Jan. 4, 2012
NORFOLK, Va. --- Old Dominion's Ronnie Cameron (Westbury, N.Y.) was among the 58 student-athletes selected to the 14th Annual Football Championship Subdivision Athletics Directors Association Academic All-Star Team announced by the Football Championship Subdivision Athletics Directors.
"The FCS ADA is honored to recognize the accomplishments of our football student-athletes each year with the Academic All-Star team," said FCS ADA President Marilyn McNeil, chair of the FCS ADA Academic All-Star Team Selection Committee and vice-president/director of athletics at Monmouth University. "These young men compete successfully both on the field and in the classroom and truly epitomize the definition of a student-athlete."
Football players from all Football Championship Subdivision institutions were eligible for these prestigious awards. 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.
Academically, Cameron graduated in December from Old Dominion with his Masters in Business Administration. A member of the Dean's List and recipient of the Luke Hillier Endowment Scholarship for academic and athletic success, Cameron took on a full course load along with 20 hours of work per week while competing as a student-athlete, finishing his undergraduate degree in three years before going on to obtain his masters. A member of the MBA Association, Cameron also organized and was a Keynote Speaker at the Third Annual Black Male Summit.
Also away from the gridiron, Cameron was also active in giving back to the community. He was among the 132 nominees announced for the 2011 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team® recognizing the selfless contributions to volunteerism and community service made by college football student-athletes across the nation.
Cameron, along with the rest of the Monarch football squad, helped register over 200 people, including university students, faculty, staff, and members of the Hampton Roads community, to the National Marrow Donor Registry last April. Since starting the bone marrow registry event three years ago, Cameron and his teammates helped register over 650 people to the bone marrow donor registry in an attempt to help save lives from life-threatening diseases nationwide. Cameron also joined with students from the Disabilities and Aging in Therapeutic Recreation course at Old Dominion University for the annual ODU Special Olympics, dubbed the "Little Feet Meet" with over 200 elementary school children from the Norfolk Public School System taking part. The defensive tackle was also involved with The Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater Virginia, helping to host a "send-off" celebration for the foundation which grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions.
On the field, Cameron has become one of the most decorated Monarchs in the program's three-year history. The Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) and Roanoke Times Defensive Player of the Year, Cameron's performance in 2011 led to being named First Team All-American by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) and The Sports Network and a Second Team All-American by the Associated Press and Phil Steele. He was also honored with the 2011 Elite Defensive Tackle Award by the College Football Performance Awards (CFPA).
Second on the Monarch squad with 73 tackles (28 solo, 45 assisted) along with a team-leading 17 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks, Cameron averaged 5.6 tackles per game, which was fourth among defensive lineman in the CAA and finished second in the league in tackles for loss averaging 1.31 per contest. Cameron captured a career-high 11 tackles along with a season-high 3.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks against CAA Champion Towson and also made 10 stops with three for loss against James Madison in ODU's first top-10 victory. His performance on the defensive line helped the Monarchs rank second in the league at the close of the regular season in rushing defense allowing 122.55 yards per contest.
Cameron's leadership in 2011 helped the Monarchs garner their first national ranking, including cracking the top-10 after concluding the regular season at 9-2 overall and 6-2 in the Colonial Athletic Association, a league which sent five teams to the post-season. Cameron helped ODU make its first post-season appearance in 2011, advancing to the second round of the FCS playoffs.