SMU lineman Poynter named semifinalist for Draddy Trophy

by PegNews wire

SMU senior offensive lineman Ben Poynter is one of 153 semifinalists for the 2007 Draddy Trophy and a candidate for a 2007 National Scholar-Athlete Award, the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) announced Oct. 11, 2007.

Selected as one of the best and the brightest from the college gridiron, Poynter graduated earlier this year from the SMU Cox Undergraduate Business program. In May, he applied to the Professional MBA program at SMU and was accepted. To the school's knowledge, he is the first football player to go directly in to the PMBA program while still playing football. He purposely chose the Professional MBA program so the class times and football would have the lowest amount of scheduling conflicts. The average age in the PMBA program is 29, while Poynter is just 22.

Poynter, a former walk-on who earned a scholarship following his redshirt freshman year, has started 32 straight games for SMU on the offensive line, playing both at tackle and center. In 2006, he was on the Rimington Award Watch List, an honor given each season to the top collegiate center. He was a second-team All-Conference selection last season and is a two-time winner of SMU's Charles H. Trigg Blocking Award and a two-time member of the C-USA Honor Roll.

One of college football's most sought-after and competitive awards, the Draddy Trophy recognizes an individual as the absolute best in the country for his combined academic success, football performance and exemplary community leadership.

"The NFF is extremely proud of this year's group of semifinalists," said NFF President & CEO Steven J. Hatchell. "Their substantial commitment to academic excellence, athletic prowess and community service is commendable, and it is our responsibility to honor them for their dedication on and off the playing field. These players are the greatest illustration of how we hope to build leaders through football."

Nominated by their schools, which are limited to one nominee each, semifinalists must be a senior or graduate student in their final year of eligibility, have a GPA 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. Established to honor former NFF Chairman Vincent dePaul Draddy, a Manhattan College quarterback who developed the Izod and Lacoste brands, the award comes with a 24-inch, 25-pound bronze trophy and a $25,000 post-graduate scholarship.

This year's semifinalists maintain a 3.58 average GPA in diverse majors such as physics and ocean engineering. Sixty-six players have earned all- conference recognition on the field and 106 have served as captains. The offensive line produced the most nominees with 31 candidates. Receivers and linebackers followed with 26 nominees each. Offense outscored the defense with 80 to 53 hopefuls. Twenty special teams aspirants completed the contingent. Nominees hail from all NCAA divisions and the NAIA, including a record 67 contenders from the Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A).

The NFF Awards Committee will select and announce up to 15 finalists on Oct. 25. Each finalist will be recognized as part of the 2007 National Scholar- Athlete Class, receiving an $18,000 post-graduate scholarship. The Draddy winner, who will receive a $25,000 postgraduate scholarship, will be announced at the NFF's Annual Awards Dinner on December 4 at the prestigious Waldorf-Astoria in New York City. A total distribution of more than $300,000 in scholarships will be awarded that evening.

Launched in 1959, the NFF scholar-athlete program became the first initiative in history to credit a player for both academic and athletic accomplishments. The Draddy, first awarded in 1990, adds to the program's mystique. Past Draddy winners, including two Rhodes Scholars, a Rhodes Scholar finalist, a Heisman winner and a 3.7 average GPA, are: Chris Howard (Air Force, 1990); John B. Culpepper (Florida, 1991); Jim Hansen (Colorado, 1992); Thomas Burns (Virginia, 1993); Robert Zatechka (Nebraska, 1994); Bobby Hoying (Ohio State, 1995); Danny Wuerffel (Florida, 1996); Peyton Manning (Tennessee, 1997); Matt Stinchcomb (Georgia, 1998); Chad Pennington (Marshall, 1999); Kyle Vanden Bosch (Nebraska, 2000); Joaquin Gonzalez (Miami, 2001); Brandon Roberts (Washington University-Mo., 2002); Craig Krenzel (Ohio State, 2003); Michael Munoz (Tennessee, 2004); Rudy Niswanger (Louisiana State, 2005); and Brian Leonard (Rutgers, 2006).

Source: SMU