Northwest Wayne News

Eight members of Wayne State University's 2024 football team have been inducted into the National Football Foundation Hampshire Honor Society. Wayne State is among 23 colleges and universities that have had at least one player recognized in each of the program's 19 years of existence. The institution ranked second in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) with these honorees, trailing only Grand Valley State, which had nine, and ahead of Ferris State and Roosevelt.

In Michigan, Hope College led with 14 inductees, followed by Eastern Michigan and Western Michigan with 12 each.

The Wayne State inductees are:

- Aaron Mass, Defensive End, 3.52 GPA, Accounting

- John Rayba, Tight End, 3.82 GPA, Finance

- Owen Salingue, Offensive Lineman, 3.40 GPA, Finance

- Tyler Schompert, Offensive Lineman, 3.75 GPA, Construction Management

- D'Marco Singleton, Running Back, 3.22 GPA, Sport Management

- Aidan Tweedy, Offensive Lineman, 3.88 GPA, Finance

- Brayden Vredeveld, Defensive Back, 3.53 GPA in Marketing, 3.55 MBA

- Charles Wesley, Offensive Lineman, 3.53 GPA, Exercise & Sport Science

The NFF announced a record number of members for 2025 with 2,532 players from 339 schools, representing a new high in the program's history. Since its inception, 20,946 student-athletes have been honored. The 2025 membership includes representatives from six divisions, covering nearly every state and the District of Columbia.

"In today's era of NIL and the transfer portal, we firmly believe that education remains the key to long-term success," said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. "These results reaffirm that academics are still top of mind for today's student-athletes. We salute the schools, coaches, and administrators who continue to champion education as a core part of the student-athlete experience. We'll keep doing everything we can to promote those academic ideals and ensure education stays central to the holistic development of every student-athlete."

The NFF Hampshire Honor Society leverages the National Scholar-Athlete program by significantly enlarging the pool of recognized scholar-athletes. It aims to encourage academic excellence among student-athletes across the nation's colleges and universities with football programs.

Jon F. Hanson, chairman emeritus of the NFF and founder of The Hampshire Companies, provided the founding funds for the NFF Hampshire Honor Society in 2007. "When we launched the NFF Hampshire Honor Society in 2007, our goal was to shine a brighter light on the thousands of college football players achieving greatness in the classroom," Hanson said. "To now see more than 20,000 honorees and a record-setting class in 2025 is incredibly rewarding. These young men represent the next generation of leaders, and I'm proud that the Society continues to celebrate their success both on and off the field."

"This year's record-setting class reminds us just how many outstanding young men are using college football as a platform to launch successful futures," said NFF Chairman Archie Manning. "The Hampshire Honor Society continues to celebrate those who lead by example—excelling academically, athletically and as people of character. We're proud to honor them and deeply grateful to Jon Hanson for making this inspiring tradition possible."