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The University of Utah Athletics
Sakoda Receives National Football Foundation Award
10/29/2008 12:00 AM | Football
Oct. 29, 2008
SALT LAKE CITY - Utah All-America punter/kicker Louie Sakoda was announced today as one of 15 National Scholar-Athletes by the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF). Sakoda receives an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship with the award, which places him in the running for the 2008 Draddy Trophy.
Sakoda is the only special teams player and one of four All-Americans named as a finalist. The field includes a Heisman Trophy finalist (Chase Daniel of Missouri) and a Rhodes Scholar semifinalist (Casey Gerald of Yale). In addition to his $18,000 postgraduate scholarship, Sakoda and the other 2008 Scholar-Athletes will be honored at the annual NFF Awards Dinner at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City on Dec. 9. The 2008 Draddy Award Trophy will be presented to the winner, whose scholarship check will increase to $25,000.
Sakoda is the second Draddy finalist in Utah football history along with offensive tackle Mel Carpenter in 1964.
The Draddy Award, which is selected by the NFF Awards Committee, goes to a senior student-athlete who has demonstrated success in athletics, academics, leadership and citizenship. There were 164 nominees for this year's award.
Sakoda has played a major role in Utah's 8-0 record and current top 10 national ranking. He was recently named as the kicker for three Midseason All-America teams: CBSSports.com, The Sporting News and Rivals.com. Among the national leaders in field goal percentage (15-of-17, 88.2%) and punting average (43.0), Sakoda is tied for third in the country in kick scoring points (80) and is one of just 11 players at any position to score 80 points. Nearly 40% of his punts (13-of-33) have been downed inside the 20-yard line.
The marketing major is a three-time Mountain West Conference scholar athlete, carrying a 3.7 grade point average, and is a three-time Dean's List honoree. He is the vice president of Utah's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. He is involved in Team Lincoln, which organizes activities for at-risk children and has also worked with the International Rescue Committee (IRC) to raise money for humanitarian efforts around the world. Most recently, Sakoda participated in a campaign with the governor's office to combat drunk driving.
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