Ellis Named Wuerffel Trophy Semifinalist
FORT WALTON BEACH, Fla. – Arkansas senior linebacker Brooks Ellis was named one of 11 semifinalists for the 2016 Wuerffel Trophy on Thursday. The Wuerffel Trophy is “College Football’s Premier Award for Community Service,” presented annually by the All Sports Association of Fort Walton Beach to the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) player who best combines exemplary community service with athletic and academic achievement.
The honor comes just days after Ellis was named a finalist for the 2016 William V. Campbell Trophy, which recognizes an individual as the absolute best football scholar-athlete in the nation.
A native of Fayetteville, Arkansas, Ellis has spent time volunteering with the Brandon Burlsworth Foundation, Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Northwest Arkansas, Boys & Girls Club, Book Hogs – Read to Win program, Ozark Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, among other community service projects. He is also a member of Phi Delta Theta fraternity.
Ellis, a three-time Southeastern Conference (SEC) Academic Honor Roll member, carries a 3.8 GPA as a pre-professional exercise science major with aspirations of being a doctor after his playing days. In addition to his major, Ellis is on a pre-med plan and spent a week in Belize this past May with his biology classmates. He was named to the 2015 Academic All-America second team by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) for his efforts in the classroom last season.
The two-year team captain leads the Razorbacks in tackles this season with 57 through eight games to rank seventh in the SEC. For his career, he has totaled 264 tackles, 19.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, 12 pass breakups and four interceptions, returning one 47 yards for a touchdown at then-No. 15 TCU earlier this season.
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. Three finalists will be announced on Nov. 23, and the formal announcement of the 2016 Wuerffel Trophy recipient will be on Dec. 6, at the National Football Foundation’s press conference in New York City.
The Wuerffel Trophy is named after Danny Wuerffel, the 1996 Heisman Trophy who led the Florida Gators to the 1996 national championship. He played six years in the National Football League, and has received national recognition for his humanitarian and community service efforts with Desire Street Ministries, in New Orleans and around the country.
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