22 Apr 2020 UCA Bears earn academic honors
The University of Central Arkansas placed two players on the 2020 National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) Hampshire Honor Society.
UCA tied for the lead in the Southland Conference with a pair of selections, including senior running back D’erek Fernandez and senior defensive back Trai Mosley. The SLC had 10 total selections on the honor society team.
Fernandez, from Fort Smith Southside, played in 32 career games at UCA and rushed for 271 yards, and made 14 career tackles and recovered a fumble on special teams. He has a 3.67 GPA and is pursuing a master’s in sports administration.
Mosley, from Pflugerville, Texas, and a transfer from the University of Nebraska, played in 33 career games at UCA and finished his career with 58 total tackles, 3 interceptions and 16 pass breakups. Mosley has a 3.67 GPA and is also pursuing a master’s in sports administration.
There were five all-conference student-athletes honored by the NFF, including Andre Walker of Houston Baptist, Chris Zirkle of Northwestern State, Hunter Brown of Sam Houston State, Isaac Adeyemi-Berglund of Southeastern Louisiana and Tyler Edwards of SHSU. Also named to the team from the SLC were HBU’s Sterling Savell, Nicholls’ Dontrell Taylor and Stephen F. Austin’s Cody Williams.
The honoree list is comprised of college football players from all divisions of play who each maintained a cumulative 3.2 grade-point average or better throughout their college careers. An impressive 1,431 players from 364 schools qualified for membership in the Society’s 14th year.
Nominated by their respective schools, members of the NFF Hampshire Honor Society must have completed their final year of playing eligibility in 2019, achieved a 3.2 cumulative GPA throughout their entire course of undergraduate study and met all NCAA- or NAIA-mandated progress toward degree requirements. The initiative has now honored 12,127 student-athletes since its inception, and the program has experienced growth every year in either members or school participation since its launch in 2007.
