2025 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team® Nominees
A key contributor to the Hillsdale College football team's offensive success on the field is under consideration for recognition for his work off the gridiron.
Senior wide receiver Connor Pratt was among a record-setting 197 nominees for the 2025 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team®, announced by the American Football Coaches Association on Tuesday morning. Now in its 34th year of being awarded, the Good Works Team recognizes college football student-athletes and head coaches from all levels of the sport for their commitment to community service and leadership beyond the gridiron.
"When nearly 200 young athletes choose to serve, it creates a ripple effect far beyond the game," said Danny Wuerffel, former NFL quarterback, Heisman Trophy winner, College Football Hall of Famer and supporter of the Good Works Team. "Their leadership in the community is just as worthy of recognition as their performance on the field."
A starting wide receiver for the Hillsdale College football team and an excellent student in the classroom with multiple Academic All-Conference honors, Pratt has still found time to make a significant impact off the field through volunteering, community service and mentorship. A certified nursing assistant who's worked nearly 200 clinical hours at Vancrest Health Care Center in his hometown of Van Wert, Ohio in the summers, Pratt also has lended his expertise to Hillsdale Hospital as an Emergency and Surgery Department Volunteer during the school year.
Pratt is a member of Hillsdale College's Student Athlete Advisory committee, assisting with the SAAC's annual Trunk-or-Treat fundraiser for Make-A-Wish. He's also active in all of the Hillsdale College football team's community service endeavors, including serving as program lead for the Chargers' annual Be The Match bone marrow registry drive, serving as a host for Hillsdale's annual Victory Day event for community members with special needs, volunteering with the Chargers' Guys With Ties mentorship program helping teach self-confidence and respect to local fourth graders, and the program's annual pick-up of wreaths on the gravestones of veterans in local cemeteries.
During his sophomore season, Pratt also grew out his hair for several months in order to help make a wig for a child experiencing hair loss because of cancer treatments, and documented the process on social media to help raise awareness in the fight against pediatric cancer.
On the field, Pratt has become an important part of Hillsdale's passing offense, finishing second on the team in touchdown receptions and third in total receptions and yardage in 2024 as a junior, and helping the Chargers to a winning season. He returns for his final campaign with Hillsdale in 2025 looking to have his best season yet and help the Chargers contend for a Great Midwest Athletic Conference title.
From the 197 nominees, a team of 23 will be selected and announced in September, including 11 players from NCAA FBS schools, 11 players from FCS, DII, DIII and NAIA schools, and an honorary head coach. A voting panel of former Good Works Team members, head coaches and journalists select the team roster based on outstanding leadership on and off the field.