IRVING, Texas – Recognized for outstanding achievement on the football field in addition to the classroom, University of Pennsylvania senior quarterback Liam O'Brien was named one of 177 semifinalists—44 from the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (FCS)—for the William V. Campbell Trophy, announced by the National Football Foundation (NFF) and College Football Hall of Fame on Wednesday morning.
 
After taking over as starting quarterback halfway through the 2024 season, O'Brien completed 66 percent (76-115) of his pass attempts for 1,018 yards, 13 touchdowns, and only two interceptions. His signature performance of the year came at Cornell on Nov. 9, recording a single-game program record six passing touchdowns and seven total TDs in a shootout 67-49 victory over the Big Red. That performance earned the signal caller Stats Perform FCS National Offensive Player of the Week honors.
 
One of four co-captains for the 2025 season, O'Brien is a member of several campus and community initiatives including Penn's Student-Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC), the Penn Athletics Wharton Leadership Academy (PAWLA), and the Ivy League Football Council, the leadership group that brought the FCS Playoffs to the conference for the first time ever.
 
O'Brien has also participated in Uplifting Athletes, a non-profit organization that invests in lives of those affected by rare diseases, which sponsors Lift for Life events. He also has been involved in Penn Football's annual Bone Marrow Drive with NMDP.
 
A Finance and Business Analytics double major in Penn's prestigious Wharton School of Business, O'Brien spent the past summer as an Investment Banking Analyst at J.P. Morgan as a part of its Business Services Coverage Group. He received a full-time job offer from the company upon completion.
 
Nominated by their schools, which are limited to one nominee each, candidates for the awards must be a senior who will complete his final year of eligibility in the 2025 season or a graduate student or graduate transfer who has already earned a degree and is participating in the 2025 season; have a GPA of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale; have outstanding football ability as a first team player or significant contributor; and have demonstrated strong leadership and citizenship. The class is selected each year by the NFF Awards Committee, which is comprised of a nationally recognized group of media, NFF College Football Hall of Famers and athletics administrators.
 
The NFF will announce 12-16 finalists on Oct. 22, and each of them will receive an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship as a member of the 2025 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class Presented by Fidelity Investments. The finalists will travel to the Bellagio Resort & Casino in Las Vegas for the 67th NFF Annual Awards Dinner Presented by Las Vegas on Dec. 9, where their accomplishments will be highlighted in front of one of the most powerful audiences in all of sports. Live during the event, one member of the class will be declared as the winner of the 36th Campbell Trophy® and have his postgraduate scholarship increased to $25,000.

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