NEWBERRY — Quarterback Reed Charpia is one of 36 players nominated for the prestigious Harlon Hill Trophy annually awarded to the top player in NCAA Division 2.
Charpia is the South Atlantic Conference Offensive Player of the Year after leading the Wolves to the 2025 conference title after being picked to finish seventh in the preseason poll.
Charpia has thrown for 2,970 yards with 26 touchdowns and just two interceptions this season while completing 70.4% of his passes.
His 2,970 passing yards rank second in Newberry single season history, just 117 yards behind record holder and recently inducted Newberry College Hall of Famer Raleigh Yeldell who compiled 3,087 yards in 2016.
His 252 completions rank second to Yeldell’s 260 in 2016, his 26 touchdown passes rank third behind Yeldell’s 27 in 2016 and Josh Stepp’s 28 in 2006.
Charpia’s six touchdown passes against Wingate are tied for the second most in school history and his 413 yards passing in that same game are the sixth most.
In his two seasons with the Wolves, last year he played in only six games due to injury, he has 3,947 yards passing with 29 touchdowns. He is looking to become just the seventh player in Newberry history to amass 4,000 yards passing. His 29 touchdown passes rank eighth.
In the Wolves SAC championship clinching game against Carson-Newman, Charpia was 21 of 29 passing for 267 yards, 3 touchdowns, no interceptions with 31 yards rushing and caught one pass for 15 yards.
Charpia has been a driving force for the Wolves improving their offensive production from averaging just 18.9 points, 115.8 yards passing and 288 yards per game over the last two seasons to 32.6 points, 274.2 yards passing and 385.2 total yards per game this season.
Newberry is 6-0 in one score games this year in no small part thanks to Charpia’s heroics.
A total of eight nominees hail from Super Region 1, eight from Super Region 2, eight from Super Region 3 and 12 from Super Region 4.
A total of 17 nominees played on teams that qualified for the DII playoffs and 10 advanced to the second round.
The sports information directors at the 159 NCAA Division II football-playing institutions nominate and vote on the award. The 36 initial candidates will be placed on regional ballots and the top two players from each of the four NCAA regions will advance to the national ballot when regional voting concludes on Monday, December 1.
The sports information directors at their respective schools initially nominate candidates. The SIDs in those Super Regions vote for their top five candidates. The winner is then determined in a nationwide vote of the Division II sports information directors.
The group of 36 candidates includes 16 quarterbacks, 10 running backs, three wide receivers, three linebackers, a defensive linemen, a safety, a tight end and a punter/kicker.
The list features 20 seniors, 11 juniors and two sophomores and three freshmen.
The winner of the 2025 award will be announced on Friday, December 19.
The Hill Trophy is named for the late Harlon Hill – the former University of North Alabama standout – who excelled with the Lions from 1950-53 before going on to fame in the National Football League with the Chicago Bears.
Previous Newberry College nominees for the Harlon Hill include Mario Anderson (2022), Raleigh Yeldell (2016), Josh Stepp (2006) and Vic Gilmore (1998). Anderson and Yeldell were finalists.