Porter Among Campbell Trophy Nominees
Washington senior punter Race Porter was announced as a 2021 nominee for The William V. Campbell Trophy® the National Football Foundation (NFF) announced. Named in honor of the late and former chairman of Intuit and former player and head coach at Columbia University, the Campbell Trophy is awarded to the individual who is the best in the country for his academic success, football performance and leadership.
Nominated by their schools, which are limited to one nominee each, candidates must be:
* A senior or graduate student in their final year of eligibility;
* Have a grade point average of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale;
* Have outstanding football ability as a first team player; and
* Have demonstrated strong leadership and citizenship.
Porter has already earned his degree and graduated with a 3.4 grade point average. He was named the Pac-12 Academic Honor Roll in 2019 and was Honorable Mention Pac-12 All-Academic in 2018.
On the field, Porter has appeared in 41 games over four years. He is the team's primary holder on field goal and extra-point attempts and has punted 32 times for a 42.4 yard average.
Porter is also an outstanding ambassador for the Huskies in the community, always willing to participate in outreach activities and visiting with fans young and old. He also is an advocate for mental health awareness and has developed a clothing company HOMS (Heart On My Sleeve). He designed the clothing line aimed to give people an outlet to deal with mental illness through clothes.
Porter has openly discussed his battles with depression and his commitment to advancing a positive mental-health lifestyle: "HOMS stands for heart on my sleeve, and it represents a clothing line that was created so that people could express themselves. HOMS is a brand that promotes the idea that everyone is different, everyone is unique, everyone is an individual, and everyone should be able to express themselves exactly how they want to. HOMS believes that what you wear should be an extension of who you are."
Porter donates a portion of all his sales to the Seattle chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness.
Selected by the NFF Awards Committee in October, the finalists and the winner are all honored at the NFF Annual Awards Dinner in December. Each finalist receives an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship as a member of the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class Presented by Fidelity Investments. During the event, one member of the class is selected as the recipient of the Campbell Trophy® as the best football scholar-athlete in the nation and has his postgraduate scholarship increased to a total of $25,000.
Each recipient also receives a 24-inch, 25-pound bronze trophy that was designed based on the vintage NFF logo, which was the organization's primary mark from 1959 to 2010.
Following the NFF Annual Awards Dinner, the recipient of the Campbell Trophy® is honored at several prestigious events. On the Wednesday following the Dinner, the New York Athletic Club (NYAC), the official home of the trophy, typically hosts a luncheon in his honor (TBD in 2021). After that, he will take part in ESPN's virtual "The Home Depot College Football Awards" on Thursday, where he will be interviewed live during the show. Finally, he is honored on the field during the College Football Playoff National Championship in January.