GSU walk-on selected for prestigious scholar-athlete award

<p>Dusty Reddick is not a household name in the world of Georgia Southern football, and he has no interest in becoming one.</p><p>But Reddick has earned recognition for his strong academics.</p><p>Reddick, from Screven County High School, has been named to receive one of four National Football Foundation High School Scholar-Athlete awards. He will receive his award at a banquet at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City on Dec. 7.</p><p>"An awesome award," said Georgia Southern head coach Mike Sewak. "It's absolutely awesome to be recognized as one of the top four scholar-athletes in the country."</p><p>More than 2,000 scholar-athletes are honored each year by the 119 chapters of The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF). From these the NFF pares it down to four players from four regions for national recognition.</p><p>One of the most competitive high school academic-football honors in the country the NFF bases its selection criteria on those who have succeeded in academics, football and citizenship during their high school careers.</p><p>Reddick was nominated for the award by his high school coach Mark Daniel. He was originally recognized for state honors by the Georgia Greater Atlanta Chapter which in turn selected him for the South Region honor.</p><p>"I went to Atlanta on New Year's Day and was recognized with 40 others from Georgia," said Reddick. "I got a scholarship and I was happy with that. I figured that was it."</p><p>Then after he walked on at Georgia Southern he got a call from his mother telling him about a letter he had received informing him of the award.</p><p>"She was crying," recalled Reddick. "It explained everything and had a program from last year. She told me I would have to wear a tuxedo to the banquet. It's a great honor, and my family is very proud."</p><p>The long snapper on punts for Georgia Southern, Reddick, a true freshman, came to the Eagles as a walk-on. He dreams of playing linebacker but found immediate playing time as a snapper.</p><p>Snappers rarely are noticed unless a bad snap results in a botched kick.</p><p>"No one knows my name and I want to keep it that way," said Reddick. "Up at Chattanooga my sympathies went out to their snapper when on their first punt he sent it sailing over the kicker's head. Those things happen, but I don't want it to happen to me."</p><p>Georgia Southern beat Chattanooga 51-17 last week.</p><p>Reddick says he is happy to contribute as a snapper this year, but he is looking forward to next spring when he gets a shot at playing linebacker.</p><p>"I know my duty is to snap," he said, "but I came here to play linebacker and I'll get my chance in the spring. I was a long snapper in high school, and one day in two-a-days I had a great day and then I went up to Georgia and handled the pressure there and things have been pretty good since."</p><p>At Screven County High School, the 6-foot-1, 230-pound Reddick played tight end, defensive end and long snapper. He played a key role in helping Screven County win the Class AAA state championship in 2002. The Gamecocks won three 2AAA Region Championships in his three years on the varsity.</p><p>He also maintained a 4.0 GPA and won numerous awards in health, math, science, drafting and German. A recipient of the Georgia Certificate of Merit, Reddick was a member of the National Honor Society and appeared in Who's Who Among American High School Students and Athletes.</p><p>"This award is a credit to Dusty as an all-around person, his family and his community," said Sewak. "It's a tremendous honor for a kid from a small town. He takes a lot of pride in what he does."</p>