INDIANAPOLIS – Former Augustana football player Kirby Hora has been named a recipient of the 2020 Today's Top 10 Award, presented annually by the NCAA. Hora is the first Augustana student-athlete to receive the NCAA's top honor.
The award recognizes former student-athletes for their successes on the field, in the classroom and in the community. Recipients completed their athletic eligibility during the 2018-19 academic year and will be recognized at the Honors Celebration on Jan. 22, 2020, in Anaheim, California, as part of the annual NCAA Convention. In total, there are more than 460,000 NCAA student-athletes that compete in 24 sports every year. Ten earn the NCAA Today's Top 10 Award.
Hora, a Sioux Falls native, was the 2018 Google Cloud Academic All-America Football Player of the Year for Division II and also earned Academic All-America honors in 2016 and 2017 with a 4.0 GPA. A four-time All-NSIC selection, Hora is tied for first in school history in forced fumbles and ranks second in school history in career tackles with 411. He led the NSIC in 2017 with 129 total tackles, including 59 solo and 70 assisted.
"It has been a tremendous honor to be a part of the amazing career of Kirby Hora," Augustana head football coach Jerry Olszewski said. "This award embodies the entirety of his achievements. Though his ability allowed him to be a four-year starter, multi-year captain, all-conference, all-region and all-American athlete, it is his leadership that was even more impressive."
Hora has been recognized multiple times for academic achievement, including receiving an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship and Augustana's Dr. Jeffrey Behrens Sport Medicine scholarship, presented to Augustana sports medicine students who demonstrate excellence in academic integrity, work ethic, acceptance of responsibility, willingness to help others and their commitment to athletic training.
Hora, hailing from Sioux Falls, also received the 2019 Dr. William Britton Scholar-Athlete Award for academic excellence, the highest academic honor in the NSIC. He was an active member of Augustana's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, including serving as president. He volunteered for several years with Habitat for Humanity, Necessities for Neighbors and Kids Against Hunger.
"Kirby is one of the most incredible young men that I have ever been blessed to share growth experiences with," Olszewski added. "Though this award is a humbling honor, I believe Kirby is very deserving as he prides his life service on the very qualities that the NCAA Today's Top 10 Award stands for and represents.
"I am beyond proud of him as I know these qualities will continue to be a part of his life goals the remainder of his life."
Hora graduated from Augustana University in December of 2018 and is now attending the University of South Dakota for medical school.
--GoAugie.com--
