Ole Miss’ Shackelford Makes NFF Hampshire Honor Society

DT Shackelford HottyToddy.com file photo

Ole Miss’ Deterrian Shackelford has been recognized as a member of the 2015 NFF Hampshire Honor Society, announced by the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame.

The NFF Hampshire Honor Society is comprised of college football players from all divisions of play who each maintained a cumulative 3.2 GPA or better throughout their college career. A total of 817 players from 278 schools qualified for membership in the society’s ninth year, setting a new record for the number of schools represented in the history of the program, which began in 2007.

“We continue to raise the bar each year for the number of student-athletes who qualify for membership in the Hampshire Honor Society,” said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. “The Hampshire Honor Society plays an important role in highlighting that college football players clearly play a leadership role in the classroom as well as on the playing field. We congratulate each of these young men for their commitment to excellence.”

This is another in a long line of honors for Shackelford in recent months. He was recently awarded the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award, which is the University of Mississippi’s highest award given for service.

The Decatur, Alabama, native has been equally as involved in the classroom (has finished coursework for his master’s degree), community (has led international mission trips and volunteered countless hours locally) and football field (starting Mike linebacker for the nation’s No. 1 scoring defense).

Past Ole Miss members of the Hampshire Honor Society include Tyler Campbell (2014), Chris Conley (2014), Andrew Ritter (2014), Joel Kight (2013) and Wesley Phillips (2011).

The NFF Hampshire Honor Society capitalizes on the NFF’s National Scholar-Athlete program by greatly expanding the number of scholar-athletes the NFF can recognize each year. The initiative has honored 5,744 student-athletes since its inception, and the program has experienced growth every year in either members or school participation since its launch in 2007. The 278 schools represented in 2015 is a new high water mark, eclipsing the 267 schools in 2014. The total of 817 players in the 2015 class is the second-most in the program’s history, only 21 behind the 838 honored last year.

Qualifications for membership in the NFF Hampshire Honor Society include:

• Being a starter or a significant contributor in one’s last year of eligibility (or a senior who has declared for the NFL Draft)  at an 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 entire course of undergraduate study; and
• Meeting all NCAA/NAIA-mandated progress towards degree requirements.

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