Lakes graduate Ethan Greenfield awarded NCAA Division III Gagliardi Trophy

North Central College senior running back Ethan Greenfield was named a recipient of the 2022 Gagliardi Trophy, the highest national award for an NCAA Division III student-athlete.

The Gagliardi Trophy, awarded for the first time in 1993, honors outstanding achievements not only in athletics, but also in science and civil service. The annual award, presented by Jostens and the J-Club at Saint John’s University, Minnesota, was announced Friday before the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl Division III national championship game.

Greenfield, a sports management major who graduated from Lakes High School in Lake Villa, is pursuing his master’s degree in sports leadership. He had volunteered with Feed My Starving Children in Aurora, with Special Olympics, and as a Bible School camp counselor during the vacations.

In the spring of 2022, Greenfield completed an internship with the North Central Sports Information Department as the senior statistician for the Cardinals women’s lacrosse team.

Greenfield tops the Cardinal career record books for rushing attempts (894), yards (6,550), touchdowns (86), yards per game (128.6), total points (558), total touchdowns (93), All-purpose yards (7,528) and all-purpose yards per game (142.3). He also has the single-season record books for most rushing yards, touchdowns, and carries; He holds the top three records in each category.

He led the nation in rushing yards in both 2019 and 2021, and he leads the country in rushing yards for the 2022 season with 1,910 yards from the Stagg Bowl.

Greenfield is also a three-time AP first-team All-American, AFCA All-American, and three-time D3football.com All-American.

Greenfield is the second North Central football player to receive the Gagliardi Trophy, joining 2019 Neuqua Valley grad Broc Rutter, NCC’s quarterback. Greenfield is the fifth running back to receive this award and the first since 2012.