Elon linebacker and defensive lineman Alexander Dawson has been included among the record-number 182 nominees for the 2014 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team.
[/caption]Elon University football player Alexander Dawson, a linebacker and defensive lineman for the Phoenix, is one of three Colonial Athletic Association football players nominated for 2014 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team, the Allstate Insurance Company and the American Football Coaches Association on Tuesday, July 15.
Last year, Elon defensive back Miles Williams was one of the final 22 award recipients and attended the Allstate Sugar Bowl and participated in a youth clinic with the other honorees.
The award recognizes players whose charitable involvement and community service contributions stand out among all other student-athletes participating in the sport. Since its establishment in 1992, the award has existed to pay tribute to the “good” in college football that extends beyond the wins and the losses. While balancing academics and athletics, these select student-athletes nominated by their respective colleges and universities have committed their limited free time to having a lasting impact on their communities.
While heroes emerge on the gridiron each Saturday, this year’s nominees’ heroics extend beyond touchdowns and tackles. From establishing an epilepsy awareness campaign that has touched the lives of more than 100,000 families to founding a book club program to provide at-risk youth with safe and structured after-school activities, the impressive service resumes of these remarkable student-athletes has earned them recognition on a national level.
“It’s great to see all the ‘good works’ these student-athletes are doing at their universities and in their communities,” Grant Teaff, AFCA executive director said. “The AFCA is proud to work with Allstate in highlighting the record number of nominees sent in for the 2014 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team.”
Dawson, who hails from Haw River, N.C., will be a junior on the field this season. He has participated in numerous community service projects in the area, including tutoring through the Boys and Girls Club and Elon First Baptist Church, and assisting with Special Olympics. Dawson spent last January in South Africa, where he was a part of a group of Elon students who helped to repaint a school, paint a mural, coach soccer and serve food to school children. He has also been active with ELONTHON to raise money for Duke Children’s Hospital and Campus Kitchen, where he delivered food to a local charity.
On the gridiron, Dawson started all 12 games at linebacker in 2013 and finished third on the team with 70 total tackles. Against Chattanooga, he posted a career-high 11 tackles.
Comprised of 11 players from the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision and 11 players from the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision, Divisions II, III and the NAIA, the final roster of 22 award recipients will be unveiled in September.