SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Southern Conference announced its 10 postgraduate scholarship recipients for the 2016-17 academic year Monday. The 10 student-athletes will be honored for their accomplishments at the Southern Conference Honors Dinner in Hilton Head Island, S.C., on Wednesday, May 31. Nick Colvin and Anton Wahrby from the Wofford football team are among the ten recipients.
 
This year's honorees include: Dave Hart Graduate Scholarship recipient Nick Colvin (Wofford); Dorothy Hicks Graduate Scholarship recipient Anna Allen (Samford); Insurance Office of America Scholarship recipient Javion Lee (Samford); David Knight Graduate Scholarship recipient Jon Vandenberg (Furman); Bob McCloskey Insurance Graduate Scholarship recipients Anton Wahrby (Wofford) and Haley Harrington (Samford); William Moore Graduate Scholarship presented by McMillan Pazdan Smith recipient Jared Johnson (Chattanooga); Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship recipients Kristen Favre (ETSU) and Taylor Rodgers (Mercer); and Mike Wood Graduate Scholarship recipient Duncan Fletcher (Furman).
 
The recipients are nominated by their schools and selected by the Southern Conference Graduate Scholar Committee. The scholarships, worth $2,000 each, are awarded to student-athletes about to receive their undergraduate degrees who intend to pursue advanced degrees in graduate or professional school. The student-athletes are evaluated on academics, athletics and community service.
 
Nick Colvin, Wofford – Dave Hart Graduate Scholar
Wofford football player Nick Colvin is the 2017 recipient of the Dave Hart Graduate Scholarship. A halfback for the Terriers, Colvin played in 45 of a possible 47 career games. He set a school record in 2015 with a 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown and helped Wofford to a 10-4 record and the FCS quarterfinals in 2016. A three-time member of the Academic All-Southern Conference Team, Colvin was a national semifinalist for the 2016 National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame's William V. Campbell Trophy, given annually to the top scholar-athlete in the nation. A biology major with a 3.80 GPA, Colvin was also a member of the CoSIDA Academic All-District 4 team as a senior this season, earned a spot in the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame Hampshire Honor Society and was selected for inclusion in the Phi Beta Kappa honor society. Colvin is also active in his community, mentoring a local elementary schools, serving as a "buddy" playing baseball with disabled children and coaching basketball with Upward Sports. He is also active on campus, serving as a member of Wofford's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and as an employed peer tutor. Colvin will attend the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Dentistry in the fall.
 
Anton Wahrby, Wofford – Bob McCloskey Insurance Graduate Scholar
Wofford's Anton Wahrby is one of two recipients of a Bob McCloskey Insurance Graduate Scholarship. The 2016 All-American played in all 47 games for the Terriers in his career, starting the last 43 at right tackle, and finished his career third in school history with 525 knockdown blocks. A three-time first-team All-SoCon performer, Wahrby, who was named a Freshman All-American by College Sports Journal in 2013, is a two-time member of the FCS Athletic Directors Association Academic All-Star team and was one of the FCS ADA's two national Scholar-Athletes of the Year and was awarded a $5,000 postgraduate scholarship from the organization. The Karlskrona, Sweden, native was also a CoSIDA Academic All-District 4 selection in 2015, earned a spot in the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame Hampshire Honor Society in 2017 and is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa honor society. In the community, Wahrby has volunteered in a youth mentoring program at Jesse Boyd Elementary. Wahrby holds a 3.84 GPA in business economics and intends to go to medical school in his native Sweden after pursuing a career in professional football.
 
 
2016-17 SoCon Graduate Scholars
Name (Institution)                            Sport                                  Academic major                         Graduate scholarship
Nick Colvin (Wofford)                     Football                             Biology                                          Dave Hart
Anna Allen (Samford)                      Women's soccer              Accounting                                   Dorothy Hicks
Javion Lee (Samford)                       Men's track & field         Geography                                    Insurance Office of America
Jon Vandenburg (Furman)              Men's lacrosse                 Biology                                          David Knight
Anton Wahrby (Wofford)                Football                             Business economics                     Bob McCloskey Insurance
Haley Harrington (Samford)           Women's golf                   Biology                                          Bob McCloskey Insurance
Jared Johnson (Chattanooga)         Wrestling                           Chemical engineering                 William Moore presented by McMillan Pazdan Smith
Kristen Favre (ETSU)                        Volleyball                          Exercise science                         Southern Conference Presidential
Taylor Rodgers (Mercer)                  Softball                              Mechanical engineering             Southern Conference Presidential
Duncan Fletcher (Furman)              Football                             Business administration             Mike Wood
 
 
ABOUT THE SOUTHERN CONFERENCE
The Southern Conference, in its 96th season of intercollegiate competition, is a national leader in emphasizing the development of the student-athlete and helping build lifelong leaders and role models. The conference has been on the forefront of innovation and originality in developing creative solutions to address issues facing intercollegiate athletics. From establishing the first conference basketball tournament (1921) to tackling the issues of freshman eligibility (1922) to developing women's championships (1984) to becoming the first conference to install the 3-point goal in basketball (1980), the Southern Conference has been a pioneer. The Southern Conference is the nation's fifth-oldest NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association. 
 
The conference currently consists of 10 members in six states throughout the Southeast and sponsors 21 varsity sports and championships that produce participants for NCAA Division I Championships.