Pine Bluff, Ark.- Along with being named the Defensive Player of the Game for 2012 SWAC Championship Game, Bill Ross has garnered national attention; not only on the fields of competition but also in the classroom.

Ross, a 6-2, 240lb linebacker from Wetumpka, Ala., capped off his senior season with a championship, was inducted into Chi Alpha Sigma honor society back in April has reaped the benefits of his hard work both on and off the field.

Hampshire Honor Society honors the college football players from all divisions of play who each Designed to highlight football's unique ability to develop tomorrow's brightest leaders, The NFF maintain a 3.2 GPA or better during their collegiate careers.

"Ever since legendary Army coach Red Blaik provided the first funds for the first National Scholar- Athlete Awards in 1959, the NFF has stood in the vanguard of promoting the scholar-athlete ideal," said Hanson, the chairman and founder of The Hampshire Companies when he endowed the program. "It's a great privilege to build on his legacy and endow The NFF Hampshire Honor Society, which greatly increases the number of the college student- athletes that the NFF can recognize each year. Nationwide there are thousands of football players excelling in the classroom, and they're going on to be great leaders. The NFF Hampshire Honor Society allows us to shine a light on their hard work."

Qualifications for membership in the NFF Hampshire Honor Society include:

• Being a starter or a significant substitute in one's last year of eligibility at an accredited NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision, Football Championship Subdivision, Division II, Division III, or an NAIA college or university;
• Achieving a 3.2 cumulative grade point average throughout entire course of undergraduate study; and
• Meeting all NCAA-mandated progress towards degree requirements.