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IRVING, Texas– The Ohio football program's graduate student quarterback Parker Navarro has been named a finalist for the 2025 William V. Campbell Trophy®, as announced by the National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame today (Oct. 22). Navarro is the Bobcats' first NFF National Scholar-Athlete.  
 
The Campbell Trophy® is college football's premier scholar-athlete award that annually recognizes an individual as the absolute best in the nation for his combined academic success, football performance, and exemplary leadership. The 16 finalists will each receive an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship as members of the 2025 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class Presented by Fidelity Investments® and were selected from an impressive 180 semifinalists nationwide from among all NCAA divisions and the NAIA.
 
"Each year, we are thrilled to announce the finalists for the Campbell Trophy®," said NFF Chairman Archie Manning, whose sons Peyton (a Campbell Trophy® recipient) and Eli were NFF National Scholar-Athletes in 1997 and 2003, respectively. "These finalists exemplify the very best that our sport has to offer on the field, in the classroom and as leaders in their communities. They exude excellence in all areas of their lives, and we know they have only begun to reach their potential."
 
Navarro (Tempe, Ariz.) is currently 117-for-149 with nine passing touchdowns on 1,471 yards in the air. Also a force to be reckoned with on the ground, he's logged 74 carries and four rushing touchdowns on 441 yards. 
 
Navarro was featured on four preseason watch lists this August: the Walter Camp Player of the Year, the Maxwell Award and the Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award. On Oct. 1, he was named to the 2025 Hispanic College Football Player of the Year Award Watch List, as announced by the Hispanic Football Hall of Fame (HFHOF). 
 
In 2024, Navarro became the first quarterback to record over 2,000 passing yards and 1,000 rushing yards in the same season, as well as the second quarterback in program history to log over 1,000 yards on the ground in a single season. Navarro earned 2024 All-MAC Second Team Offense accolades before leading the program to its first conference championship since 1968, earning 2024 MAC Championship Offensive Player of the Game honors. He capped off his stellar season with a 2024 StaffDNA Cure Bowl MVP nod after tying the Cure Bowl's record for touchdowns scored in a game (4) en route to Ohio's 11^th win of the season. 
 
Submitted by their schools, which are limited to one nominee each, candidates for the Campbell Trophy® must be either a senior player who will complete his final year of eligibility during the 2025 season or be a graduated player or grad transfer who has already earned a bachelor's degree and participating in the 2025 season; must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.2 on a 4.0 scale; must have outstanding football ability as a starter/significant contributor; and must have exhibited exemplary leadership on the field, in the classroom and within the community.
 
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