CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – Chattanooga safety Jerrell Lawson has been named one of 176 national semifinalists for the 2021 William V. Campbell Trophy®, college football’s premier scholar-athlete award, the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) announced Thursday.
 
Lawson, from Brundidge, Alabama, is one of just 36 from FCS institutions.
 
He is a two-time college graduate, getting his undergraduate and MBA degrees in his five years at Chattanooga. He’ll be starting his 36^th career game when the 19th-ranked Mocs roll into the Southern Conference schedule this weekend. Western Carolina visits Finley Stadium on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. for the Ingles SoCon Game of the Week on select Nexstar affiliates.
 
Celebrating its 32nd year, the Campbell Trophy® recognizes an individual as the absolute best football scholar-athlete in the nation for his combined academic success, football performance and exemplary leadership. The Chattanooga Mocs have a recent history with the award. Their recent semifinalists are Derrick Craine (2016), Alex Trotter (2018) and Bryce Nunnelly (2020).
 
The NFF will announce 12-14 finalists on Oct. 27, and each of them will receive an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship as a member of the 2021 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class Presented by Fidelity Investments. The finalists travel to the ARIA Resort & Casino Las Vegas for the 63rd NFF Annual Awards Dinner Presented by Las Vegas on Dec. 7, where their accomplishments are highlighted. One member of the class is declared as the winner of the 32nd Campbell Trophy® and have his postgraduate scholarship increased to $25,000.
 
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.