SPRINGDALE - If the Burlsworth Trophy hasn't made it into the discussion of college football's top awards, it isn't for a lack of effort.
Monday's banquet honoring the finalists for the trophy was first-class. Inside a packed ballroom at the Springdale Convention Center, the banquet was as quality of a presentation as you'll find for any of the notable postseason position awards.
Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield won the sixth annual award that is presented to college football's best player who began his career as a walk-on. He and finalists Luke Falk of Washington State and Carl Nassib of Penn State were toasted and treated like local celebrities during the two-hour event.
Nassib couldn't attend the banquet because he was at one for the Nagurski Trophy, but he was represented by his mother in Springdale.
In partnership with the Springdale Rotary Club, the Burlsworth Foundation made the annual banquet top-notch from the outset. It retained the successful Fayetteville-based Mitchell Communications Group to help with public relations, lighting and video, and experienced emcee Chuck Barrett to facilitate the program.
Among the speakers Monday were Marty Burlsworth, executive director of the Burlsworth Foundation; Brian Reindl, founder of the Burlsworth Trophy and co-writer of "Greater," a motion picture film about Brandon Burlsworth scheduled to premiere in January; and Houston Nutt, one of Brandon Burlsworth's two head coaches at Arkansas.
The crowd was captivated as Nutt recalled his first meeting with Burlsworth in the spring 1998.
"Brandon said, 'Coach, this is my last season, so I would appreciate it if you didn't call this is a rebuilding year,'" Nutt said. "I went back to my assistant coaches and told them we had a team ready to win now."
After finishing 4-7 in three of the previous four seasons, Arkansas won its first eight games in Burlsworth's senior season and tied for the SEC West championship.
Marty Burlsworth founded the Burlsworth Foundation when his brother died in a car accident in April 1999. The foundation sponsors the Burls Kids program that hosts annual football camps in Harrison and Little Rock, and gives kids an opportunity to attend a Razorbacks or Indianapolis Colts game for the first time.
Its most impactful program, however, is Eyes of a Champion, which through a partnership with Walmart offers free eye exams and glasses to underprivileged children.
The foundation was the dream of Brandon Burlsworth when he made it to the NFL. He died just 11 days after being drafted by the Colts.
Many know the story of Burlsworth, but there were some who left Monday's banquet saying they had a better appreciation for it.
Burlsworth walked-on at Arkansas in 1994. After redshirting his first season, he worked his way into a starter for the Razorbacks and was an all-American offensive lineman in 1998. He is the only Arkansas player to earn his master's degree before playing his final game.
His story is one shared by many college athletes who didn't have the credentials to earn a scholarship from a major program out of high school, but who worked their way into successful college players while paying their own tuition and maintaining high standards expected of a walk-on. Those stories are what inspired Reindl's concept for the annual award.
Such stories were reflected on the stage Monday. Mayfield, who has walked-on at two programs, led Oklahoma to a Big 12 championship and berth in the College Football Playoff; Falk is one of college football's top passers, having thrown for 4,266 yards and 36 touchdowns at Washington State; and Nassib leads college football with 16 sacks and 18 tackles for loss while pre-med at Penn State.
Of the 15 finalists for the award before this year, 10 are in the NFL, including all of the past four winners. That kind of success adds validity to such an award.
It has found its niche in college football's crowded postseason banquet circuit. Six seasons in, its future appears strong.