Robert Coury Named William V. Campbell Finalist

Selected as the best and brightest from the college gridiron, from a nationwide pool of 203 semifinalists among all NCAA divisions and the NAIA, The National Football Foundation (NFF) and College Hall of Fame announced that Carnegie Mellon University's graduate student inside linebacker Robert Coury(opens in new window) is one of 16 finalists for the 2024 William V. Campbell Trophy, presented by Fidelity Investments. 

The award recognizes an individual as the absolute best football scholar-athlete in the nation for his combined academic success, football performance and exemplary leadership. Coury is joined by Luke Lehnen of North Central and Brayden Long of Slippery Rock as the only non-Division I honorees.

Coury carries his on-field excellence into the classroom and community and becomes the Tartans' sixth NFF National Scholar-Athlete. He joins 1987 honoree Bryan Roessler, 2006 honoree Aaron Lewis, 2008 recipient Brian Freeman, 2017 graduate Sam Benger and 2019 finalist Michael Lohmeier. The six representatives are tied for the most by a Division III institution with Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

The 16 finalists will each receive an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship as a member of the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class. The finalists will travel to the Bellagio Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas for the 66th NFF Annual Awards Dinner(opens in new window) on Dec. 10, where their accomplishments will be highlighted in front of one of the most powerful audiences in all of sports. At the event, one member of the class will be declared the winner of the 35th William V. Campbell Trophy and have his postgraduate scholarship increased to $25,000.

"I could not think of a person who is more deserving of this honor than Bobby. He has worked incredibly hard academically, athletically, and volunteered for countless hours to help impact Carnegie Mellon University in many ways,” said Head Football Coach Ryan Larsen(opens in new window). “Our Football program is better because of the example he sets, and the leadership he instills. This honor is in my opinion the greatest representation of being a Student-Athlete in college football, and I know I speak for our entire program when I say how proud we are of Bobby and all he has done to be recognized for the William V. Campbell Trophy."

Through six games this season:

• Coury leads the Tartans with 40 tackles and three forced fumbles. 
• He has added 3.0 sacks, 9.0 tackles-for-loss, a fumble recovery and a blocked punt. 
• His three forced fumbles rank fourth in the nation. 
• He holds the school record with 55.5 tackles-for-loss for his career, ranks third in total tackles with 330 and needs two more to move into second all-time and 28 to become the all-time leader.
• He has 20.0 sacks for his career, which ties him for fourth all-time in program history. 
• He currently heads a defense that ranks third in the nation in total defense, allowing 188.3 yards per game; and sixth in scoring defense, allowing 8.5 points per contest.

Coury has earned six All-America honors in the last two years, including being recognized by the American Football Coach Association (AFCA), the Associated Press and D3football.com. Coury was the first Tartan in program history to be honored in back-to-back seasons by all three organizations. He is also a three-time All-Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) First Team selection. In addition to his three All-America honors for his 2023 season, Coury was also named a semifinalist for the Gagliardi Trophy and the Region VII Division III Commissioner's Association (DIIICA)/Chi Alpha Sigma Regional Student-Athlete of the Year.

Off the field, Coury carries a 3.97 GPA and is currently pursuing his master's degree in mechanical engineering(opens in new window). He is a two-time Academic All-America by the College Sports Communicators America. Coury has volunteered at the Western Spring Sectional competition of the Special Olympics of Pennsylvania, Get in the Game - Be The Match and Rise Against Hunger. He has worked on numerous projects, including the Smart Walk Design Prototype where he designed a walker attachment using sensor to vibration motor communication to benefit disabled individuals.

Coury has been a manufacturing engineer intern for Mack Trucks, a subsidiary of Volvo Group, as well as a construction project management intern for Tesla and Curtiss-Wright as a mechanical engineering intern. He is a member of Undergraduate Consulting Club, Alpha Sigma Phi fraternity, the Sports Analytics Club and Cru at Carnegie Mellon.

“Bobby embodies the values of leadership, integrity, and commitment every day, making him not only one of the best leaders I’ve had the privilege of watching at CMU, but also making him a role model for his peers,” said Director of Athletics Josh Centor. “His selection as a finalist for the William Campbell award is a testament to his excellence academically and athletically, and there is truly no one more deserving of this recognition. The impact Bobby has made at this university will be felt for years and years to come."

Named in honor of the late William V. Campbell, the former chairman of Intuit, former player and head coach at Columbia University and the 2004 recipient of the NFF's Gold Medal, The William V. Campbell Trophy has become the most prestigious and desirable "academic" award in college football. The trophy recognizes an individual as the absolute best in the country for his academic success, football performance and exemplary leadership.

During the past 66 years, the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards have become one of the most prestigious academic honors in all of college sports, distributing $12.6 million to 922 outstanding individuals since its inception.

Launched in 1959, the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards program became the first initiative in history to award postgraduate scholarships based on both a player’s academic and athletic accomplishments. The Campbell Trophy, first awarded in 1990, adds to the program’s prestige. Past recipients include two Rhodes Scholars, a Rhodes Scholar finalist, two Heisman Trophy winners and eight first-round NFL draft picks.