Dutch football team has 13 academic honor society recipients
Central Dutch Athletics
PELLA — The Central College football team added another round of honorees to its state-leading number of National Football Foundation Hampshire Honor Society members Wednesday.
The Hampshire Society, in its 13th year, recognizes senior football players who are starters or significant reserves and carry a cumulative grade point average of 3.20 or higher.
The 13 honorees from this senior class is one more than last year’s team which had 12 recipients. Central has led the league, or shared the league lead, nine times in the past 12 years. Central has had 109 honorees in that span, the most in Iowa.
Within the state this year, behind Central are Drake University (12), Wartburg College (9), Morningside College (6), and Waldorf College (6).
Nationally, the Dutch are fourth in NCAA Division III. Saint John’s University (Minn.) leads with 20 selections. Nebraska Wesleyan University is second with 15 and Johns Hopkins University (Md.) had 14 for third place.
Among all divisions, Central is among 22 colleges and universities with at least 10 honorees. Saint John’s led all divisions with 20 honorees.
This is the fifth time Central has had at least 11 players cited, the most being 17 in 2011-12. Nationwide, 1,643 players from 424 schools were recognized this year.
Punter Cam Kiner (senior, Craig, Neb./Oakland-Craig HS) was selected to the list following his second team all-conference season. Running back Pat Gray (senior, West Des Moines, Waukee HS) and corner back Trevor Smith (senior, Audubon) both also qualified for the honor society after earning honorable mention from the league.
“This illustrates the kind of student-athlete we look for at Central,” McMartin said. “We look for the complete person, someone with great character who is a leader, an outstanding student and a talented football player. The young men on this list definitely exhibit those qualities and I couldn’t be happier about this honor. It speaks very highly of our program and our players.
“We talk about champions always being champions and that who we are on the football field needs to be reflected in who we are in the classroom and in our daily life.”
The Hampshire Honor Society is the latest component of the National Football Foundation’s efforts to promote combined athletic and academic success. The NFF’s National Scholar-Athlete Awards program, launched in 1959, was the first to credit a player for academic success, football performance and community leadership.
Central’s honorees include:
Name (hometown/high school) Position GPA Major
Tyler Bryant (Donnellson/Central Lee HS) P 3.49 Social science
Daniel Coovert (Sycamore, Ill.) SB 3.26 Business mangement
Collin Erickson (Gilbert, Ariz./Dobson) S 3.22 Exercise science
Aaron Fogt (West Des Moines/Waukee HS) TE 3.32 Biology
Pat Gray (West Des Moines/Waukee HS) RB 3.89 Engineering
Cam Kiner (Craig, Neb./Oakland-Craig HS) P 3.30 Exercise science
Drew Kithcart (Atkins/Benton HS) LB 3.68 Actuarial science/comp. science
Tylor Newhouse (Marion/Linn-Mar HS) OL 3.61 Accounting, bus. management
Jake Poster (Davenport/Assumption HS) LB 3.67 Business management
Trevor Smith (Audubon) DB 3.61 Accounting, bus. management
Josiah Soderstrum (Story City/Roland-Story HS) DB 3.67 Business management
Cody Tuttle (Oskaloosa) OL 3.59 Accounting, bus. management
Dylan Tuttle (Oskaloosa) OL 3.41 Business management
Number of honorees for Iowa colleges and universities
School Honorees
Central 13
Drake 12
Wartburg 9
Morningside 6
Waldorf 6
Northern Iowa 5
Iowa 5
Graceland 4
Cornell 3
Dubuque 3
Grand View 3
Loras 2
Luther 2
William Penn 2
Iowa State 1
Northwestern 1
