Nov. 10, 2016
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. - Junior walk-on linebacker Brandon Smith (Winfield, Pa.) has been named as one of the five finalists for the Pop Warner College Football Award. The award was created the award in 2010 and is given to leaders who represented their university with excellence on the field, in the classroom, on campus and in the community.
Smith started the season as the third-string Mike linebacker but was thrust into starting in the third game of the season due to a series of injuries to the three opening day starting linebackers. Smith has shined in his expanded role, ranking fifth on the team with 43 tackles and leading the squad with two interceptions. He also has a pair of pass breakups and 3.0 tackles for loss. Smith was selected as the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week after posting 14 tackles in a win over Maryland. His interception and 22-yard return on the first defensive possession of the second half at Purdue sparked a 45-7 second-half surge by the Nittany Lions.
A native of Winfield, Pennsylvania, Smith has a 3.79 cumulative GPA in kinesiology and was recently selected CoSIDA Academic All-District. He intends on becoming a pediatric oncologist.
The junior is also active in the community. In addition to the numerous community service activities that he does as part of the Nittany Lions, Smith helps with his wife's non-profit organization, Honduran Soles, which provides shoes to kids that need them in various countries. He and his wife traveled to Honduras during spring break in 2015 helped build a soccer field. He and his wife have volunteered at homeless shelters, and done other community work through their church, Revival Tabernacle, in Watsontown, Pennsylvania, near his hometown.
The 2016 recipient will accept the Pop Warner College Player Award at Walt Disney World's ESPN Wide World of Sports during the 60th annual Pop Warner Super Bowl the first week of December.
Penn State is 7-2 overall and 5-1 in Big Ten play after the victory over Iowa Saturday night. The Nittany Lions are back in action when they travel to Bloomington to face Indiana Saturday at noon on ABC with an ESPN2 mirror. The game will also air on the Penn State Sports Network and GoPSUsports.com (10:30 a.m. airtime).
Single game tickets for the Senior Day tilt against Michigan State on Nov. 26 are still available. To purchase tickets or for more information, fans can visit www.PSUnrivaled.com, call 1-800-NITTANY or visit the Bryce Jordan Center ticket office weekdays from 10 a.m-6 p.m.