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TJ Ricks Nominated for Brandon Burlsworth Trophy

TJ Ricks Nominated for Brandon Burlsworth TrophyTJ Ricks Nominated for Brandon Burlsworth Trophy

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Old Dominion University junior linebacker TJ Ricks was nominated for the Brandon Burlsworth Trophy given to the most outstanding football player in America who began his career as a Walk-On.

A native of Hampton, Va., Ricks leads Conference USA and is tied for 13th in the country with 10.4 tackles per game. He leads the Monarchs with 94 tackles and has 1.5 sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss. He is second on the team with five pass breakups and tied for the team lead with two fumbles recovered and has one forced fumbles.

Ricks set an ODU single-game record earlier this season against Charlotte with 18 tackles, surpassing the record of 17 set by Craig Wilkins. Ricks is currently fifth in school history with 192 tackles.

A Walk-On is defined as a player who began his first season of participation with a D1 (FBS) football program without financial aid of any kind from his university's athletic department. The Trophy is named in honor of former University of Arkansas Walk-On and All-American offensive lineman, Brandon Burlsworth. 

The 2015 Burlsworth Trophy nominees are:

 

Alabama

Michael Nysewander

SR

Tight End

Arizona State

Jordan Simone

SR

Safety

Arkansas

Mitchell Loewen

SR

Def. Lineman

Arkansas State

Johnston White

SO

Running Back

Auburn

Kevin Phillips

JR

Punter

Ball State

Jacob Richard

SR

OL /Center

Brigham Young

Mitchell Juergens

JR

Wide Receiver

Clemson

C.J. Davidson

SR

Running Back

Colorado State

Kevin O'Brien

SR

Center

Eastern Michigan

Dylan Mulder

SR

Kicker

Florida Atlantic

Sharrod Neasman

SR

Def. Back

Florida State

Javien Elliott

SR

Def. Back

Fresno State

Bo Bonnheim

SR

Center/Guard

Houston

Tyler White

SR

Corner Back

Illinois

Clayton Fejedelem

SR

Def. Back

Indiana

Anthony Corsaro

SR

Tight End

Iowa

Marshall Koehn

SR

Kicker

Kent State

Nick Cuthbert

JR

Safety

Marshall

Tyler Williams

SR

Punter

Memphis

Alan Cross

SR

Tight End

Miami

Michael Badgley

SO

Kicker

Michigan

Ryan Glasgow

SR

Def. Tackle

Minnesota

Peter Mortell

SR

Punter

Mississippi State

Westin Graves

SO

Kicker

Missouri

Tyler Hunt

SR

Tailback

Nebraska

Jack Gangwish

SR

Def. End

Nevada

Jordan Dobrich

SR

Linebacker

New Mexico State

Teldrick Morgan

SR

Wide Receiver

Oklahoma

Baker Mayfield

JR

Quarterback

Old Dominion

TJ Ricks

JR

Linebacker

Ole Miss

Carlos Davis

JR

Cornerback

Oregon

Matt Pierson

SR

Left Guard

Oregon State

Devin Chappell

JR

Cornerback

Penn State

Carl Nassib

SR

Def. End

Rice

James Farrimond

SR

P/PK

Rutgers

Paul James

SR

Running Back

San Diego State

Dakota Gordon

SR

Fullback

SMU

Andrew McCleneghen

SR

Def. Lineman

South Carolina

Perry Orth

JR

Quarterback

Stanford

Conrad Ukropina

SR

Kicker

Syracuse

Riley Dixon

SR

Punter

Tennessee

Trevor Daniel

SO

Punter

Texas Tech

John White

SR

Def. Back

Toledo

Jack Linch

SO

Linebacker

Tulane

Marshall Wadleigh

JR

Running Back

Tulsa

Matt Linscott

JR

Linebacker

UCLA

Roosevelt Davis

SR

Running Back

UConn

Jeremy Claflin

SR

Safety

UMass

Joe Colton

SR

DB/LB

USC

Alex Wood

JR

Placekicker

Utah State

Jordan Nielsen

SR

Def. End

Wake Forest

Robert Hunter Williams

SR

OLB/Rover

Washington State

Luke Falk

SO

Quarterback

Western Michigan

Grant DePalma

SR

Linebacker

Wisconsin

Joe Schobert

SR

Linebacker

 

"In this 6th year of the Burlsworth Trophy, I am again impressed by the quality and commitment of the athletes who have been nominated,” said Marty Burlsworth, CEO and founder of the Burlsworth Foundation and older brother of Brandon. “These young men represent what the Burlsworth Trophy stands for: character, hard work, dedication to a sport and to their school and above all else, a desire to excel at the highest level.”