NFF Columbus Chapter website
COLUMBUS - Otterbein senior defensive lineman
Justin Bartlett was recognized with a special honor by the Columbus Chapter of the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame on Monday during its 64th annual Scholar-Athlete Awards Banquet at the Ohio Union on the campus of The Ohio State University.
Bartlett received a plaque as a 2024-25 John McConnell and Worthington Industries Foundation Scholar-Athlete Award honoree and joined collegiate scholar-athletes from Ohio State, Ohio Wesleyan, Capital, Denison, Ohio Dominican and Kenyon in being recognized. The award recognizes a scholastic player voted outstanding in football performance, academic achievement and school leadership.
Bartlett had a standout senior season at Otterbein in 2024, earning All-Ohio Athletic Conference Second Team honors after starting all 10 games and posting 73 total tackles (31 solo, 42 assisted), 9.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks and one forced fumble. He led the Cardinals in tackles for loss and ranked second in total tackles and sacks. He ranked sixth in the OAC in tackles for game (7.3), ninth in total tackles and tied for 13th in tackles for loss.
An exercise and health promotion major, Bartlett also succeeded in the classroom, producing a 3.74 cumulative GPA en route to earning College Sports Communicators Academic All-District and Academic All-OAC recognition. He was also named the OAC Scholar-Athlete of the Month for September.
An All-OAC Honorable Mention pick in 2022 and 2023 and a D3football.com All-Region selection in 2023, Bartlett holds career totals of 247 tackles (100 solo, 147 assisted), 43 tackles for loss, 13.5 sacks and three forced fumbles in 38 games. His 19.5 tackles for loss as a junior in 2023 rank third all-time at Otterbein for a single season, and he ranks third on the all-time career list for tackles for loss. He closed out the 2024 season just three sacks shy of fifth on the all-time career list in that category.
Also during Monday's banquet, the NFF Columbus Chapter also awarded scholarships to 14 high school scholar-athletes to further their educations and presented the Ohio Gold Award to Ohio State assistant coach and former player Brian Hartline. The Ohio Gold Award is the most prestigious honor that the chapter presents annually to a former player, coach, administrator or person who has had a positive impact on amateur football in Central Ohio.
The Larry Larson High School Coaches Award was presented to former high school football coaches Bob Starr (posthumously) and Bill Conley, while former Columbus Dispatch football writer Todd Jones was honored with the award for sports media excellence.
Former Ohio State football player Jacoby Boren was present for the "Where are They Now?" segment. Boren was a 2015 NFF Scholarship winner, presented annually to the top 15 seniors in college football based upon combined excellence in athletics and academics.
The Tyson Gentry Courage Award was presented to former Ohio State special teams standout Nate Ebner, who went on to play for the NFL's New England Patriots and New York Giants and was a Rugby 7s Olympian for Team USA. The award was established in 2009 and is presented annually to a player, coach, staff member or fan whose actions best demonstrate the qualities of courageous leadership shown by Tyson Gentry.
The National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame is a member-supported, non-profit organization dedicated to ensuring the future of amateur football at local, state and national levels. The Foundation, with its chapters, annually awards nearly $1 million in scholarships to over 3,000 high school and college student-athletes for continuing education.
