Lincoln, Neb. – Nebraska track and field senior John Welk added one more prestigious award to his impressive resume on Thursday, winning CoSIDA’s Capital One Academic All-American of the Year award for men’s track and field.
Levi Gipson and Drew Wiseman were also honored as CoSIDA first-team Academic All-Americans, giving the Huskers three of the 15 first-team selections. It’s the first time any Husker team other than football has had three first-team Academic All-Americans in a year. The Nebraska men and women now have a total of 55 CoSIDA Academic-All America selections all-time, including a nation-leading 41 since 2002. It also marks the sixth consecutive year the Husker men and women have combined for at least three Academic All-Americans.
A native of Bismarck, N.D., Welk not only earned the first Academic All-America First Team honor of his career, but also was named the overall Academic All-American of the Year for all male track and field student-athletes. Welk is the first Husker track and field athlete to earn the honor, which began including track and field in 2003.
Welk graduated in May with a degree in nutrition science and 3.99 GPA. Welk also received the Big Ten Postgraduate Scholarship in May and earlier this year was named Nebraska’s Male Student-Athlete of the Year and the Big Ten Medal of Honor winner.
Welk was a two-time All-American as part of NU’s 4×100-meter relay team for Coach Gary Pepin’s men’s track and field squad. He was also a two-time NCAA Elite 89 award winner with the best GPA at the NCAA Track and Field Championships. Welk garnered three academic All-Big Ten accolades in his standout Husker career and will likely add a third Big Ten Distinguished Scholar honor this summer.
Gipson, a junior from Lincoln Christian, was a repeat first-team Academic All-American with a 3.95 GPA in nutrition, exercise and health science. Gipson is a six-time All-American as part of NU’s 4×400 relay team. He joins Bjorn Barrefors as the only Husker men in history to receive multiple first-team Academic All-America honors in a career.
Wiseman, a sophomore from Bismarck, N.D., earned his first career Academic All-America honor with a 4.0 GPA majoring in electrical engineering. He was the Elite 89 winner at this year’s NCAA Indoor Championships and is a four-time All-American competing in the 400-meter hurdles and with NU’s 4×400 relay team.