IRVING, Texas – The National Football Foundation & College Football Hall of Fame (NFF) recognized 12 players from last year's BYU football team as members of its 2026 NFF Hampshire Honor Society, which is comprised of college football players from all divisions who each maintained a cumulative 3.2 GPA or better throughout their college careers.
Celebrating 20 years of the NFF Hampshire Honor Society in 2026, the NFF also recognized BYU as one of only seven FBS schools and 23 programs overall from all six divisions of football to have had at least one player earning selection in all 20 years of the NFF Hampshire Honor Society (2007-26). Other FBS programs joining BYU to accomplish this feat include West Virginia, Minnesota, Penn State, Iowa, SMU and Kentucky.
The 12 players from BYU's 2025 team honored by the NFF include defensive backs Tanner Wall (Finance) and Talan Alfrey (Exercise Science), defensive linemen Logan Lutui (Exercise Science) and Justin Kirkland (Business Management), linebacker Max Alford (Finance), offensive linemen Isaiah Jatta (Economics) and Bruce Mitchell (Business Management), wide receiver Tiger Bachmeier, running back Enoch Nawahine (Business Management), punter Sam Vander Haar (Communications), kicker Will Ferrin (Finance) and long snapper Garrison Grimes (Health Sciences).
Notable BYU Achievement
With 106 all-time honorees since the inception of the program in 2007, BYU ranks No. 4 overall for the most-ever FBS selections to the NFF Hampshire Honor Society. The only FBS schools with more overall honorees than BYU are Nebraska (114), Northwestern (112) and Minnesota (109). Among these top programs with consistently high-achieving academics from its team members over the past 20 seasons, BYU has earned a 177-82 (.683) overall record on the football field in that span, while Nebraska has posted a 137-115 (.544) resume, Northwestern a 129-121 (.518) record and Minnesota a 129-121 (.516) mark.
The milestone of the NFF Hampshire Honor Society's 20th anniversary this year also producing the largest group of annual honorees reflects the scale and consistency of academic achievement across the sport of football. An example of this achievement, BYU football has seen the academic pursuits of members of the team achieve a collective grade point average over 3.0 for a program record seven straight semesters while excelling on the field in the Big 12 Conference producing a 23-4 record over the past two seasons.
Big 12 Conference
After BYU's 106 all-time honorees, Kansas State is next among Big 12 schools with the most all-time selections to the NFF Hampshire Honor Society with 98. In 2026, all Big 12 universities were represented with honorees, led by Kansas with 19 members among seven Big 12 schools with double-digit selections. After Kansas, Texas Tech had 17, TCU 15, BYU 12, Arizona 12, Kansas State 11 and West Virginia 10. In total, the league placed 134 student-athletes in the 2026 NFF Hampshire Honor Society in 2026.
The 2026 Class & 20-Year Celebration
An elite group of 2,596 players from 365 colleges and universities earned NFF Hampshire Honor Society recognition in 2026 to set a new record for the number of honorees in a single year during the program's 20-year history. One of the most comprehensive scholarathlete initiatives in college athletics, the initiative has now honored 23,568 student-athletes from 691 different institutions since its inception across all divisions of football.
“To see this program reach 20 years with a record number of honorees is really special,” said NFF Chairman Archie Manning. “As the world of college football faces an era of transition, one thing remains the same: the game’s ability to develop well-rounded student-athletes committed to excellence in the classroom as well as on the field. The NFF Hampshire Honor Society provides an important platform for us to recognize the value of the game in developing leaders while shining a light on their individual accomplishments.”
Nominated by their respective schools, members of the NFF Hampshire Honor Society must meet the following criteria:
- A senior player graduating this spring/summer who completed his final year of playing eligibility in 2025; or
- A graduated player or grad transfer who has already earned a bachelor's degree and competed in the 2025 season (even if the player has remaining eligibility and may return to play next season)
- Maintained a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.2 (4.0 scale)
- Been a starter or significant contributor during the 2025 season
“Twenty years ago, college coaches around the country came to the National Football Foundation asking us to recognize not just their top student-athlete, but the numerous studentathletes on their teams who were also excelling at the highest levels in the classroom,” said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. “Their voices led to the creation of the NFF Hampshire Honor Society, and two decades later, the results speak for themselves. Year after year, we continue to see remarkable academic achievements across college football.”
See the complete 2026 Hampshire Honor Society Member List.
ABOUT THE HAMPSHIRE FOUNDATION
The Hampshire Foundation is the charitable arm of The Hampshire Companies, a privately-held, fullyintegrated real estate firm that has more than 60 years of hands-on, cycle-tested experience in acquiring, developing, leasing, repositioning, managing, financing and disposing of real estate. Founded by Jon F. Hanson, who served as NFF Chairman from 1994-2006, Hampshire is headquartered in Morristown, New Jersey. Learn more at www.hampshirere.com.
ABOUT THE NATIONAL FOOTBALL FOUNDATION & COLLEGE HALL OF FAME
Founded in 1947 with early leadership from General Douglas MacArthur, legendary Army coach Earlv“Red” Blaik, and journalist Grantland Rice, the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) is a nonprofit organization that leverages the power of amateur football to build leaders. With 120 chapters in 47 states, the NFF oversees initiatives such as the NFF College Hall of Fame, the NFF William V. Campbell Trophy®, the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards Presented by Fidelity Investments, Future For Football, and I Played. Learn more at footballfoundation.org and follow @NFFNetwork on X, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.