Ayden Owens-Delerme named Co-SEC Outdoor Scholar-Athlete of the Year
BIRMINGHAM – Razorback senior Ayden Owens-Delerme has been name Co-SEC Outdoor Scholar-Athlete of the Year, the conference office announced on Wednesday. Owens-Delerme shares the honor with Georgia’s Matthew Boling, who also received the honor in 2022.
“This is the quintessential example of someone who is a student-athlete,” stated Arkansas men’s head coach Chris Bucknam. “It’s a special honor for Ayden, who has excelled on the track and matched that dedication in the classroom.
“We enjoy winning championships, and we have also achieved numerous honors on the academic side with our history of winning this award.”
Owens-Delerme becomes the eighth Razorback to claim SEC Outdoor Scholar-Athlete of the Year for a total of 10 honors since it was first awarded in 2004.
Previous Arkansas athletes receiving the accolade include Jason Sanfort (2004), Jaanus Uudmae (2005), Dorian Ulrey (2009), Nathanael Franks (2013, 2014, 2015), Jarrion Lawson (2016), Kenzo Cotton (2017), and Gabe Moore (2019).
This marks the fifth time a Razorback has been named men’s Co-SEC Outdoor Scholar-Athlete.
“It shows he’s a well-rounded student-athlete,” said Arkansas associate head coach Travis Geopfert. “Finishing up his MBA, he really took advantage of the full experience at the University of Arkansas.
“He’s really into his work with the MBA program, and really dove in and enjoyed the other students in the program. He just excelled. It was a lot of fun talking to him about different projects he had going on. He jumped in with both feet at Arkansas and gave it everything he had on the track and off the track.”
A Bowerman finalist in 2022, Owens-Delerme earned numerous athletic accolades last year, and has added an academic award this season. Owens-Delerme recently completed his Master in Business Administration from the Sam M. Walton College of Business at Arkansas with a degree in Business Administration Innovation/Entrepreneur Track.
Additional athletic awards in 2022 included USTFCCCA National Field Athlete of the Year for the indoor and outdoor seasons as well as SEC Outdoor Field Athlete of the Year. Owens-Delerme swept the NCAA titles in the heptathlon and decathlon and then finished fourth in the World Championships decathlon representing Puerto Rico. He set national records in the heptathlon, decathlon as well as in the 400m.
“You can see it with a highly motivated, and high achieving person like Ayden,” noted Geopfert. “He’s going to excel in whatever he does. He did it in the classroom and we’re extremely proud of him for that.
“He recently sent a terrific text to Coach Bucknam about how Arkansas has over-delivered for him, both from a track and field setting and an academic setting. He’s just flourished here. We’re extremely proud of him and he deserves the award.”
