PITMAN—In celebration of the 70th anniversary of the New Jersey Athletic Conference, the league will undergo an initiative to name the Top 70 student-athletes to ever have competed in the 70-year history of the NJAC.

For a period of 35 consecutive weeks, the conference office will reveal the Top 70 all-time NJAC student-athletes on Tuesdays and Fridays, beginning with the naming of number 70 on September 22, and culminating in the naming of the number one student-athlete on May 25. Announcements will be made via the conference's website and the league's social media outlets each Tuesday and Friday morning throughout the 2026-27 academic year.
 
"When you look back at the incredible number of remarkable student-athletes who have competed at one time or another in our conference, it really is astounding," said NJAC Commissioner Terry Small. "Our committee will be working with an initial pool of close to 300 candidates, and I can tell you that each one of those individuals was a remarkable student-athlete worthy of recognition. Naming the Top 70 is no easy task, and it's certainly not an exact science. But we're looking forward to this year-long initiative in celebration of the tremendously talented student-athletes who have passed through our conference during its 70-year history."
 
Each member institution was asked to submit a list of potential top student-athletes who competed at their institution from 1957 to 2027, or more specifically, during the years in which their institution held membership in the NJAC. The selections and final rankings will be determined by an expert panel comprised of current league administrators, current league sports information personnel, former league administrators, former league sports information personnel, media, and conference office staff.
 
"This will be a tremendous undertaking, but we're very thankful to our member institutions, especially our athletic communications staffs, who have devoted time and effort to this endeavor," Small said. "We know that there will be great debate regardless of how the final rankings play out, but I also think this initiative is certainly going to shed some light on just how many truly remarkable student-athletes have competed in the NJAC throughout its storied history."