Rock Hill, S.C.----Wingate University redshirt junior quarterback Robbie Nallenweg (Asheville, N.C.) is the 2012 South Atlantic Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award winner for football, league officials announce Monday. This achievement recognizes excellence in academics, athletics, service and leadership.
 
The league’s Faculty Athletic Representatives selected Nallenweg for this prestigious honor. The SAC Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award is given to one male and one female student-athlete in each of the SAC’s 14 championship sports. The awards are voted on by the conference’s Faculty Athletic Representatives.
 
“Robbie’s personal commitment to excellence is apparent in every area of his life,” Wingate head coach Joe Reich says. “Everything he does, he gives his absolute best. He is another example of the student-athlete who helps coaches build programs.”
 
In his first year as a starter, Nallenweg completed 326-of-491 passes for 3644 yards and 29 touchdowns. Nallenweg leads the SAC in total offense (323.73 yards per game), pass efficiency (138.30) and touchdowns (29). His passing yardage is the sixth-highest single season total in league history.
 
On the NCAA charts, he is third with 29.64 completions per game and fifth with 3,644 passing yards. Wingate leads the SAC (and ranks number eight nationally) in passing offense with 333.73 yards per game.
 
In the classroom, Nallenweg carries a 3.735 GPA with a Biology major. During his time on campus, he has been a member of the Wingate President’s and Dean’s Lists and the SAC Commissioner’s Honor Roll.
 
In the community, Nallenweg is involved with Special Olympics Field Day and the Union County Boys and Girls Club. Nallenweg was a nominee for the 2012 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team® for his role in Wingate’s initiative with the Union County Boys and Girls Club.
           
Nallenweg is the 59th student-athlete from Wingate to earn the SAC Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award, tops on the all-time league charts. The Clyde A. Erwin High School product is the fourth Wingate football student-athlete to receive this award. Cody Haffly (2011), Chris Stinson (1999) and Doug Turner (1993) are previous Bulldog football recipients.
 
WINGATE UNIVERSITY

Wingate University, ranked as the 6th “best value” in the South by U.S. News & World Report, serves 2,648 students on three campuses in Wingate, Matthews and Hendersonville, N.C. Founded in 1896, the University offers 34 undergraduate majors, 37 minors and career concentrations, numerous pre-professional programs, graduate degrees in business, accounting, education, physician assistant studies and sport administration, and doctorates in pharmacy and education. With a 14 to 1 student/teacher ratio, Wingate students gain the tools and support needed to excel in academics and apply that learning toward an extraordinary career and life.
 
In addition to a robust intramural athletics program, Wingate student athletes compete in 20 NCAA Division II sports. The University has won the South Atlantic Conference Echols Athletic Excellence Award for the past six years.
 
Wingate is first among NCAA Division II Academic All-America®-producing private colleges in the 2000’s with 50 selections. Among North Carolina’s colleges and universities, Wingate’s 50 Academic All-America® honorees are first during this millennium. Wingate’s 59 lifetime Academic All-America® picks are tops among all SAC schools. For more information, go to www.wingatebulldogs.com.