Nakobe Dean wins Arthur Ashe Jr. Male Sports Scholar of the Year award
Former Georgia linebacker Nakobe Dean was named as the 2022 Arthur Ashe Jr. Male Sports Scholar of the Year on Monday following a nationwide selection process out of nearly 1,000 nominees by Diverse: Issues in Higher Education, a biweekly newsmagazine dedicated exclusively to diversity issues in higher education.
Dean, a native of Horn Lake, Miss., follows in the footsteps of Bulldog All-American kicker Rodrigo Blankenship who won the award in 2020. Other UGA athletes to win include women’s basketball’s Haley Clark in 2018 and gymnast Marcia Newby in 2010.
Dean enjoyed a standout season on the field as well as off of it. On the field he finished second on the team in tackles with 72 as he led the Bulldogs’ National Championship-winning, No. 1-ranked defense from the middle at the inside linebacker position. Dean recorded a team-high 10.5 tackles for loss including 6.0 sacks along with six pass breakups, 31 quarterback pressures and two interceptions, one of which he took to the house for a touchdown against Florida. He was named a first-team all-American by the Associated Press, Walter Camp, the America Football Coaches Association, Sporting News, USA Today and ESPN among others while also winning the 2021 Butkus Award as the nation’s best linebacker.
Off of the field, Dean sports a 3.53 GPA as a mechanical engineering major, earning the team’s Scholar-Athlete Award while being named the captain of the 2021 American Football Coaches Association’s Good Works Team for his active role in community service. He also was a finalist for the Lott IMPACT Trophy, awarded annually to college football’s Defensive Player of the Year but also giving equal weight to person character.
Dean was named one of four permanent team captains for the 2021-22 Bulldogs as voted on by his teammates. He declared for the 2022 NFL Draft, forgoing any remaining college eligibility, and is widely projected as a first round pick.
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