Buzzards Bay, Mass. --  Massachusetts Maritime senior placekicker Brandon Rodrigues is one of 34 student-athletes at FCS, Division II, Division III, NAIA and NJCAA schools from across the country who were named earlier today to the watch list for the 2013 Fred Mitchell Award, which recognizes excellence both on the football field and in the community.

The Mitchell Award, named for the record-setting placekicker at Wittenberg (Ohio) University and Chicago Tribune sports columnist, is bestowed to the nation’s top collegiate placekicker among more than 750 schools nationally.  The recipient is announced in mid-December after a selection committee consisting of Pro and College Football Hall of Fame members, including Green Bay Packers and University of Notre Dame standout Paul Hornung, former Buffalo Bills Head Coach Marv Levy and Chicago Bears running back Gale Sayers, reviews all nominees.

A native of Brockton, Mass. and a graduate of Brockton High School, Rodrigues ranked second in scoring for Head Coach Jeremy Cameron’s Buccaneers in 2012, converting 31 PAT’s and a pair of field goals for 37 points.  He set the school single-game PAT record with eight conversions in a 56-32 victory over Fitchburg State last October 13^th, and he converted a game-tying field goal in an eventual 42-38 triumph over Coast Guard last September 22^nd that helped Massachusetts Maritime erase a 28-9 halftime deficit. 

Last December, Rodrigues became the Academy’s first Capital One Academic All-America honoree in 30 years when he was selected to the Division III football second team national squad, as he joined Buccaneer Hall of Famer John Hendy ’82 as the only two student-athletes in school history to earn the prestigious accolade.  A Marine Engineering major at Massachusetts Maritime, Rodrigues boasts a 3.89 cumulative grade point average while earning spots on both the New England Football Conference and Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference All-Academic teams.  In the community, Brandon has served in a volunteer role with the Brockton Library Foundation in several activities, including reading programs and fundraisers, and he is also a member of the Buccaneer Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.

“To be mentioned with some of the best placekickers in the country on this year’s Mitchell Award Watch List is a great honor for Brandon and for our program,” Cameron says of Rodrigues’ latest accolade.  “He has continued to excel in competition and in the classroom, and I know he is looking forward to finishing his career on a high note this fall.”

Rodrigues is one of 11 Division III placekickers named to the 2013 Mitchell Award Watch List, and he is also one of three student-athletes named from New England schools, joining John Macomber of Holy Cross and Joe Mallock of Williams.  For more information on the Fred Mitchell Award, please visit www.fredmitchellaward.com.