COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. - The finalists for the 2023 Gagliardi Trophy, recognizing the most outstanding football player in NCAA Division III, were announced Thursday and Gustavus senior wide receiver Jake Breitbach is one of five finalists.

Cut down from a semifinal list of 20 outstanding football players, which was announced two weeks ago, Breitbach joins linebacker Owen Grover (Sr., Wartburg), and quarterbacks Tucker Horn (Sr., Trinity), Luke Lehnen (Jr., North Central), and Braxton Plunk (Sr., Mount Union) on the final ballot. Breitbach is the first Gustie in program history to be named a semifinalist or finalist for the Gagliari Trophy, which has been awarded annually since 1993. 

The Gagliardi Trophy winner will be revealed on D3football.com during the week of the NCAA Division III football national championship on the evening of Friday, Dec. 15. 

Breitbach, who was recently named D3football.com First Team All-Region, MIAC Offensive Player of the Year, and a three-time All-Conference selection, led the Gustavus offense this season as the team's leading receiver, posting record numbers in his senior year. He finished the regular season with 1,599 receiving yards, 110 receptions, and 13 receiving touchdowns. Breitbach posted four games with 200 yards or more and eight with more than 100 yards, and finished the season second in all NCAA Divisions (FBS, FCS, DII, DIII) for receiving yards per game (159.9), receptions per game (11.0), and total receiving yards (1,599). Breitbach's 11.0 receptions per game are tied for 12th in the all-time NCAA Division III single season record book, his 110 receptions are tied for 15th, and his 1,599 receiving yards are 22nd. In the ninth game of the season, Breitbach broke two program records, passing a 16-year old record for single season receptions with 104, and an eight-year old record for single season receiving yards (1,518). Breitbach also shares the program record for receiving touchdowns in a single game (4) which he collected in the first game of the season.  He earned conference athlete of the week honors twice this season and national team of the week honors once. 

Breitbach extends his excellence beyond the football field, as he is an exemplary student-athlete in the classroom. Breitbach, a computer science and economics analysis double-major, has maintained a cumulative GPA of 3.778. Breitbach has been named to the MIAC Academic All-Conference team in the last two seasons, and is eligible for the honor once more this season. In order to qualify for Academic All-MIAC status, student-athletes must be sophomores, juniors, or seniors by academic standards with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale. Breitbach was also named to the CSC (formerly CoSIDA) Academic All-District team last season and will receive the award again this season. He will also be a top name on the CSC Academic All-America ballot.
 
Breitbach is connected to the community in a variety of ways. The senior serves as a team captain for the football program, embodying the team's core values of growth, effort, and trust. Breitbach serves as a mentor to one of the team's freshmen players, guiding the individual through their first year of collegiate athletics on and off the field. Breitbach mentors local elementary students in Saint Peter as a part of the "Read and Recess" program at South Elementary. Breitbach reads to elementary students and spends time with them throughout and after the football season. Finally, Breitbach serves as a peer tutor in the economics department, helping educate fellow students in the subject area.

A record number of nominations were submitted by colleges across the country, and the semifinalists were selected by the J-Club Board of Directors. The Gagliardi Trophy national selection committee is comprised of 18 Division III coaches (three from each NCAA region), six Division III administrators (one from each region), 12 regional notable voters (two from each region), and six national voters with Division III backgrounds. No J-Club members vote as part of the national selection committee.