Dec. 10, 2007
University Park, Pa. - Junior closer Drew O'Neil of the Nittany Lion baseball team was named to the Brooks Wallace Award preseason watch list that was recently announced by the College Baseball Foundation. The Brooks Wallace Player of the Year Award is annually presented to the nation's top collegiate baseball player by the College Baseball Foundation in conjuction with the College Baseball Hall of Fame's annual inducation ceremony.
O'Neil elected to return to Penn State for his junior season rather than enter the professional ranks after being drafted in the eighth round of this year's Major League Baseball Amateur Draft by the Cincinnati Reds. O'Neil's draft stock rose after a breakout season last year in which he set a school record for saves in a season with 11 and did not allow an earned run in Big Ten play during the regular season. Sure to be the top closer in the Big Ten this year as well as one of the top closers in the country, O'Neil will also be very close to earning his degree following the spring semester. For the season last year, O'Neil had a 1.34 earned run average in 23 appearances and 33.2 innings. He had a 4-2 record and gave up just nine runs, five earned, while limiting opposing hitters to a .188 average. O'Neil was one of a record-tying five Penn State players that were drafted in June and was the highest drafted Nittany Lion since Nate Bump went in the first round in 1998, however he was the only one to elect to return to Penn State of the three drafted that had eligibility remaining.
The Brooks Wallace Award has been being presented since the 2004 season to the nation's top college baseball player. Last year's award went to Vanderbilt's David Price, who was the top pick in the MLB draft. Other award winners include Brad Lincoln of Houston (2006), Alex Gordon of Nebraska (2005) and Kurt Suzuki of Cal State-Fullerton (2004). The Wallace Award is a dedication to the memory of former Texas Tech player and assistant coach Brooks Wallace, who was a slick-fielding shortstop at Texas Tech from 1977-1980. A four-year starter, he was named All-Southwest Conference and All-District his senior year. He led the Red Raiders to their first-ever appearance in the Southwest Conference Tournament in 1980. After playing two years in the Texas Rangers organization, he returned to Texas Tech and served as a graduate assistant and later as an assistant coach. In the summer of 1984, he was diagnosed with cancer and fought the disease courageously until his death on March 24, 1985, at age 27. The Plano, Texas, native was married to the former Sandy Arnold and they had one daughter, Lindsay Ryan.