Three Football Players Named to NFF Hampshire Honor Society

HANOVER, N.H. — The National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame (NFF) announced the members of the 2015 NFF Hampshire Honor Society today, and Dartmouth had three of its student-athletes selected for inclusion — safety Stephen Dazzo, place kicker Riley Lyons and offensive lineman Ben Spiritos.

The honor society is comprised of college football players from all divisions of play who each maintained a cumulative 3.2 GPA or better throughout their college career. A total of 817 players from 278 schools qualified for membership in the society's ninth year, setting a new record for the number of schools represented in the history of the program, which began in 2007. The student-athletes also must have been a starter or a significant substitute in their last year of eligibility and meet all NCAA-mandated progress towards degree requirements and graduation.

Dazzo (Arlington Heights, Illinois) was one of the Big Green's two co-captains for the 2014 campaign, helping lead the team to an 8-2 overall record and a second-place finish in the Ivy League standings with a 6-1 mark. The free safety earned second-team All-Ivy honors for the second straight season as he recorded 36 tackles, an interception and two pass breakups while starting nine of the 10 contests. Dazzo finished his career with 119 tackles, four for a loss, with 13 pass breakups, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries (one which he returned for a touchdown) and five interceptions. The economics major with a 3.29 GPA was also awarded the team's John M. Manley '40 Award after this season for demonstrating the most improvement through his effort in the weight room.

A biology major with a 3.79 GPA, Lyons (Roswell, Georgia) played in 38 of the 40 games during his career, serving as the place kicker, punter and kickoff specialist at various times, and sometimes all three. He kicked off nearly 200 times in his four years, averaging over 60 yards per kick and 45 touchbacks. As the place kicker, Lyons contributed 85 points, booting nine field goals and converting 58-59 PATs. During his sophomore season, he was also the Big Green punter, averaging 35.4 yards per punt while placing 11 inside the 20-yard line. Dartmouth football's Hewitt Award winner as the player who best epitomizes athletic performance with academic achievement enjoyed getting in on the action after kicking as well, making 11 tackles in his career.

Spiritos (Olney, Maryland), an economics major with a 3.36 GPA, was a key component on the offensive line for the Big Green in 2014. The senior played in each of the first nine games, starting eight times, before an injury kept him out of the season finale, yet he was able to help Dartmouth quarterback Dalyn Williams become the sixth quarterback in Dartmouth history to throw for 2,000 yards and the second with 20 or more touchdown tosses. He also assisted in the Big Green posting their second best average per rush (4.47) over the last 23 seasons as Dartmouth scored 31.3 points per game, the highest for the team in 22 years and third-highest in the last 84 seasons.

The Hampshire Honor Society represents a powerful component in the organization's rich history as an innovator in promoting the scholar-athlete ideal. Launched in 1959 with a donation from Hall of Fame coach (and Dartmouth head coach from 1934-40) Earl “Red” Blaik, the NFF's National Scholar-Athlete Awards, presented by Fidelity Investments, became the first initiative in history to grant postgraduate scholarships based on a player's combined academic success, football performance and community leadership. And, since its inception, the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards program has awarded $10.7 million to 804 top scholars and community leaders.

Dartmouth concludes its spring practice with the annual Green and White game on Saturday, May 2 on Memorial Field at 10 a.m.

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