NOTRE DAME, Ind. — University of Notre Dame senior safety Jalen Elliott was selected to the 2019 Wuerffel Trophy Watch List.
The Wuerffel Trophy, known as “College Football’s Premier Award for Community Service,” is presented each February in Fort Walton Beach, Florida. Named after 1996 Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Danny Wuerffel from the University of Florida, the Wuerffel Trophy is awarded to the FBS player that best combines exemplary community service with athletic and academic achievement.
Elliott has established himself as one of the most active Notre Dame student-athletes in terms of community service. He’s been among the five most active Irish student-athletes in terms of service hours since he arrived on campus.
Elliott captured the Notre Dame athletics Community Champion Award for the 2018-19 year. This award was established to recognize the contributions of a Notre Dame student-athlete to the University community and the community at large who embodies the spirit of leadership, commitment and selflessness, and who strives to make Notre Dame — as Notre Dame President Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C, put it — “a healing, unifying, enlightening force for a world deeply in need.” Conferring this award recognizes student-athletes who study for the sake of learning, give for the sake of giving and understand that personal accomplishment is never achieved alone.
Elliott hosted the 2019 O.S.C.A.R.S, which is the marquee social-celebratory event for the Notre Dame athletics department. Created by the Student-Athlete Advisory Council and Student Welfare & Development, the O.S.C.A.R.S. serves to unite all students, administrators, and faculty involved in Fighting Irish athletics. It is annually attended by more than 1,500 student-athletes, administrators, faculty and staff.
Elliott’s other recent efforts in the community include:
- Food Bank of Northern Indiana (Spring 2018 & Spring 2019)
- Cultivate Culinary (Spring 2018)
- Boys & Girls Club (Spring 2018)
- South Bend Center for the Homeless (Spring 2018)
- “Dream Team” Mentoring (Spring 2018)
- South Bend Outreach Program (Spring 2018)
- South Bend Washington High School Mentor Program (Spring 2018)
- Football & the Force (Summer 2018)
- Notre Dame Football Youth Camp (Summer 2018)
- Notre Dame Football 101 (Summer 2018)
- Notre Dame Football Shop-with-a-player (Fall 2018)
- Dallas Children’s Hospital (Fall 2018)
- LaSalle Academy Guest Speaker (Spring 2019)
- Harrison Elementary Mentoring (Spring 2019)
- Meussel Elementary Mentoring (Spring 2019)
- Boys & Girls Club (Spring 2019)
Semifinalists for the award will be announced Nov. 5 and finalists will be announced Nov. 18. The formal announcement of the 2019 recipient will be made at the National Football Foundation’s festivities in New York City on December 10. The presentation of the 2019 Wuerffel Trophy will occur at the 51st All Sports Association Awards Banquet on Feb. 14, 2020, in Fort Walton Beach.
Past winners of the award are: Rudy Niswanger, LSU, 2005; Joel Penton, Ohio State, 2006; Paul Smith, Tulsa, 2008; Tim Tebow, Florida, 2008; Tim Hiller, Western Michigan, 2009; Sam Acho, Texas, 2010; Barrett Jones, Alabama, 2011; Matt Barkley, USC, 2012; Gabe Ikard, Oklahoma, 2013; Deterrian Shackelford, Ole Miss, 2014; Ty Darlington, Oklahoma, 2015; Trevor Knight, Texas A&M, 2016; Courtney Love, Kentucky, 2017; Drue Tranquill, Notre Dame, 2018.
The Wuerffel Trophy is supported by its corporate partners, Chick-fil-A Foundation, Dart Container Corporation/Solo Cup and Herff Jones.
About the National College Football Awards Association
The John Mackey Award is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA), which encompasses college football’s most prestigious awards. Founded in 1997, the NCFAA and its 25 awards now boasts over 800 recipients, dating to 1935. Visit ncfaa.org to learn more about the association.
The members of the NCFAA are unveiling their preseason watch lists over a two-week period this month. Sixteen of the association’s awards select a preseason watch list and the NCFAA has spearheaded a coordinated effort to promote each award’s preseason candidates. Following is the complete 2019 preseason watch list calendar:
Here’s a quick rundown of when specific awards will release watch lists:
Mon., July 15: Bednarik Award (Khalid Kareem, Julian Okwara), Maxwell Award (Ian Book)
Tue., July 16: Davey O’Brien Award (Ian Book)
Wed., July 17: Doak Walker Award (Jafar Armstrong, Tony Jones Jr.)
Thur., July 18: Biletnikoff Award
Fri., July 19: Mackey Award (Cole Kmet), Rimington Trophy (Jarrett Patterson)
Mon., July 22: Paycom Jim Thorpe Award (Alohi Gilman), Butkus Award
Tue., July 23: Outland Trophy presented by NFID (Liam Eichenberg, Tommy Kraemer), Bronko
Nagurski Trophy (Alohi Gilman, Khalid Kareem, Julian Okwara)
Wed., July 24: Lou Groza Award, Ray Guy Award
Thur., July 25: Paul Hornung Award, Wuerffel Trophy (Jalen Elliott)
Fri., July 26: Walter Camp Award
— ND —