FIU's Garrett Wittels Nominated for 2010 ESPYs Award
Vote for Garrett: ESPY's Voting
MIAMI - FIU All-American infielder Garrett Wittels has been selected as an ESPY nominee in the Best Male College Athlete category. Wittels finished the 2010 season with a 56-game hitting streak, second all-time in Division I baseball to Robin Ventura who hit safely in 58-straight games in 1987. The streak will continue at the start of the 2011 season.
"This is an unbelievable honor to be nominated for an ESPY," said Wittels. "I never dreamed that I would be up for such a prestigious award. This wouldn't be possible without help from my teammates, coaches and my family. Each and everyone one of them is a big part of this and I want to thank them for everything."
Wittels was honored by Baseball America, Louisville Slugger and PING! Baseball as an All-American after hitting .412 with an FIU record 100 hits along with team-highs in doubles (21) and RBI (60). Wittels and his teammates captured the 2010 Sun Belt Tournament Championship for the first time since 1999.
The ESPYs are LIVE this year and this is the one night where athletes from all sports join together to celebrate the best moments of the year. The ESPYs take place on Wednesday, July 14 at 9 p.m. ET at the Nokia Theater in downtown Los Angeles and will be hosted by Saturday Night Lives' Seth Meyers.
Fans will have the chance to select the winners by voting online or by mobile device at espn.com/espys and on the ESPN facebook page: facebook.com/espn. Fans can also go to FIU's official website;
http://www.FIUSports.com for up-to-date information and links on how to vote for Wittels for Best Male College Athlete. You can also get news on FIUs and ESPNs twitter page: twitter.com/FIUAthletics and twitter.com/espys and tweet about Garrett and FIU leading up to and during the live ESPYs awards show.
The nominees for Best Male College Athlete include; Garrett Wittels, FIU Baseball; Blake Geoffrion, Wisconsin Hockey; Mark Ingram, Alabama Football; John Wall, Kentucky Basketball; and Evan Turner, Ohio State Basketball.
Former winners of the Best Male College Athlete ESPYs award include: Tim Tebow, Kevin Durant, Reggie Bush and Carmelo Anthony to name a few.
Tune in LIVE on Wednesday, July 14 on ESPN at 9 p.m. ET to see Garrett take home the ESPY. All proceeds from the ESPYs and related events benefit the V Foundation for Cancer Research in memory of the late Jim Valvano.
BEST MALE COLLEGE ATHLETE NOMINEES
Garrett Wittels, FIU Baseball
* Finished the 2010 season with a 56-game hit streak, the second-longest in Division I history.
* Had at least one hit in every game he's appeared in during the season.
Blake Geoffrion, Wisconsin Hockey
* Won the Hobey Baker award as top collegiate hockey player.
* Led Badgers to the national championship game.
Mark Ingram, Alabama Football
* Ran for 1,658 yards, averaging 6.1 yards per carry.
* Scored 20 touchdowns (17 rushing, three receiving) as the Tide won the national championship.
* Became first Alabama player to win the Heisman Trophy.
Evan Turner, Ohio State Basketball
* Won the Wooden Award and Naismith Award.
* Averaged 20.4 PPG and 9.4 RPG in the 2009-10 season.
John Wall, Kentucky Basketball
* Helped lead Kentucky to 35-win season as a freshman.
* Led the Wildcats in scoring (16.6 PPG), assists (6.5 APG) and steals (1.8 SPG) while setting the school single-season assist record.