May 7, 2012

DALLAS, Texas - The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) have named former Arizona State University wide receiver Aaron Pflugrad as a member of the 2012 NFF Hampshire Honor Society.

This year's class, which honors college football players from all divisions with a 3.2 GPA or better, holds 721 players from 232 schools, which is the largest class since the society began six years ago.

"The growing number of students involved in the Hampshire Honor Society each year shows that football student-athletes not only play at the highest level but that they are some of the best students on campus as well," said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. "We salute each one of these young men for their commitment to education and their leadership on and off the football field."

A three-year member of the Sun Devil football team, Pflugrad made 73 receptions for 994 yards and seven touchdowns over the course of his ASU career. After transferring from Oregon in 2009, Aaron made an appearance in 24 games as a Devil, starting in 16. Pflugrad set career highs in games started, receptions, yards, and touchdowns in his 2011 season after starting all 13 games at wide receiver.

Alongside his remarkable football career, Aaron stood out in the academic realm, earning Second Team Academic All-Pac-12 honors after his senior year as well as CoSIDA First Team Academic All-District VIII accolades. He was also a semifinalist for the 2011 William V. Campbell Trophy, which recognizes the best scholar-athlete in the nation. Pflugrad was honored earlier this year as an NFF College Scholar Athlete, one of only two recipients.

The NFF Hampshire Honor Society capitalizes on the NFF's current National Scholar-Athlete program greatly expanding the number of scholar-athletes the NFF can recognize each year. The program further strengthens the organization's leadership role in encouraging academic performance by the student-athletes who play football at the more than 700 college and universities with football programs nationwide. Jon F. Hanson, the chairman and founder of The Hampshire Companies, provided the endowment to launch the NFF Hampshire Honor Society in 2007. He made the contribution as part of his legacy to the organization after serving as NFF chairman from 1994-2006. He currently serves the organization as a chairman emeritus. Each player awarded with membership in this year's Honor Society will receive a certificate commemorating their achievement.

Qualifications for membership in the NFF Hampshire Honor Society include: being a starter or significant substitute during the player's last year of eligibility at an accredited NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision, Football Championship Subdivision, Division II, Division III, or an NAIA college or university; achieving a 3.2 cumulative grade point average throughout the entire course of undergraduate study; and meeting all NCAA-mandated progress towards degree requirements and graduation.

Currently, the NFF distributes more than $300,000 a year at the national level through the program to 16 individuals. Each winner of a National Scholar-Athlete Award receives an $18,000 post-graduate scholarship. Through its chapter network, the NFF also awards an additional $1 million to local high school student-athletes, bringing the NFF's annual scholarship distribution total to more than $1.3 million.