CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) named Illinois linebacker Ryan Meed as a semifinalist for the 2024 William V. Campbell Trophy, the organization announced Wednesday.
THE WILLIAM V. CAMPBELL TROPHY
The Campbell Trophy® recognizes an individual as the best football scholar-athlete in the nation for his combined academic success, football performance, and exemplary leadership. This year, a record 203 semifinalists were nominated across all levels of play in the NCAA and NAIA. Each nominee must be a senior who will complete his final year of eligibility during the 2024 season or a graduate student or graduate transfer who has already earned a degree and will participate during the 2024 season; 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.
RYAN MEED | WILLIAM V. CAMPBELL TROPHY
- Has played in 44 games in his Illini career with 22 total tackles (13 solo), one tackle for loss, one forced fumble, and one blocked kick
- Four-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree
- Awarded scholarship in 2021 after beginning his career as a walk-on
- Graduated with a bachelor's degree in kinesiology (May 2023) and has earned a post-graduate certificate in strategic leadership & management (May 2024)
- Has primarily contributed as a leader on special teams for the Fighting Illini, where he has been a mainstay on the Orange and Blue's kickoff, kick return, punt, and punt return units
- This season, has recorded seven tackles (three solo), including three total tackles (two solo) in his second-career start in the Illini's 23-17 win over No. 19-ranked Kansas (9/7/24)
- Made Illinois debut on special teams against Michigan State in 2019 to help Illinois to a 37-34 win in the biggest comeback in program history
- Started his first game at linebacker for the Fighting Illini as a junior in 2023, his fifth year in the program
- Forced the first fumble of his career on the opening kickoff, which led to an Illini touchdown on the ensuing drive, in Illinois' 27-26 win at Minnesota (11/4/23)
- Contributed to the Illini's berth in the 2019 Redbox Bowl during his first season with the program, playing in the final three contests of the regular season in addition to the bowl game
- Helped the Illini back to a bowl for the second time in his career to cap the 2022 season, playing in all 13 games including the ReliaQuest Bowl, the program's first January bowl game since the 2008 Rose Bowl
- Has helped the Fighting Illini reach the top-25 rankings twice in the last three seasons; in 2022, the Illini were ranked in the AP Top 25 for five straight weeks, reaching as high as No. 14, and were ranked for two weeks in the College Football Playoff rankings for the first time in school history. This season, the team has been ranked for the last two weeks and is currently #19 in the AP poll.
