The ACC announced today a list of 54 student-athletes who have been selected as 2017 Weaver-James-Corrigan Award recipients. This year’s list includes three student-athletes who will receive the Thacker Award and nine student-athletes who plan to pursue professional careers in their chosen sports and were named honorary recipients.
The student-athletes will be honored at the annual Cone Health ACC Postgraduate Scholarship Luncheon presented by ESPN on April 12. The luncheon will be hosted by the Nat Greene Kiwanis Club at the Sheraton Four Seasons Hotel Imperial Ballroom in Greensboro.
The Weaver-James-Corrigan and Jim and Pat Thacker postgraduate scholarships are awarded to selected student-athletes who intend to pursue a graduate degree following completion of their undergraduate requirements. Each recipient will receive $5,000 toward his or her graduate education. Those honored have performed with distinction in both the classroom and their respective sport, while demonstrating exemplary conduct in the community.
In addition to those receiving scholarship funds, nine student-athletes will receive the Weaver-James-Corrigan Honorary Award. They include Georgia Tech’s Harrison Butker (football), Duke’s Christina Gibbons (women’s soccer), Wake Forest’s Jacori Hayes (men’s soccer), Louisville’s Dolly Nyemah (track and field), Notre Dame’s Sergio Perkovic (men’s lacrosse), Miami’s Davon Reed (men’s basketball), North Carolina’s Ronald Schneider (men’s tennis), Clemson’s Deshaun Watson (football) and NC State’s Alexia Zevnik (women’s swimming).
The Weaver-James-Corrigan Award is named in honor of the late Jim Weaver and Bob James, as well as Gene Corrigan, the first three ACC commissioners.
The league’s first commissioner, James H. Weaver, served the conference from 1954-70 after a stint as the Director of Athletics at Wake Forest University. His early leadership and uncompromising integrity are largely responsible for the excellent reputation enjoyed by the ACC today.
Robert C. James, a former University of Maryland football player, was named commissioner in 1971 and served in that capacity for 16 years. During his tenure, the league continued to grow in stature and became recognized as a national leader in athletics and academics, winning 23 national championships and maintaining standards of excellence in the classroom.
Eugene F. Corrigan assumed his role as the third full-time commissioner on September 1, 1987, and served until August of 1997. During Corrigan’s tenure, ACC schools captured 30 NCAA championships and two national football titles.
Prior to 1994, the Weaver-James postgraduate scholarships were awarded as separate honors. The Jim Weaver Award, which originated in 1970, recognized exceptional achievement on the playing field and in the classroom, while the Bob James Award, established in 1987, also honored outstanding student-athletes.
The Thacker Award, which originated in 2005, is awarded in honor of the late Jim and Pat Thacker of Charlotte, North Carolina. Jim Thacker was the primary play-by-play announcer for the ACC’s first television network. Recipients of the award must demonstrate outstanding performance both in athletic competition and in the classroom and intend to further their education through postgraduate studies at an ACC institution. North Carolina’s Emma Bozek (field hockey), Florida State’s Cole Hensley (men’s swimming) and Duke’s Michael Miller (men’s swimming) are this year’s Thacker Award recipients.
The following student-athletes will be honored as 2017 ACC Postgraduate Scholarship Recipients:
- Emily Auld, Miami, Women’s Soccer
- Christopher Barr, Miami, Baseball
- Renee Bichette, Boston College, Women’s Fencing
- Robin Blazing, Duke, Field Hockey
- Emma Bozek, North Carolina, Field Hockey *
- Caroline Buscaglia, Virginia Tech, Women’s Swimming
- Emily Byorth, Clemson, Women’s Soccer
- Gabby Byorth, Clemson, Women’s Soccer
- Hayley Carter, North Carolina, Women’s Tennis
- Kinga Cichowska, Pittsburgh, Women’s Swimming
- Elizabeth Cooper, Florida State, Softball
- Andrea Cottrell, Lousiville, Women’s Swimming
- Andrea Demick, Georgia Tech, Women’s Swimming
- Luisa Fernandez, Wake Forest, Women’s Tennis
- Dontez Ford, Pittsburgh, Football
- Taylor Francis, Pittsburgh, Women’s Soccer
- Kimmy Guerin, Wake Forest, Women’s Tennis
- Audra Hampsch, Boston College, Field Hockey
- Cole Hensley, Florida State, Men’s Swimming *
- Sarah Howard, North Carolina, Women’s Track and Field
- Ryan Janvion, Wake Forest, Football
- Marie Johnston, Virginia Tech, Women’s Soccer
- Abby Jones, Clemson, Women’s Soccer
- Kevin Kavalec, Boston College, Football
- Melanie Keil, Florida State, Volleyball
- Lee Kiefer, Notre Dame, Women’s Fencing
- Natalie Labonge, NC State, Women’s Swimming
- Breyana Mason, Virginia, Women’s Basketball
- Jennifer Mathurin, NC State, Women’s Basketball
- Erin McCrudden, Louisville, Field Hockey
- Saydee McQuay, Syracuse, Rowing
- Michael Miller, Duke, Men’s Swimming *
- Kaeli O’Conner, Syracuse, Women’s Lacrosse
- Kaleigh Olmsted, Notre Dame, Women’s Soccer
- Lindsey Owens, Virginia Tech, Volleyball
- Adam Palamar, Syracuse, Men’s Cross Country/Track & Field
- Lauren Pitz, Georgia Tech, Volleyball
- Shannon Rauth, Virginia, Women’s Swimming
- Corey Robinson, Notre Dame, Football
- Anna Julia Schippert, Miami, Women’s Swimming
- Morgan Stearns, Virginia, Women’s Soccer
- Grigory Tarasevich, Louisville, Men’s Swimming
- Jordan Tucker, Duke, Volleyball
- Teegan Van Gunst, Georgia Tech, Volleyball
- Ashley Williams, NC State, Women’s Basketball
Honorary Postgraduate Scholars
- Harrison Butker, Georgia Tech, Football
- Christina Gibbons, Duke, Women’s Soccer
- Jacori Hayes, Wake Forest, Men’s Soccer
- Dolly Nyemah, Louisville, Track and Field
- Sergio Perkovic, Notre Dame, Men’s Lacrosse
- Davon Reed, Miami, Men’s Basketball
- Ronald Schneider, North Carolina, Men’s Tennis
- Deshaun Watson, Clemson, Football
- Alexia Zevnik, NC State, Women’s Swimming
* – Thacker Award honoree
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