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NFF Chalktalk - Jan. 31, 2017
Ralph Guglielmi, a 2001 College Football Hall of Fame inductee from Notre Dame, passed away Jan. 23 in Wallace, N.C. Born June 26, 1933, in Columbus, Ohio, he was 83.

Guglielmi was Notre Dame's starting quarterback all four years of his impressive college career, capped by unanimous All-America honors and a fourth place finish in the Heisman voting at the end of the 1954 season.

During his career he ran for 13 touchdowns, and he passed for 18. He completed 209 passes for 3,117 yards. A two-way player, he also starred at defensive back, snaring 10 interceptions. On special teams, he returned two kickoffs for 15 yards. The Fighting Irish went 26-3-2, finishing among the top four teams each year of his tenure, and in 1953 the team went 9-0-1 with a backfield that included future Hall of Famer and the season's Heisman Trophy winner  Johnny Lattner.
Bill "Moose" Fischer, a 1983 College Football Hall of Fame inductee from Notre Dame, passed away Jan. 20 in Cape Coral, Fla. Born March 10, 1927, in Chicago, he was 89. He was the eighth-oldest living member of the College Football Hall of Fame.

He earned a letter as a reserve lineman and did kickoffs in his freshman year with the Fighting Irish in 1945 before becoming the starting left guard the next three seasons under Hall of Fame coach Frank Leahy. Fischer led Notre Dame to back-to-back national championships in 1946 and 1947, received All-America honors in 1947 and 1948 and was just the third-ever recipient of the Outland Trophy in 1948 as the nation's best interior lineman.
The NFF announced that the College Football Hall of Fame and Chick-fil-A Fan Experience in Atlanta will unveil a special exhibit and host a unique roundtable event in celebration of Black History Month. Additionally the Hall will donate $1 from every full-price admission sold during the week of Feb. 20 to the United Negro College Fund. The honorary chairman for the month-long celebration at the Hall is Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed.

The "Breaking Barriers" exhibit will be located in the Specialty Exhibit delivered by UPS and open to the public on Feb. 1. It will chronicle game-changing individuals, stories and the moments that paved the way.

On Feb. 22, the Hall will host an intimate "Breaking Barriers" roundtable event moderated by College Football Hall of Famer Don McPherson (Syracuse) and featuring Hall of Famers Thom Gatewood (Notre Dame), Gene Washington (Michigan State) and John Wooten (Colorado).
Four former NFF National Scholar-Athletes appear on rosters of teams playing in Super Bowl LI, which will be played this Sunday, Feb. 5, in Houston, Texas. The game will kick off at 6:30 p.m. ET on FOX.

Atlanta Falcons center  Alex Mack, the 2008  William V. Campbell Trophy recipient while at California, is looking for his first Super Bowl win in his first appearance. 

Mack becomes just the third  Campbell Trophy winner to play in the Super Bowl. Quarterback  Peyton Manning, the 1997 Campbell Trophy recipient while at Tennessee and a 2017 College Football Hall of Fame electee, appeared in four Super Bowls, winning Super Bowl XLI with the Indianapolis Colts and Super Bowl 50 with the Denver Broncos. Offensive lineman Matt Stinchcomb, the 1998  Campbell Trophy winner while at Georgia, appeared in Super Bowl XXXVII with the Oakland Raiders.

Tight end  Jacob Tamme, a 2007 NFF National Scholar-Athlete from Kentucky, also appears on the Falcons roster. Previously appearing in Super Bowl XLVIII as a member of the Denver Broncos, he will miss Sunday's game with an injury.

NFF National Scholar-Athletes appearing for the New England Patriots are offensive tackle  Nate Solder (Colorado - 2010) and safety  Jordan Richards (Stanford - 2014). Solder is looking for his second Super Bowl victory after winning Super Bowl XLIX with the Patriots. He also appeared in Super Bowl XLVI with New England. Richards hopes to win his first Super Bowl in just his second year in the NFL.
National Signing Day - Feb. 1

On Feb. 1, the  777 colleges and universities offering football will provide high school seniors across the country with opportunities to continue their football careers while gaining an education through scholarships and financial aid.

NFF Chapters in Atlanta, Phoenix and St. Louis are among those who will hold celebrations on this important day. The NFF wishes all of the incoming freshmen well as they continue their educations because of the opportunities provided by football.
After a hiatus of 70 years, Lawrence Technological University in  Southfield, Mich., will again field a football team and has hired a coach,  Jeff Duvendeck, who will lead efforts to build a team that will begin competing in the 2018 season.

Lawrence Tech expects to attract students with strong scholastic aptitude who also enjoy the competition, discipline, and camaraderie of intercollegiate athletics. The 4,500-student private university reinstituted athletics in 2011 and now fields 24 men's and/or women's teams.

A member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), LTU intends to compete in football as an independent program in 2018, and join the Mid-States Football Association of the NAIA in the fall of 2019 .
Tackling the concussion crisis in football is at the forefront of sports safety research and development. Through a new partnership, NFF-partner VICIS and the University of Alabama at Birmingham - which have each made major strides in developing next generation football helmets in recent years - are combining expertise and intellectual property to bring more effective helmets to the market.

VICIS, a Seattle-based company, was founded to develop new football helmet technology that shows significant reduction in impact forces. The partnership with UAB adds expertise to the VICIS team, which is already bolstered by an advisory council that comprises experts and innovators from science and sport, as well as industry partners that have the ability to help make real progress in protecting athletes.
Feb. 1 - National Signing Day: Watch some of high school's brightest football stars announce their college choice at National Signing Day! The Hall is partnering with the Touchdown Club of Atlanta-NFF Chapter, 680 the Fan and Fox 5 for an on-field event where fans can watch the top recruits select their new schools. To purchase tickets, visit www.cfbhall.com .

February - Black History Month: Celebrate the history of college football with a special temporary exhibit telling the story of southern African-American football players that played at Historically Black Colleges and Universities in the Specialty Exhibit delivered by UPS. The exhibit will open on Feb. 1.

About the College Football Hall of Fame: The Hall opened its doors Aug. 23, 2014, in the heart of Atlanta's sports, entertainment and tourism district. Adjacent to Centennial Olympic Park, the new Hall provides visitors with a highly immersive, interactive and engaging experience using a blend of historic college football artifacts and state-of-the-art, interactive multimedia exhibits. To plan your visit and purchase tickets, visit  www.cfbhall.com .
Check out FootballMatters.org, the NFF's home for storytelling that promotes the power of amateur football. Recent headlines on the site include:
Quote of the Week
The Blitz
NFF Chairman, 2016 NFF Gold Medal recipient and College Football Hall of Famer Archie Manning (Ole Miss) will be the featured speaker March 7 at Oklahoma Baptist University's fifth annual Green and Gold Gala at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City. The event raises funds for student scholarships at OBU.

The Ivy Football Association Dinner took place Jan. 26 at the Sheraton New York Times Square Hotel. Former NFF President Bob Casciola, a former player and head coach at Princeton, and 1977 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Joseph Holland (Cornell) were among the night's honorees. Also honored were former Ivy League football players Thomas Clarke (Dartmouth), Michael Corbat (Harvard), John Doman (Penn), Gary Fencik (Yale), Javier Loya (Columbia) and Robert Pangia (Brown).

NFF Board Member and Dallas Cowboys owner, president & general manager Jerry Jones and College Football Hall of Famers Tony Boselli (Southern California), Coach Don Coryell (Whittier [Calif.], San Diego State) and LaDainian Tomlinson (TCU)  are among  the finalists under consideration for the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Class of 2017. College Football Hall of Famer Kenny Easley (UCLA) is also being considered as a finalist by the Seniors Committee. The class will be announced Feb. 4, the day before the Super Bowl in Houston. 

College Football Hall of Famer Johnnie Johnson (Texas) announced a 250-city tour beginning Feb. 8 to promote his Moving Families Initiative, a program aligning certified real estate agents and service providers to safeguard families on the move.

College Football Hall of Famer Marty Lyons (Alabama) has assembled a team of 50 cyclists with the goal of raising $200,000 during the New York City TD 5 Borough Bike Ride on May 7 for his eponymous foundation, which fulfills the wishes of children with terminal or life-threatening illnesses.

College Football Hall of Famer LaDainian Tomlinson (TCU) will make his feature-film acting debut in a movie titled God Bless the Broken Road.

In the  2017 Reese's Senior Bowl, 2016 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Zay Jones (East Carolina) led the North with 68 receiving yards and a touchdown in a 16-15 loss to the South.

2016 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Chris Beaschler (Dayton) was named to the to the Fall Pioneer Football League Academic Honor Roll.

2010 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Nate Solder (Colorado), now a member of the New England Patriots, and 2008 NFF National High School Scholar-Athlete Andrew Luck, now with the Indianapolis Colts, are among the recipients of the 39th Annual Ed Block Courage Awards. They will be honored March 11 at the Renaissance Baltimore Harborplace Hotel.

1992 NFF National High School Scholar-Athlete, former Tennessee quarterback and MLB player  Todd Helton  will join the Vols' baseball staff as director of player development.

2007 NFF Distinguished American Rocky Bleier, a former Notre Dame and Pittsburgh Steelers running back who received the Bronze Star and Purple Heart in Vietnam, will receive the Dapper Dan Lifetime Achievement Award on Feb. 15.

Former SEC Commissioner Roy Kramer, the 1998 NFF Distinguished American, was named the 2017 winner of the Pat Summitt Lifetime Achievement Award from the State of Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame.

Legendary broadcaster Brent Musburger, the 2011 NFF Outstanding Contribution to Amateur Football Award recipient, has decided to end his play-by-play career at month's end.


NFF Program Updates

The NFF Scholar-Athlete of the Day, presented by Fidelity Investments, is a daily segment honoring the semifinalists for the 2016  William V. Campbell Trophy, presented by Fidelity Investments. Today's honoree is Campbell kicker/punter  Jarrett Ozimek, who graduated in May 2016 with a 3.24 GPA in sport management.
Over The Middle
The NFF Touchdown Club of Houston Chapter  honored Greater Houston Area and South Texas High School football alumni who have participated in past Super Bowls as a player, coach or official. The event was held yesterday at the Houston Marriott South at Hobby Airport. The luncheon featured a question and answer forum moderated by former NFL quarterback and current Yahoo Sports personality Sean Salisbury. College Football Hall of Famers Donny Anderson (Texas Tech), Dave Elmendorf (Texas A&M) and Joe Washington (Oklahoma) were among those in attendance.

The NFF Valley of the Sun (Ariz.) Chapter will host its Fifth Annual College Signing Day event on Feb. 1 at Majerle's Sports Grill Desert Ridge in Phoenix. Learn more at www.aznff.com.

The Touchdown Club of Atlanta-NFF Chapter is partnering with the College Football Hall of Fame, 680 the Fan and Fox 5 to host a National Signing Day event at the Hall in Atlanta on Feb. 1. To purchase tickets, visit www.cfbhall.com.

The NFF Tom Lombardo/St. Louis Chapter will host a Recruiting Breakfast on Feb. 1 at Norwood Country Club in St. Louis, Mo.

New UC Davis head football coach Dan Hawkins will be the featured speaker at the NFF Sacramento Valley (Calif.) Chapter's scholar-athlete banquet on March 9. The chapter will honor approximately 50 scholar-athletes.
Two-Minute Drill
Scheduling

Stanford and Rice will open the 2017 season season at Australia's Sydney Cup on Aug. 26... Conference USA announced its 2017 football schedule... UMass announced its 2017 schedule... North Texas and Texas Tech agreed to a home-and-home series in  2024 and 2027... UNLV will open the 2017 season against Howard... Iowa State announced changes to its 2017 schedule... Coastal Carolina will host Western Illinois in 2017...

Obituaries

Former Army and SMU football player  Bob Folsom, who later became the mayor of Dallas, passed away Jan. 24. He played with three  Heisman Trophy winners and scored a touchdown for Army in a win against Michigan. He was 89...  Elwood "Al" Shields , the first athletics director at  Bentley (Mass.), passed away Jan. 24. He was 80... Jack Gordon, who led Cincinnati in rushing in 1951, passed away Jan. 28. He was 85.
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Each year, the NFF invites universities, colleges, conferences and bowl games from across the country to provide support for NFF programs through its Institutional Academic Membership Program. The program allows the NFF to greatly enhance the power of football's collective voice while actively building a stronger national platform for the game with community leaders, educators and the media.

Click here to see all of the 2016 NFF Institutional Academic Members.
2003 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Eli Manning (Mississippi), a member of the Alumni Association.
2016 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Alumni Association 

Since 1959, the National Football Foundation has annually recognized the best and brightest college players, presenting them with prestigious NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards, presented by Fidelity Investments. The $18,000 postgraduate scholarships are presented at the NFF Annual Awards Dinner in New York City. 

Launched in 2008, the NFF Scholar-Athlete Alumni Association provides a powerful vehicle for past honorees to remain in the vanguard of the NFF's present efforts. 

Click here to see all of the members of the 2016 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Alumni Association.
NFF Key Dates
Dec. 4, 2017  - Presentation of the Asa S. Bushnell Cup to the Ivy League Football Players of the Year at the New York Hilton Midtown at an event presented by the Pasadena Tournament of Roses - New  York City
 
Dec. 5, 2017  - NFF Annual Awards Press Conference at the New York Hilton Midtown - New York City
 
Dec. 5, 2017  - NFF Chapter Awards Luncheon, presented by Under Armour, at the New York Hilton Midtown - New York City
 
Dec. 5, 2017  - 60th NFF Annual Awards Dinner at the New York Hilton Midtown - New York City, including the induction of the 2017 College Football Hall of Fame Class and the 28th presentation of The William V. Campbell Trophy, presented by Fidelity Investments and prominently displayed at the New York Athletic Club.
 
Jan. 1, 2018The 13th Annual NFF National Hall of Fame Salute during the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl - Atlanta, Ga.

Jan. 8, 2018 - College Football Playoff National Championship at Mercedes-Benz Stadium - Atlanta, Ga.
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The NFF would like to thank NFF correspondent Bo Carter for his contributions to this report.
 
NFF Chalktalk items are welcome and should be sent to news@footballfoundation.com
 
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