As we cross the midway point of the season for all schools, the national award watch lists start to narrow. Louisville defensive lineman Ashton Gillotte is a Campbell Trophy Finalist.
Sixteen finalists were announced Wednesday. Gillotte is the lone ACC football player on the list. The William Campbell Trophy is given to the best football scholar-athletes in the nation for their combined academic success, football performance, and exemplary leadership. The pre-season watchlist started with 204 candidates. All candidates are nominated by their schools.
Gillotte’s Credentials
Gillotte is the first-ever semifinalist from Louisville. Off the field, he graduated magna cum laude last December with a 3.5 grade point average. He got his Bachelor’s Degree in communications. That is also his post-baccalaureate pursuit. He was a First Team Academic All-American in 2023. He has also been a two-time Academic All-ACC.
Gillotte has also donated much of his NIL Money to the West End School in Louisville and to the Dare to Care Food Bank. He also has set up a program with the school to donate game tickets to local military personnel.
On the field, Gillotte has 18 total tackles and two sacks for the Cardinals, who are currently 4-3 on the season. Last season he was an anchor of a defense that led Louisville to the conference championship game and an invitation to the Holiday Bowl in San Diego. He was All-ACC in 2023 as well as second-team All-American. His 11 sacks last year led the conference. He was the runner-up for ACC Defensive Player of the Year.
For his career, through week eight of the current season, Gillotte has 105 tackles, 32 tackles for loss, and 23 sacks. The total sacks rank him ninth in school history.
The Other Finalists
Tahj Brooks, RB – Texas Tech (3.55 GPA – Sport Management)
Robert Coury, LB – Carnegie Mellon [PA] (3.97 GPA – Mechanical Engineering)
Jaxson Dart, QB – Ole Miss (3.71 GPA – Business)
Beau Freyler, DB – Iowa State (3.91 GPA – Kinesiology)
Dillon Gabriel, QB – Oregon (3.43 GPA – Multidisciplinary Studies)
Ashton Gillotte, DL – Louisville (3.69 GPA – Communications)
Brody Grebe, DE – Montana State (3.93 GPA – Mechanical Engineering)
Mark Gronowski, QB – South Dakota State (3.76 GPA – Mechanical Engineering)
Terrance Hollon, LB – Howard (3.90 GPA – Health Science)
Jack Kiser, LB – Notre Dame (3.82 GPA – Business Analytics)
Luke Lehnen, QB – North Central [IL] (3.76 GPA – Exercise Science)
Brayden Long, QB – Slippery Rock [PA] (4.00 GPA – Sports Management)
Jake Majors, C – Texas (3.65 GPA – Business Management)
Seth McLaughlin, C – Ohio State (4.00 GPA – Finance)
Jalen Milroe, QB – Alabama (3.52 GPA – Management)
Jackson Woodard, LB – UNLV (3.77 GPA – Kinesiology)
The 16 finalists will travel to Las Vegas for the 66th Annual National Football Foundation Awards Dinner where the winner will be announced. The winner will also get $25,000 towards his postgraduate academic work.
