October 23, 2025

Charlotte Touchdown Club Announces Recipient of the “Defender of the Nation” Award

Charlotte, N.C. (October 23, 2025) – The Charlotte Touchdown Club announced today VMI’s safety, Kouri Crump, as recipient of its 2025 Defender of the Nation Award sponsored by Capital Group of Companies.

The Defender of the Nation Award honors exceptional student-athletes from our nation’s military academies and leading ROTC programs, recognizing their dedication and achievements, according to John Rocco, Executive Director of the Charlotte Touchdown Club. This year, VMI’s Kouri Crump has been selected as the recipient of this prestigious award. We look forward to celebrating Kouri’s accomplishments on December 8th at the Bronko Nagurski Awards Banquet, presented by Coca-Cola Consolidated.”

The recipient of The Defender of the Nation Award is selected from one of the nation’s nine service academies and senior military institutions as well from top collegiate ROTC programs including Air Force Academy, Appalachian State, Auburn University, The Citadel, Coast Guard Academy, Michigan State, University of Mississippi, Naval Academy, Norwich University, University of South Carolina, Texas A&M University, Villanova University, Virginia Tech, VMI, and West Point and is based on exceptional leadership qualities on the field, in the classroom and in the community. The recipient must also exhibit a high standard of integrity by leading through example.

Rick Hughes, President of Capital Group of Companies commented, “On behalf of the Capital Group of Companies, I am honored to announce that Kouri Crump of the Virginia Military Institute has been selected as the 2025 recipient of the Defender of the Nation Award. Kouri becomes our ninth distinguished honoree, joining an exclusive group of exceptional leaders who excel in three critical areas: athletic achievement, academic excellence, and military service. His outstanding performance on the football field, dedication in the classroom, and unwavering commitment to serving our nation make him a worthy successor to this prestigious tradition. Congratulations, Kouri—we are proud to support you and celebrate your remarkable accomplishments.”

In conjunction with the Football Writers Association of America, the 2025 Bronko Nagurski Awards Banquet presented by Coca-Cola Consolidated will be held on Monday, December 8th at the Charlotte Convention Center. In addition to honoring the Defender of the Nation Award winner, U iversity of California-Berkeley’s Ron Rivera from the Class of 1983 will be honored as the 2025 Legends Award recipient and Oklahoma Sooners legendary linebacker, Brian Bosworth, is slated as the keynote speaker. CBS Sports Studio Host, Adam Zucker, is confirmed as Master of Ceremonies!

“Really excited about this recognition from one of our best all-around cadet-athletes here at the Virginia Military Institute, said VMI Head Coach Danny Rocco. Kouri (Crump) has had a phenomenal career here. Since my arrival he’s been a leader in the program, he’s been a leader within his class. Really well respected by his classmates, teammates and coaches. He’ll do anything we ask – he loves competing in special teams. We’ve moved him to a number of positions defensively and he has excelled. He’s a game-changer and a guy that we have relied on week in and week out. Beyond all of that he’s just a really quality young man. Great character, great work ethic. He lives out our core values and that’s important for the culture of our team. Really proud of Kouri and appreciative of this recognition he’s receiving.”

About Capital Group of Companies
Rick Hughes has a successful 46-year track record in the automotive finance and insurance industry. Rick worked with publicly held NY Stock Exchange companies, setting up their F&I Programs. Rick worked with Sonic Automotive on setting up their F&I Program, with NCADA to form and market their NC Life program and industry-leading programs to increase dealer revenue. Prior to starting Capital Automotive, Rick was the Director of Business Development for one of the world’s largest automotive finance product and service companies. Rick coordinated various international field forces, presented at BSF and CEO Ninety, and personally developed hundreds of successful dealership personnel. As CEO of the Capital Companies, he created Flex-Pro, a patented program which allows an additional income stream coupled with products, insurance, and reinsurance administrative services. The Capital Companies refers to four unique companies: Capital Benefits Group—Structures custom benefit options based on your business needs, Capital Automotive—Gives dealerships the edge they need to meet and exceed their goals, Capital Processing Systems—Provides state-of-the-art products, administration, insurance and reinsurance services to complement dealership and shareholder financial goals, and Data Dot Dealer Services—Least expensive, most effective anti-theft deterrent ever created. We are a group of companies that work together to help dealers capitalize on their investments. We keep our clients in the game and moving toward the goal line through our consumer and client-centric products and administrative services.

About Veterans Bridge Home
Veterans Bridge Home connects Veterans and their families, in any state of transition, to the community. Through our network of partners, we help Veterans navigate employment, create social connections, and settle their families. We look at the whole Veteran and connect them to the resources needed to be successful and thriving leaders in our community. Veterans Bridge Home serves as an entry point for Veterans who don’t know where to turn to access support and services. Because Veterans return home to a civilian community and not to federal agencies or bureaucracies, each community must reach out and actively assist in the reintegration process alongside federal agencies such as the Veterans Administration. The Carolinas have the opportunity and privilege to help bring our nation’s warriors and their families home with the same energy and commitment that our Veterans have displayed in serving our nation. In so doing, ours will serve as a leader to inform other communities that wish to create more welcoming and livable communities for returning Veterans and their families.

The Charlotte Touchdown Club is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization founded in 1990 for the purpose of promoting youth, high school, collegiate, and professional football in the Charlotte, North Carolina region. Since its inception, the club has grown as well as diversified boasting a sponsor team of more than (70) companies. The Club’s activities and services focus community attention on the outstanding Citizenship, Scholarship, Sportsmanship, and Leadership of area athletes and coaches. Through individual and corporate support, more than $3,000,000 has been raised and donated to benefit the Charlotte Touchdown Club scholarship efforts.

The Bronko Nagurski Trophy is presented annually by the Charlotte Touchdown Club in conjunction with the Football Writers Association of America to the nation’s most outstanding NCAA Division I defensive football player.

For more information, contact John Rocco at 704-347-2918 or email jrocco@touchdownclub.com. The official website of the Charlotte Touchdown Club is www.touchdownclub.com.