 |
| Senior C.J. Arhontakis is one of 170 semifinalists for the William Campbell Trophy. |
WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. – Lycoming College senior safety C.J. Arhontakis (Avon Grove, Pa./Avon Grove), in the midst of a breakout season, was announced as a candidate for the National Football Foundation’s National Scholar-Athlete Awards, presented by Fidelity Investments, and making him one of 170 semifinalists for the 2013 William V. Campbell Trophy, endowed by Health South, which recognizes an individual as the best football scholar-athlete in the nation.
A key member of the Warriors’ special teams over the past three years as well as serving as a back-up safety, Arhontakis had his breakthrough moment against Wilkes in the second week of his senior season, when he picked off a Colonels’ pass at the nine-yard line and returned it 91 yards for a pick-six in the third-longest interception return in school history. Arhontakis has nine tackles, one for a loss, through the team’s first four games.
Arhontakis is also a three-year letterwinner with the men’s swimming team, where he has earned seven All-MAC honors as a member of relay teams.
In the classroom, Arhontakis has earned four MAC Academic Honor Roll selections (two for football and two for men’s swimming) and he is a member of both Beta Beta Beta Biology Honor Society and Gamma Sigma Epsilon Chemistry Honor Society. He is also a member of the Order of Omega.
Arhontakis has also done a variety of service work, including working with Favors Forward with the football team, and volunteering with the Williamsport YMCA through the football team. He has also helped with NovaCare Physical Therapy and is a member of Lambda Chi Alpha Fraternity and an Interfraternity Council representative.
Nominated by their schools, candidates for the awards must be a senior or graduate student in their final year of eligibility, have a GPA of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale, have outstanding football ability as a first team player or significant contributor, and have demonstrated strong leadership and citizenship. The class is selected each year by the NFF Awards Committee, which is comprised of a nationally recognized group of media, College Football Hall of Famers and athletics administrators.
The NFF Awards Committee will select up to 16 recipients for the Scholar-Athlete award, and the results will be announced Thursday, Oct. 31. Each recipient will receive an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship, and they will vie as finalists for the 2013 William V. Campbell Trophy. Each member of the 2013 National Scholar-Athlete Class will also travel to New York City to be honored on Dec. 10 during the 56th NFF Annual Awards Dinner at the Waldorf-Astoria. One member of the class will also be announced live at the event as the winner of the Campbell Trophy.
The Warriors get back on the field on Saturday, Oct. 5, when they face No. 16/22 Delaware Valley in a battle for solo possession of first place in the MAC at David Person Field. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.
