Nine Bucknell Bison Football Players Earn 2026 NFF Academic Honor

Ralph Rucker IV spent the winter preparing for an NFL Pro Day. He also earned a spot on one of college football's most selective academic honor rolls.

The Lewisburg-based Bison landed nine players on the 2026 NFF Hampshire Honor Society, the National Football Foundation announced Wednesday. Joining Rucker on the list are Alex Brown, Kieran Coscia, Aaron Davis, Charlie Kreinbucher, John Ohnegian, Ashton Sempervive, Daniel Sierk, and Terian Williams II.

To qualify, a player must carry a cumulative undergraduate GPA of 3.2 or better and have been a starter or significant contributor during the 2025 season. Both bars matter: raw academic achievement alone is not enough without proven on-field contribution. Of the record 2,596 players from 365 colleges and universities who cleared both thresholds nationally this year, Bucknell placed nine, maintaining a standard that has held every single year since the program launched in 2007.

That streak is rarer than it sounds. Bucknell is one of only 23 schools in the country, across all divisions, to have placed at least one player in the Hampshire Honor Society in each of its 20 years. The full national list spans programs from Penn State and Iowa to Yale and Youngstown State. In all, the society has recognized 23,569 student-athletes from 691 schools over two decades.

Rucker is the most prominent name in this year's class. The fifth-year quarterback from Lucas, Texas, finished his Bison career as the program's all-time leader in passing touchdowns with 46, was a Walter Payton Award finalist, and on March 9 participated in an NFL Pro Day at the Eagles' NovaCare Complex in Philadelphia alongside players from fellow Patriot League program Lehigh. The Hampshire honor adds an academic capstone to that on-field resume.

The recognition also extends a strong stretch of scholarly achievement for the Bucknell football program. This past February, the Bison placed a league-high 65 student-athletes on the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll, the most of any football program in the conference.

For Lewisburg and Union County, the recognition is a reminder that the university at the center of the community produces student-athletes who hold their own in the classroom just as they do on Saturday afternoons at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium. The NFF Hampshire Honor Society's 20th anniversary class is the largest in program history, and Bucknell has been part of every single one.