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The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) announced 179 semifinalists from all levels of NCAA and NAIA football on Wednesday morning for the annual William V. Campbell Trophy, presented by Fidelity Investments. Illinois College linebacker JD Roesch '19 is one of those 179 semifinalists, 41 of which came from the Division III level.

The IC senior came to the Hilltop from Springfield, Ill. where he graduated from Chatham Glenwood High School. As a junior, Roesch was the leading tackler for the Blueboys with a total of 71 stops. He ended with 10 tackles for loss on the season and had 3.5 sacks. He has been unable to suit for IC this season due to injury. Roesch's honor marks the second straight year that a member of the Blueboy squad has been named a semifinalist, following Jacob Homann in 2017.

The NFF will announce 12-14 finalists on Oct. 31, and each of them will receive an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship as a member of the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class. The finalists will then travel to New York City for the 61st NFF Annual Awards Dinner on Dec. 4 and one finalist will be named as the winner of the William V. Campbell Trophy, which in turn will increase his scholarship to $25,000.

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. This year's postgraduate scholarships will push the program's all-time distribution to more than $11.5 million. Since 2013, the Campbell Trophy® has been prominently displayed inside its official home at the New York Athletic Club.

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.

About The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame
Founded in 1947 with early leadership from General Douglas MacArthur, legendary Army coach Earl "Red" Blaik and immortal journalist Grantland Rice, The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame is a non-profit educational organization that runs programs designed to use the power of amateur football in developing scholarship, citizenship and athletic achievement in young people. With 120 chapters and 12,000 members nationwide, NFF programs include FootballMatters.org, the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta, The William V. Campbell Trophy® presented by Fidelity Investments, annual scholarships of more than $1.3 million and a series of initiatives to honor the legends of the past and inspire the leaders of the future. NFF corporate partners include Delta Air Lines, Fidelity Investments, Herff Jones, New York Athletic Club, Pasadena Tournament of Roses, PrimeSport, the Sports Business Journal, Under Armour and VICIS. Learn more at www.footballfoundation.org.

About The National College Football Awards Association
The William V. Campbell Trophy® is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA), which encompasses college football's most prestigious awards. Founded in 1997, the NCFAA and its 23 awards now boast over 800 recipients, dating to 1935. Visit ncfaa.org to learn more about our story.