CLINT LESSARD NAMED SEMIFINALIST FOR CAMPBELL TROPHY 10/7/2009 SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Sacramento State senior offensive lineman Clint Lessard has been named a semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy which is presented by the National Football Foundation and the College Hall of Fame. Lessard, who has started every game as a Hornet, is one of 37 student-athletes from the Football Championship Subdivision. Nominated by their schools, which are limited to one nominee each, semifinalists must be a senior or graduate student in their final year of eligibility, have a GPA of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale, have outstanding football ability as a first team player or significant contributor, and have demonstrated strong leadership and citizenship. Renamed this fall in honor of Bill Campbell, the chairman of Intuit, former player and head coach at Columbia University and the 2004 recipient of the NFF's Gold Medal, the award comes with a 25-pound bronze trophy and a $25,000 post- graduate scholarship. The NFF Awards Committee will select and announce up to 15 finalists on Oct. 29. Each finalist will be recognized as part of the 2009 NFF National Scholar- Athlete Class, receiving an $18,000 post-graduate scholarship. The Campbell Trophy winner, who will have his scholarship increased to $25,000, will be announced live at the NFF's Annual Awards Dinner on December 8 at the prestigious Waldorf-Astoria in New York City. A total distribution of $277,000 in scholarships will be awarded that evening. A native of Rocklin, Calif., Lessard owns a 3.700 gpa while majoring in accounting. He was a Big Sky Conference all-academic selection last fall and spent this past summer as an intern for Deloite & Touche.??Launched in 1959, the NFF scholar-athlete program became the first initiative in history to award post- graduate scholarships based on both a player's academic and athletic accomplishments. The William V. Campbell Trophy, first awarded in 1990, adds to the program's mystique, having previously honored two Rhodes Scholars, a Rhodes Scholar finalist and a Heisman winner.