TOWSON, Md. –
Baylor
senior quarterback Nick Florence was selected as the first-team
quarterback on the 2012 Capital One Academic All-America football team,
as announced by College Sports Information Directors of
America (CoSIDA) Thursday.
Florence, an honorable mention All-Big 12 selection by both the
Associated Press and Big 12 coaches, is the first Baylor player named a first-team Academic All-American since punter Daniel Sepulveda in 2006.
Florence's
selection marks the fifth consecutive year the Bears have had an
Academic All-American, following Joe Pawelek (2008 and 2009), Derek
Epperson (2010) and Robert Griffin III (2011).
Combined with Sepulveda's honors in 2005 and 2006, Baylor has picked up
an Academic All-America honor in seven of the last eight years.
Baylor
has had four quarterbacks named Academic All-Americans – Don Trull
(1962-63), J.J. Joe (1991-93), RG3 (2011) and Florence (2012).
A
Garland, Texas, native, Florence graduated high school a semester early
and finished his Baylor undergraduate degree in economics with a 3.79
GPA in only seven semesters. He's currently enrolled
in graduate school, pursuing a master's in business administration.
On
the field, Florence leads the nation with an average of 387.7 yards per
game of total offense. He's completed 276 of 451 passes for 4,121 yards
and 31 touchdowns. Florence needs only 174
passing yards in the Bridgepoint Education Holiday Bowl to break
Griffin III's school record for passing yards in a single season, and
his 31 touchdowns are second-most in a season in school history, six shy
of RG3's record.
Baylor closes out the 2012 season by facing UCLA in the Holiday Bowl on Dec. 27 at San Diego's Qualcomm Stadium. The Bears will be playing in bowl game in a third straight season for the first
time in program history. For more information, visit
www.BaylorBears.com/bowlcentral.
