MADISON, Wis. -- An Edgewood College student is hoping that an old football can help students stay in school.

As a college freshman facing financial hardship, Katie Kohal couldn't afford to come back to class.

She said she was fortunate enough to receive some help from Edgewood College, but she said that sometimes others aren't so lucky.

"(They say), 'Hey, I can't afford this. This happened to my family.' And every day we're only able to help them so much because of limited funding here as well," said Kohal.

Now, the senior business major is setting up the "Student Emergency Fund" at Edgewood College.

"Doing an auction would be something because I didn't have the money to give," said Kohal.

At the center of the auction is a football signed by Vince Lombardi and the Packers in 1963, which was donated by her father.

In all, she said she hopes to bring in $10,000 to help students.

"We're going to set it aside and if someone does come to us with a need, we're hoping that we'll be able to help them out partially, if not fully, with this," said Kohal.

She hopes to help students who might not be able to cover tuition because of an extreme unforeseen circumstance such as fire or a death in the family.

"The other way the auction money will be raised for is as a bridge loan. So students who don't necessarily have the money right away, like I didn't, can give it back to the college when they have it later on," said Kohal.

Friends and classmates said this is exactly what they expect from Kohal.

"It's great to see that happening, especially in today's world. You don't see too many people helping out, so it's a good thing to see, especially here on campus," said Mitch Mogensen, Kohal's boyfriend, who also attends Edgewood College.

She said helping other students is the least she can do.

"I realized I really wanted to do more for Edgewood," said Kohal.

The auction will be held during Edgewood's family weekend, Oct. 24, and the fund itself will be run by the college.

Kohal said she hopes that each year another student will take on the project and raise more for the fund.

Kohal said the football is certainly something special, but her father is ready to part with it. Her father said he'd love to give $1 million but doesn’t have it.

But he does have the football, and he said because it's for a great cause, giving it up was an easy decision.