TUESDAY, THE BURLSWORTH TROPHY ANNOUNCED A RECORD 83 PLAYERS NOMINATED FROM DIVISION 1 (FBS) SCHOOLS FROM ACROSS THE COUNTRY FOR THE 2019 BURLSWORTH TROPHY. IN THE AWARD’S TENTH YEAR, THE TROPHY IS NAMED IN HONOR OF BRANDON BURLSWORTH, FORMER UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS WALK-ON AND ALL-AMERICAN OFFENSIVE LINEMAN. BURLSWORTH’S LIFE IS ALSO THE SUBJECT OF A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE, “GREATER”, WHICH WAS RELEASED IN 2016. THE BURLSWORTH TROPHY IS GIVEN TO THE MOST OUTSTANDING FOOTBALL PLAYER IN AMERICA WHO BEGAN HIS CAREER AS A WALK-ON AND HAS SHOWN OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE ON THE FIELD. EACH NOMINEE MUST HAVE BEGUN HIS FIRST SEASON OF PARTICIPATION WITH FBS (D1) FOOTBALL PROGRAM WITHOUT FINANCIAL AID OF ANY KIND FROM HIS UNIVERSITY’S ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT.
UNIVERSITY OF WYOMING SENIOR DEFENSIVE END JOSIAH HALL IS ONE OF THIS YEAR’S NOMINEES. HALL BEGAN HIS CAREER AT WYOMING IN FALL OF 2015 AS A WALK-ON. SINCE JOINING THE COWBOY FOOTBALL PROGRAM HALL HAS GONE ON TO: EARN A SCHOLARSHIP, PLAY IN 41 CAREER GAMES, START 26 GAMES, EARN ACADEMIC ALL-CONFERENCE HONORS THREE TIMES ENTERING HIS SENIOR SEASON AND BE NAMED A TEAM CAPTAIN HIS SENIOR YEAR. HE WAS A STARTER ON WYOMING’S 2016 TEAM THAT HOSTED THE MOUNTAIN WEST CHAMPIONSHIP GAME AND EARNED A BERTH IN THE SAN DIEGO COUNTY CREDIT UNION POINSETTIA BOWL. HALL ALSO STARTED ON THE 2017 WYOMING TEAM THAT WON THE FAMOUS IDAHO POTATO BOWL, AND EARNED BOWL ELIGIBILITY FOR A THIRD AND FOURTH CONSECUTIVE SEASONS IN 2018 AND ’19.
