Mylee Hansen is pictured on the sidelines of this year's Turkey Bowl, which was played November 15 at Monmouth's April Zorn Memorial Stadium
MONMOUTH, ILLINOIS (December 12, 2025) — Lost in the shuffle of everything happening at this year's Turkey Bowl — a Senior Day celebration, a 69-0 victory lap as the Fighting Scots got in one last game in front of their home fans before the NCAA playoffs — one of Monmouth College's players earned a very special award.
Sophomore kicker Mylee Hansen of Pekin, Illinois, received the Midwest Conference's Elite 20 Award, presented to the student-athlete with the highest GPA at the culminating MWC competition of their respective sport. The award was inspired by the NCAA's Elite 90 honor, which is presented to a student-athlete at each of the organization's 90 national championship competitions.
"I was a little clueless," said Hansen, who received the honor at halftime of the Monmouth-Knox game.
"Coach [Roger] Haynes came up to me before and asked me if my parents were at the game. I thought, 'Oh, no. What did I do?' But I knew something was up. And then Coach [Chad] Braun called me over during halftime, and President [Patricia] Draves handed me the award."
Having the highest GPA on the team was by no means a done deal.
"We have a lot of kids on the team who really try hard in the classroom, and a lot who are in really difficult majors," said Hansen.
Added to that, she said, is the emphasis the coaching staff places on academics.
"Personally, my focus is, I'm here to learn," she said. "Football is just an add-on. I'm grateful to do that, but my focus is on learning. And the coaches are big on that, too. Coach Braun texts every player and congratulates them on doing well, whether they're a 4.0 student or a 2.5 We have a great support system within the coaching staff."
A star in the classroom
It's still early in her academic career, but so far, Hansen is racking up the A's. The lone exception was a B+ in Spanish her first semester at Monmouth but, as she pointed out, she raised that to an A in her spring semester Spanish class.
Technically, that was her hardest class, but others she worked especially hard at to make the grade were "International Relations" and "Foreign Policy."
"I put a lot of effort into those two finals," she said. "I'm big on memorization — that's how I function academically."
Her favorite class to date has been one on women studies.
Hansen receives the Midwest Conference's Elite 20 award for football from Monmouth President Patricia Draves
"It was so informational and the class was such a comfortable and welcoming environment," said Hansen, who is minoring in the subject. "I learned a lot about how my classmates and others have experienced life through a women's perspective. It can be very upsetting, but inspiring, too."
Hansen also plans to minor in business, but her major course of studies is political science, the common path for students on a pre-law track.
"I haven't decided where I want to go yet for law school," she said. "But I've known I wanted to do it since high school. I had a chance to intern at the police station, and that got me in touch with lawyers and judges and people like that. It put me in a position to learn more."
Right now, the sky's the limit for Hansen's choice of school, as she's not taking Harvard off the table.
"What kind of law is up for debate, too," she said. "At first, I was interested in child law. But now, with my background in sports, I'm thinking about that, too," perhaps with a goal of becoming an agent, something her father has suggested, as well.
"My professors are playing a big part in it," she said. "They're very helpful. They really want to see you succeed and do something good. That's something I really appreciate about Monmouth."
A star on the field, too
Hansen is not Monmouth's regular kicker, but she's made headlines for her performance, nonetheless. Last year, she became the first female to score a point for the Scots. This season, she earned a spot on the national D3 Team of the Week by booting two field goals and three extra points in Monmouth's first win.
The Scots kept on winning, reeling off nine straight Midwest Conference victories and earning their first NCAA playoff berth since 2019.
"People were tired of coming up one game short," said Hansen of Monmouth's four consecutive runner-up finishes. "This group just wanted to win. Not that the other groups didn't, but this group definitely had that fight to them."
Although she entered the year with plenty of kicking experience, the pair of three-pointers were her first-ever field goals in high school or college varsity competition.
"The furthest one I've ever made is a fifty-yarder in practice," she said. "My sweet spot is 25 to 35 yards."
Asked if she'll back to kick for the second half of her college career, Hansen replied simply, "Oh, yeah."
And the Scot with the elite leg might earn another elite academic award from the MWC before all is said and done.
