Two Receive NFF University Scholar Athlete Awards

DURHAM, N.C. – Former Duke football safety DeVon Edwards and defensive tackle A.J. Wolf were named the recipients of the University Scholar Athlete award by the National Football Foundation (NFF) and College Hall of Fame, Inc., presented at the Bill Dooley Triangle East Chapter of North Carolina annual awards dinner held Monday at East Carolina University.

Edwards, a four-year starter at safety, picked up his third NFF honor as he was a National Scholar-Athlete and finalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy in December, as well as an NFF Hampshire Honor Society selection in March. A native of Covington, Ga., Edwards was an All-America selection as a return specialist in 2013 (second team pick by the Walter Camp Foundation, third team honoree by Athlon Sports and Phil Steele, honorable mention by Sports Illustrated) and 2014 and 2015 (honorable mention by Sports Illustrated).

A team captain in 2016, Edwards played in 44 career games with 37 consecutive starts. He recorded 327 tackles (182 solo), 12.0 tackles for lost yardage, 10.5 sacks, 22 pass breakups, eight quarterback pressures, six caused fumbles and five interceptions during his four seasons with the Blue Devils. As a kickoff return specialist, Edwards ran back 74 kickoffs for 2,060 yards (27.84) and six touchdowns. The four-time Academic All-ACC selection (2013-14-15-16) with a psychology major became the 19th player in Duke history to reach the 300-tackle barrier. He was also a three-time All-ACC honoree as a return specialist (third team/2013; first team/2014; second team/2015) and a two-time honorable mention pick as safety (2014 and 2015).

Wolf, a Greenwich, Conn., product, received four letters and a pair of CoSIDA First Team Academic All-America accolades as a defensive lineman. He appeared in 48 career games (25 consecutive starts to finish career) and recorded 133 tackles, 14.0 TFL, 6.0 quarterback sacks, 10 quarterback pressures, one caused fumble and one fumble recovery. Wolf became just the second Blue Devil to receive multiple CoSIDA First Team Academic All-America honors, joining three-time selection Mike Diminick (1986-88). The public policy studies major was a two-time Academic All-ACC honoree (2015-16), one of 19 quarterfinalists for the 2016 Lott IMPACT Trophy, a finalist for the 2016 Pop Warner College Football Award and a member of the 2017 NFF Hampshire Honor Society. On the field, Wolf booked two or more tackles in 30 career games, including a personal-high 10 stops against Pittsburgh in 2015.

Other 2017 University Scholar Athlete award recipients for the Bill Dooley Triangle East Chapter of North Carolina included Worth Gregory of East Carolina, Joseph Mangill of North Carolina, Nathaniel Tilque of N.C. Central and Garrett Bradbury of N.C. State.

Past Duke winners of the University Scholar Athlete honor include Charles London (1997), Jeff Hodrick (1998), Lennie Friedman (1999), Sims Lenhardt (2000), Spencer Romine (2001), Ben Erdeljac (2002), Jaymon Small (2003), Chris Douglas (2004), Giuseppe Aguanno (2005), Brendan Dewan (2006), Eli Nichols (2007), Patrick Bailey (2008), Ryan Wood (2009), Brett Huffman (2010), Vincent Rey (2010), Bryan Morgan (2011), Matt Daniels (2012), Sean Renfree (2013), Perry Simmons (2014), David Helton (2015) and Ross Martin (2016).

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