Nov. 15, 2011

NOTRE DAME, Ind. – University of Notre Dame graduate student Sean Cwynar and junior Manti Te’o were named to the Capital One Academic All-District V team, the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) recently announced.

Cwynar and Te’o were selected through voting conducted by CoSIDA members in their district. Notre Dame’s district includes colleges and universities in Indiana, Illinois, Michigan and Ohio. To be nominated, a student-athlete must have at least a 3.30 cumulative grade-point average, have received sophomore academic and athletic standing, be a varsity starter or key reserve and be nominated by the sports information director.

Cwynar graduated in three and a half years from Mendoza College of Business – the No. 1 undergraduate business school in the nation – with a degree in management-consulting. Cwynar earned a cumulative GPA of 3.377 and enrolled in Notre Dame’s accelerated MBA program in June 2011. To date, Cwynar owns a 3.6 GPA in his MBA courses.

An anchor of the Notre Dame defensive line, Cwynar has played in nine games in 2011 and started two contests. He has totaled 16 tackles this year and has 52 tackles in his career, including three tackles for loss.

Te’o owns a 3.37 GPA as a design major in the College of Arts and Letters. One of the best defensive players in the nation, Te’o leads the Irish with 91 tackles, 11 tackles for loss and four and a half sacks. He has started all 10 games for the Irish.

Among all middle and inside linebackers in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision, Te’o is tied for second in solo tackles for loss, tied for second in solo sacks, third in total sacks, third in sacks per game, fourth in tackles for loss per game and fifth in total tackles for loss. He was named a semifinalist for the Butkus Award, Lombardi Award and Lott Trophy.

Notre Dame ranks second all-time with 221 Academic All-Americans since the program’s inception in 1952. Over the past 12 years, 95 Fighting Irish student-athletes have earned Academic All-America distinction, second-most from any school in the country. Notre Dame’s football program has produced 55 Academic All-Americans in its history, third most of any university. Since 2006, six Fighting Irish football players have received Academic All-America accolades.

-ND-