Kennedy named to FCS ADA Academic All-Star Team
SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Bryant University football senior Tom Kennedy (Farmingdale, N.Y.) was named to the 20th annual Football Championship Subdivision Athletics Directors Association (FCS ADA) Academic All-Star Team. Kennedy is one of 49 student-athletes recognized.
Kennedy becomes the first Bulldog to earn this honor and is one of only two players from the Northeast Conference recognized.
Football players from all Football Championship Subdivision institutions are eligible for the award. Each of the nominees were required to have a minimum grade point average of 3.20 (on a 4.00 scale) in undergraduate study and have been a starter or key player with legitimate athletics credentials. He must have reached his second year of athletics and academic standing at the nominated institution and have completed a minimum of one full academic year at the nominated institution. He must also have participated in 50 percent of the games played at his designated position.
Kennedy caught 57 passes for 888 yards and nine touchdowns on his way to All-NEC First Team and All-New England honors. He also carried the ball 12 times for 66 yards and three touchdowns, finishing the season as Bryant's leader in rushing and receiving touchdowns.
In the classroom, Kennedy owns a 3.55 GPA and became the first football player in DI program history to earn CoSIDA Academic All-District honors this past fall.
"One of the most important responsibilities that the FCS ADA has is the selection of the Annual Academic All Star Team, stated FCS ADA President Thorr Bjorn, director of athletics at University of Rhode Island. "The 49 young men selected this year are truly impressive. They have been leaders on their individual campuses and have excelled in the classroom, their communities as well as on the football field. They represent the best and the brightest within FCS football and now we have the honor of naming them to the 2017 Academic All Star Team."
A special Review Committee of Football Championship Subdivision athletics directors was responsible for selecting the all-star team and scholarship finalists. Completing this task were Thorr Bjorn, Rhode Island (chair); Bruce McCutcheon, Lafayette; Bill Smith, Bryant; and Nathan Pine, Holy Cross.