NEW YORK — Texas A&M quarterback Trevor Knight was named the winner of 2016 Wuerffel Trophy during today’s National Football Foundation Annual Awards Dinner at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City. The Wuerffel Trophy, known as “College Football’s Premier Award for Community Service,” is presented annually by the All Sports Association in Fort Walton Beach.
Knight, a graduate transfer from San Antonio, Texas, was a finalist for the award in 2014 when he was at the University of Oklahoma. He was instrumental in the organization of a diverse group of Texas A&M student-athletes that went on a humanitarian trip to Haiti last summer and Knight has been a part of four excursions at Texas A&M and OU to the impoverished island nation. He’s also been extremely active with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes at both schools.
Knight related what drives his commitment to community service.
“When I was a kid, I looked up to guys like Colt McCoy, Sam Bradford, Stephen McGee – I wanted to do exactly what they were doing,” Knight said. “When I got to college, I knew I had a four-to-five year window where I would have a platform and I wanted to make sure I used it to help people. If you don’t take advantage of your platform as an athlete, you’re selling yourself short. It’s been an incredible ride over the last five years and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”
Fifth-year Texas A&M head coach Kevin Sumlin lauded Knight for his ability to impact so many people in a short amount of time since enrolling at Texas A&M in January.
“The impact that he’s had on the team and in regard to service to the community has been impressive,” Sumlin said. “It’s been a short time – about 11 months – but his impact will be felt at Texas A&M for a long time. He came in first as a teammate and then became a leader. He helped unite our team and the athletics department as a whole. It wasn’t just the football team that went to Haiti, it was a group of student-athletes from a bunch of different sports at Texas A&M. He’s had a huge impact and it’s very powerful for someone that’s only been here for a short time.
Knight will be interviewed at “The Home Depot College Football Awards Red Carpet Show” on ESPNU and ESPN3 on Dec. 8, 2016, airing at 6 p.m. EST/5 p.m. CST, featuring interviews with award winners and finalists as they enter The Home Depot College Football Awards Show at the College Football Hall of Fame in downtown Atlanta, Ga. The presentation of the 2016 Wuerffel Trophy will occur at the 48th Annual All Sports Association Awards Banquet on Feb. 10, 2017, in Fort Walton Beach.
The Wuerffel Trophy, named after Wuerffel, the 1996 Heisman Trophy winning quarterback from the University of Florida, is awarded to the Football Bowl Subdivision player who best combines exemplary community service with athletic and academic achievement.
Voting for the Wuerffel Trophy is performed by a National Selection Committee that includes college football television and print media, industry notables, former head coaches and prior Wuerffel Trophy recipients.
Past winners of the Wuerffel Trophy are: 2015 Ty Darlington, University of Oklahoma; 2014 Deterrian Shackelford, University of Mississippi; 2013 Gabe Ikard, University of Oklahoma; 2012 Matt Barkley, University of Southern California; 2011 Barrett Jones, University of Alabama; 2010 Sam Acho, University of Texas; 2009 Tim Hiller, Western Michigan University; 2008 Tim Tebow, University of Florida; 2007 Paul Smith, University of Tulsa; 2006 Joel Penton, Ohio State University; and 2005 Rudy Niswanger, Louisiana State University.
Other finalists for the 2016 award were Stanford running back Christian McCaffrey and New Mexico offensive lineman Garrett Adcock.