HEYFARL (Hundred Each Year for a Rising Letterman) has been scoring big for the William & Mary football, one small gift at a time.
The brainchild of former Tribe standout Tom Mikula '48, the initiative has expanded from just a good idea in the early 1990's to being able to provide as many as four fully endowed scholarships a season to W&M football players who originally joined the program as walk-ons.
Mikula partnered with two fellow football players, and the founders of the William & Mary Football Club, in Steve McNamee '81 and Duane Ragsdale '81 to bring his vision to reality.
Former players, alumni, family and friends make an annual gift back to HEYFARL with their support changing the trajectory of dozens of players' lives, and their families, by providing crucial financial support.
There are many ways to be involved, and many levels of support are available, however the majority of contributions come $100 at a time as the fund's name suggests. This relatively small sum has made a large impact in the W&M football program, as former walk-ons have made profound contributions to Tribe's success over the years.
In athletics, players develop at various rates and react to competitive situations in different ways. For those reasons, the coaching staff uniquely understands the impact walk-on players, athletes not presented athletic scholarships directly out of high school, can make on the program.
W&M has been fortunate to attract many top-quality players as walk-ons, who have gone on to earn scholarships and leave their mark on the program.
Many of these players have turned down other scholarship offers in favor of walking onto the Tribe with the hopes of earning a scholarship. HEYFARL helps makes these dreams a reality!
Simply stated, without this variety of support and quality walk-on players, the Tribe could not continue to perform at such a high level on the national scene. Notable players who came to W&M as walk-ons include all-conference safety
Sean McDermott (Buffalo Bills Head Coach),
2010 NFL Draft pick Adrian Tracy (New York Giants)
, 2004 Walter Payton Award-winning quarterback Lang Campbell, and 1995
Yankee Conference Defensive Player of the Year Jason Miller. Largely due to their unselfish approach to the game and their consummate team play, a number of former walk-ons have gone on to serve as team captains at W&M, including Mike McGowan and Stefon Moody in 1996, McDermott in 1997, Marc Matthie in 2001, both Campbell and Wade Harrell in 2004, Pat Mulloy in 2005, Adrian Tracy in 2009, Ben Cottingham in 2010, Jabrel Mines in 2012,
Bo Revell in 2014 and Matt Ahola in 2018.
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE TRIBE FOOTBALL WALK-ON HALL OF FAME
We thank all of our lifetime members listed below for their dedication to Tribe football and the HEYFARL initiative. Because of their dedication, $100 at a time, the future continues to remain bright for not only walk-on student-athletes, but for the W&M football program as a whole.
