2009 Scholarship Awards Breakfast Held in Atlanta.

The thirty-five members of the 2009 Greater Atlanta Chapter Scholarship class were honored on December 30 at our Annual Awards Breakfast at the Marriott Marquis hotel in Atlanta.. Each of the award winners were individually recognized with a $1000 college scholarship and a personalized plaque presented by Chapter President, Dennis Caniglia. Matt Stinchcomb, who won the National Football Foundation's Draddy Trophy in 1998, now known as the Campbell Trophy for the nation's top college scholar-athlete, was the guest speaker. Greg Mulkey, a senior scholar-athlete from Sonoraville High School, was recognized as this year's top winner and received a $2000 college scholarship Following the Awards Breakfast, all honorees and their families attended the Chick-fil-A Bowl luncheon that was attended by both the Tennessee and Virginia Tech bowl teams, coaches, families and guests and were recognized in front of over 800 attendees. Congratulations to each of our 2009 scholarship winners!

Click here for pictures of each of our winners!.

2009 Scholarship Class Selected

This year we received over 100 applications from qualified scholar-athletes and student managers from across Georgia.  We had to make some very tough decisions from a very talented pool of applicants this year to determine the winners.  Thirty-five students will receive their awards on December 30, 2009 in conjunction with the Chick-fil-A Bowl luncheon at the Marriott Marquis in downtown Atlanta. Check our Scholarships tab above for more information.

Hall of Fame Reception - A Rousing Success!

The Atlanta Chapter of the National Football Foundation (NFF), in conjunction with the Touchdown Club of Atlanta (TCA) hosted a reception on October 15 at the Fox Sports Grill in Atlanta to honor Pat Swilling (GA Tech) , Jim Donnan (Marshall/UGA) and Tony Barnhart (AJC/CBS) for their election to the College Football Hall of Fame and the Sportswriters Hall of Fame this year. Atlanta area Hall of Fame members in attendance were introduced and interviewed.

To see these interviews, click on the NFF video player to the left.

College Football Hall of Fame to Move to Atlanta

DALLAS, September 24, 2009 – The National Football Foundation (NFF) announced today its board of directors has accepted a plan to relocate the College Football Hall of Fame, currently located in South Bend, Ind., to the Centennial Olympic Park area in Atlanta, Ga. The move will create a new state-of-the art 50,000 square foot interactive facility steps from the World of Coca-Cola, Georgia Aquarium, CNN Center, Children’s Museum of Atlanta, Philips Arena, Georgia Dome, and the future Center for Civil & Human Rights.

“An impressive group from Atlanta has pulled together the financial resources and an extremely compelling plan that will help us build a new platform for the future,” said NFF Chairman Archie Manning. “Accepting their plan will create a new high-tech facility that will showcase the legends of our sport and build on the momentum and interest that we have been able to generate in South Bend.”

The current timeline calls for the new $50 million facility to open in the fall of 2012. Through a new partnership between the NFF and the Chick-fil-A Bowl, once constructed, the Hall will be operated locally by the Chick-fil-A Bowl. This will provide a built-in experienced management structure and a direct tie to a 42-year college football tradition in Atlanta with strong connections to the community. The Chick-fil-A Bowl and its corporate partner, Chick-fil-A, have collectively contributed $10 million for the new College Football Hall of Fame facility.

“We have had a great run in South Bend for the past 15 years, and it’s been a wonderful showcase for us and our mission,” said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. “There are a lot of special people in South Bend, and we want to thank Mayor Luecke and all of his constituents for their support over the years. As we looked to the future, the NFF Board determined that the Atlanta proposal presented a powerful opportunity for reaching fans around the country.”

Read more about the NFF College Football Hall of Fame

2008 Top Student Athlete Award Winner signs with Stanford

Chapter President Dennis Caniglia, 1998 Draddy Trophy winner Matt Stinchcomb, Scholar-Athlete Jamal-Rashad Patterson, Hall of Famer Tommy Nobis and Justin Gallagher of Gallagher Electric

Jamal-Rashad Patterson who has signed with Stanford University to play football, earned recognition as the 2008 chapter’s top scholar-athlete, claiming a $2,000 scholarship. The $49,000 distributed at the event was the most of any of the 121 NFF chapters nationwide in 2008.

After Jamal-Rashad received his award in December of 2008, he went on to win the 2009 Franklin D. Watkins Memorial Trophy that is given each year by the National Alliance of African American Athletes to the top high school African American male athlete, who by their example, help promote high academic standards and a commitment to community service.

Once he arrived on the Stanford campus in the Summer of 2009, he quickly impressed the Stanford Coaches with his quickness and sure hands as a Wide Receiver. He played in 11 of Stanford's 12 games as a true freshman and scored his first collegiate touchdown against Arizona State on a 22 yard reverse, He helped his team to an impressive 8-4 record in the Pac Ten and will play in the Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas on December 31st.