewest sacks allowed (1.60 per game).
The Stonehill offensive line blocked for Justin Felder, the program's first Harlon Hill Trophy candidate, who set program records for rushing yards (1,513), touchdowns (16), total touchdowns (18), scoring (108 points) and all-purpose yards (1,611) last season.
The National Football Foundation will announce 12-14 finalists for the William V. Campbell Trophy® in November, and each of them will receive an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship as a member of the 2020 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class presented by Fidelity Investments. Later this year, one member of the class will be declared as the winner of the 31st Campbell Trophy® Presented by Mazda, having his postgraduate scholarship increased to $25,000 and receiving his own 25-pound bronze version of the iconic statue.
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.
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® Presented by Mazda 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 $11.9 million.
Launched in 1959, the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards presented by Fidelity Investments celebrate their 62nd year in 2020. The awards were the first initiative in history to grant postgraduate scholarships based on both a player's academic and athletic accomplishments, and the NFF has recognized 866 outstanding individuals since their inception. The Campbell Trophy® Presented by Mazda was first awarded in 1990 and is celebrating its 31st year in 2020. The trophy adds to the program's prestige, having previously honored two Rhodes Scholars, a Rhodes Scholar finalist, two Heisman Trophy winners and seven first-round NFL draft picks.
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