ORLANDO, FL – University of Miami
wide receiver Braxton Berrios, a team captain, double major in finance
and entrepreneurship with a 3.96 GPA and the Hurricanes’ leading
receiver, today was named the winner of the 2017 Pop Warner Little
Scholars College Football Award.
The award was presented during the 61st
Annual Pop Warner Super Bowl at Disney’s ESPN Wide World of Sports
complex. Berrios won the Pop Warner Super Bowl with Capital City Steelers as a fifth grader.
A two-time Academic All-District and Academic All-ACC selection,
Berrios is on pace to graduate in December. He also won ACC’s 2017 Jim
Tatum Award winner, which goes to the conference’s top scholar athlete,
and was a finalist for the Campbell Trophy, considered the academic
Heisman. A Dean's List member every semester of his college career,
Berrios earned President's List honors three times and was named to the
Provost's Honor Roll seven times. Berrios is a participant in the
football team's annual bone marrow drive. The Raleigh, North Carolina,
native has visited Holtz Children's Hospital and has visited other
hospitals.
“We’re proud to honor Braxton, a former Pop Warner champion who has
exhibited excellence on the field, in the classroom and in the
community,” said Jon Butler, Executive Director of Pop Warner Little
Scholars. “As the only national youth sports organization that requires
its athletes to also perform in the classroom we value student-athletes
at the collegiate level who continue to represent those ideals. Braxton
is an exceptional model for our young people on how to balance sports,
school and citizenship.”
“This is full-circle for me. I grew up playing Pop Warner football.
My team, the Capital City Steelers, won a national championship and then
came in second place nationally the year after.” said Berrios. “This
organization helped me set my foundation of football that I have been
building on ever since. I’m extremely thankful for Pop Warner, and for
this award.”
The Pop Warner College Football Award, established in 2010,
recognizes a senior who has made a difference on the field, in the
classroom and in his community, all attributes Pop Warner emphasizes
with its young scholar athletes. Last year’s winner was former Ole Miss
and current New York Giants TE Evan Engram. The other finalists this
year included Stanford OL David Bright, Auburn K Daniel Carlson, Wake
Forest DE Wendell Dunn, Virginia LB Micah Kiser and Notre Dame LB Drue
Tranquill.
About Pop Warner National College Football Award:
The Pop Warner National College Football Award recognizes a college
graduating senior who has made a difference on the field, in the
classroom and in his community, and serves as a role model to Pop
Warner’s young student athletes. Pop Warner created the award in 2010 to
honor a college player who has continued to demonstrate Pop Warner’s
fundamental values of sportsmanship, academics and community service at
the next level.
About Pop Warner Little Scholars, Inc:
Founded in 1929 and headquartered in Langhorne, PA, Pop Warner Little
Scholars is the nation’s oldest youth football, cheerleading and dance
organization and the only youth sports organization that emphasizes
academics as a prerequisite for participation. Pop Warner participants
enjoy the opportunity to learn and compete in their sports in an
atmosphere that emphasizes fun, safety, academics and character. For
more information on Pop Warner and its programs visit www.popwarner.com or follow Pop Warner on Twitter at http://twitter.com/Pop_Warner.
Media Contacts:
Brian Heffron, [email protected], 781.799.9568
Haley King, [email protected], 248-912-5895