Four student-athletes from the American Athletic Conference are finalists for the James E. Sullivan Award, which honors the nation's outstanding amateur athlete.
Blake Bortles (Sr., UCF), Bria Hartley (Sr., UConn), Jude Schimmel (Jr., Louisville) and Shoni Schimmel (Sr., Louisville) are among the 19 nominees for the award.
March 11 marked the first day of voting to find the winner of the 2013 AAU Sullivan Award. Voting is open to the public and will account for one-third of the athlete’s overall score.
The nominees were nominated by someone who thought they fit the requirements of outstanding athletic ability, strong character, leadership and sportsmanship. The public can cast their vote by going to
www.aausports.org.
Voting will remain open until March 23 at 11:59 EDT.
Three finalists will be named no later than March 28 and the winner will be announced at an awards ceremony on Friday, April 11 at the AAU National Headquarters in Orlando, Fla.
The Sullivan Award has been presented annually since 1930, and is based on character, leadership and sportsmanship. Notable recipients of the AAU Sullivan Award include: Mark Spitz, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Florence Joyner, Peyton Manning, Michael Phelps, J.J. Redick, Tim Tebow, Shawn Johnson and Missy Franklin.
Nominees for the 2013 James E. Sullivan Award
Ashley Bishop -
Baton Twirling
Blake Bortles -
University of Central Florida Football
David Boudia -
USA Diving
Liz Brenner -
Oregon Volleyball, Basketball, Track &Field
Rachel Fattal -
USA Water Polo
Joy Woog-Garvey -
Inline Hocke
Bria Hartley -
University of Connecticut Women’s Basketball
Robert Herbst -
AAU Powerlifting
Alex Johnson -
University of Miami Volleyball
Katie Ledecky -
Olympic Swimmer
Tre Mason -
Auburn University Football
AJ McCarron -
University of Alabama Football
Cory Ann McGee -
University of Florida Track & Field
John Michael Nagel -
Taekwondo
Kelsey Robinson -
University of Nebraska Volleyball
Jude Schimmel -
University of Louisville Women’s Basketball
Shoni Schimmel -
University of Louisville Women’s Basketball
John Urschel -
Penn State Football
Alli Williams -
Saint Francis University Women’s Basketball