In addition to athletic excellence, college football is also about community service and outreach. Every major award says that it takes into consideration a player’s off-the-field service but the Wuerffel Trophy exemplifies it. Named for Florida’s Danny Wuerffel, the Wuerffel Trophy goes to college football’s most impactful leaders in community service. Each year, the nominees are pared back from 100s to three finalists.
This year’s finalists are Penn State center, Nick Dawkins, Washington State kicker, Dean Janikowski, and Notre Dame linebacker, Jack Kiser. Rising above the field was Dawkins, marking the first time a Penn State player took home the award.
Penn State’s Nick Dawkins Wins 2024 Wuerffel Trophy
Dawkins is a fifth-year senior on the Nittany Lions’ offensive line and took over as center this season as a captain. Last year, he won Penn State’s Public Service Award and the program’s Letterman’s Club Scholarship. The latter is given to a graduate student in the program. He was the president of Penn State’s Lift for Life and participates in projects like PALS and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
Last year, Dawkins founded the Dawkins Family Foundation. The foundation, formerly known as the Mitchell L. Dawkins Outreach Ministry, works with kids to provide educational and enrichment opportunities. It also presents three scholarships, sponsors fundraisers and clothing drives, and conducts educational workshops in the Lehigh Valley of Pennsylvania, where Dawkins is from.
In addition, he participated in developing a sports camp at the YMCA of Centre County. Former Penn State football player Devon Still has a “Still Strong Foundation” and Dawkins serves on the board. He also chaired the diversity, equity, and inclusion committee of Penn State’s student-athlete advisory committee.
Dawkins’ bachelor’s degree is in recreation, parks, and tourism management. Currently, Dawkins is pursuing a graduate certificate in organization development and change essentials.
“You need to give back,” Dawkins said during the Nittany Lions’ May visit to Penn State Health Children’s Hospital. “People lose sight that this whole football thing is bigger than you. Put a smile on someone’s face? That’s huge. … That goes to the humility and being humble and all the things that we are in our program and our tradition.”
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