Rodrigo Blankenship named a semifinalist for the 2019 Campbell Trophy

Georgia senior placekicker Rodrigo Blankenship has been named a semifinalist for the 2019 William V. Campbell Trophy, according to an announcement from the National Football Foundation (NFF) and the College Football Hall of Fame.

Blankenship, a native of Marietta, Ga., is one of 71 semifinalists from the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), including one of six from the Southeastern Conference.

On October 30, the NFF will announce 12-14 finalists for the Campbell Trophy, and each of them will receive an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship as a member of the 2019 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class presented by Fidelity Investments.

The finalists will travel to New York City for the 62nd NFF Annual Awards Dinner on Dec. 10. One player will be named the winner of the Campbell Trophy and his postgraduate scholarship will be increased to $25,000.

Georgia’s last semifinalist for the Campbell Trophy was tight end Jeb Blazevich in 2017. Matt Stinchcomb is the only Bulldog to win the Campbell Trophy (1998).

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.

“These 185 impressive candidates truly represent the scholar-athlete ideal,” said NFF Chairman Archie Manning, whose sons Peyton (Campbell Trophy® winner) and Eli were named NFF National Scholar-Athletes in 1997 and 2003, respectively. “For more than 60 years, the NFF National Scholar-Athlete program has showcased more than 800 college football players who have been successful on the football field, in the classroom and as leaders in the community. And we are excited to celebrate the 30th year of the William V. Campbell Trophy® Presented by Mazda, which honors the best of the best. This year’s semifinalists further illustrate the power of our great sport in developing the next generation of influential leaders.”

In five games as a senior, Rodrigo Blankenship has connected on all 11 of his field-goal attempts, including two from 50 yards or longer. Blankenship is also 25-for-25 on extra points this season and has never missed one in his career at Georgia (179-for-179).

The Georgia Bulldogs are 5-0 overall and 2-0 in SEC play so far this season. Georgia hosts the South Carolina Gamecocks on Saturday, Oct. 12, and the game will be televised by ESPN at noon ET.

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