Cody Davis Named to National Scholar-Athlete Class
By: Blayne Beal- Texas Tech University
Updated: October 24, 2012
LUBBOCK, Texas -
Senior safety Cody Davis has been named one of 15 recipients of the
2012 National Football Foundation National Scholar-Athlete Awards. The
honorees also
comprise the list of finalists for the 2012 William V. Campbell Trophy,
endowed by HealthSouth, which recognizes an individual as the absolute
best scholar athlete in the nation.
Davis will join Gabe Rivera (2012 NFF Hall of Fame Inductee) at this year's 55th Annual National Football Foundation Awards Dinner at the Waldorf=Astoria
Hotel in New York City on Dec. 4. Davis and the 14th
other semifinalists will receive an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship,
and one member of the class will also be announced live at theevent as
the 23rd recipient of the William
V. Campbell Trophy, which recognizes an individual as the absolute best
scholar-athlete in the nation.
"This
is a great honor for Cody and for his family and I couldn't be more
thrilled for him," said Texas Tech Head Coach Tommy Tuberville. "Cody
is model student-athlete and
a tremendous young man that has his priorities in order and big goals
for hisfuture. On the football field, he is a leader on our defense and
is having a great senior season. Texas Tech will be represented very
well in New York City with Cody and Gabe Rivera
and it will be a great night to honor two outstanding Red Raiders."
Davis
graduated with a degree in Management Information Systems and compiled
an undergraduate grade point average of 3.7. He is currently pursuing a
master's degree in Management
Information Systems and has a perfect 4.0 GPA.
On
the football field, Davis leads the Texas Tech defense with 56 tackles
and three interceptions. His strong play has been a major factor in the
Tech defense earning a No.
7 national ranking.
2012 NFF Scholar-Athlete Class
Matt Barkely, QB, USC
Rex Burkhead, RB, Nebraska
Cody Davis, S, Texas Tech
Nick Driskill, S, Mount Union (Ohio)
Nick Florence, QB, Baylor
Nabal Jefferson, DT, Northern Illinois
Barrett Jones, C, Alabama
Aaron Mullane, OL, West Texas A&M
Ryan Nassib, QB, Syracuse
Nolan Nearhoof, DE, Robert Morris
Ethan Peterson, OL, MIT
Sean Renfree, QB, Duke
Manti Te'o, LB, Notre Dame
Patrick Ward, OT, Northwestern
Shane Zackery, WR, Saint Xavier (Ill.)
"This
year's class contains some of the finest student-athletes to ever
compete in college athletics in any sport," said NFF President & CEO
Steven J. Hatchell. "They have an
average GPA of 3.67, which showcases their commitment to excellence in
the classroom as well as on the field. Without exception, they embody
what it takes to be great leaders. We are proud to hold them out as
examples for future generations to emulate."
Previous Texas Tech NFF National Scholar Recipients
Kliff Kingsbury, QB, 2002
Graham Harrell, QB, 2008
The
NFF's National Scholar-Athlete program, launched in 1959, is the first
initiative in history to award scholar-athletes postgraduate
scholarships for their combined athletic,
academic and leadership abilities. This year's class members finds
themselves in good company, as past National Scholar-Athletes include
former NFL standoutDerrick Brooks (Florida State); actor Mark Harmon
(UCLA); NASA astronaut
Leland Melvin (Richmond); former Dateline NBC anchor Stone Phillips (Yale); chairman of Augusta
National
Golf Club, home of the Masters Tournament, Billy Payne (Georgia); famed
NFLquarterback Steve Young (BYU); and Heisman Trophy winners Terry
Baker (Oregon State), Gary
Beban (UCLA),
Doug Flutie (Boston College) and Tim Tebow (Florida).
"The
2012 National Scholar-Athlete Class represents all that is right about
college football," said NFF Chairman Archie Manning, whose sons Peyton
(Campbell winner) and Eli were
NFF National Scholar-Athletes in 1997 and 2003, respectively. "They have
displayed the same competitive fire to win in the classroom that has
distinguished them as some of the best football players in the country.
In addition, each has found time to give back
with an impressive list of leadership roles in their respective
communities. Ensuring that they continue their education with an $18,000
postgraduate scholarship is a privilege, and we know that they have
only begun to reach their potential."
Named in honor of Bill Campbell (the chairman of Intuit, a former player and headcoach at Columbia
University,
and the 2004 recipient of the NFF's Gold Medal), the award comes with a
25-pound bronze trophy and a $7,000 increase in postgraduate funds for a
total scholarship
of $25,000. A total distribution of $300,000 in scholarships will be
awarded that evening, pushing the program's all-time distributions to
more than $10.1 million.
In
2011, the NFF and Fidelity Investments launched a multi-year initiative
between the two organizations to celebrate the scholar-athlete ideal
and a joint commitment to higher
education. As part of the initiative, Fidelity became the first
presenting sponsor ever in the 54-year history of the NFF National
Scholar-Athlete Awards program. Fidelity also helped launch the NFF
FacultySalutes Initiative, which recognizes the contributions
of the faculty athletics representatives at each of the institutions
with an NFF National Scholar-Athlete. As part of the initiative, the NFF
will present each of the faculty representatives with a plaque and a
$5,000 check from Fidelity Investments to support
the academic support services for student-athletes at each school.
2012 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class Highlights
3.67 Average GPA
13-of-15 Team Captains
13-of-15 Academic All-Conference Athletes (with one player attending an independent school)
10-of-15 All-Conference Athletes (with one player attending an independent school)
8 Academic All-America Selections
(Burkhead, Driskill, Jones, Nearhoof, Peterson, Te'o, Ward, Zackery)
7 All-America Picks (Barkley, Burkhead, Davis, Driskill, Jones, Te'o, Zackery)
3 National Award Winners (Barkley - CollegeFootballNews.com Offensive
Player of the Year; Driskill - D3Football.com National Defensive Player
of the Year; Jones - Outland Trophy)
6 School Statistical Record Holders (Barkley, Burkhead, Florence, Nassib, Nearhoof, Renfree)
7 Members of Nationally Ranked Teams (Barkley, Davis, Driskill, Jones, Mullane, Te'o, Zackery)
6 National Championship Appearances (Driskill - 3; Jones - 2; Zackery - 1)
10 Offensive Players
(Barkley, Burkhead, Florence, Jones, Mullane, Nearhoof, Peterson, Renfree, Ward, Zackery)
5 Defensive Players (Davis, Driskill, Jefferson, Nearhoof, Te'o)
Nominated
by their schools, which are limited to one nominee each, candidates
must be a senior or graduate student in their final year of eligibility,
have a gradepoint average
of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale, have outstanding football ability as a
first team player and have demonstrated strong leadership and
citizenship. The 147 semifinalists for the award were announced on Sept.
27 (names listed on the following page), and the class
is selected each year by the NFF Awards Committee, which is comprised of
a nationally recognized group of media, College Football Hall of Famers
and athletics administrators.
In addition to the presentation of the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards and the William V. Campbell
Trophy,
the 55th NFF Annual Awards Dinner will include the induction of the
2012 College Football Hall of Fame Class and the presentation of several
major awards, including the
organization's highest honor, the NFF Gold Medal, and the NFF
Distinguished American Award.
