OVERLAND PARK, Kan. – University of South Alabama football specialists Gavin Patterson and Corliss Waitman were both included in the group of 30 NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision student-athletes chosen as candidates for the 2018 Senior CLASS Award® Wednesday.

To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I FBS senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition.  To determine the final Senior CLASS Award winner, the 30 candidates will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans, who will select one candidate who best exemplifies excellence in the four Cs of community, classroom, character and competition.

The Jaguars were one of three programs in the nation — joining Nevada and West Virginia — to have multiple individuals selected as candidates.

Patterson, who hails from Bourbonnais, Ill., stands second-all-time at South in field goal (28), points after touchdown (77) as well as fourth in scoring (161 points, second among kickers).  A first-team all-Sun Belt Conference a year ago, when he made 16-of-19 field goals and led the Jags with 74 points, Patterson is an exercise science major with a 3.98 cumulative grade-point average; he has also participated in community services endeavors on behalf of the Ronald McDonald House, Special Olympics, South Alabama, and the First Light and L'Arche marathons.

Earlier in the day, he was chosen a semifinalist for the 2018 William V. Campbell Trophy® by the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF).

Waitman was also voted first-team all-conference — as well as being named an honorable mention selection on the inaugural All-American Punter team — last fall when he paced the Sun Belt and was among the top 10 nationally with a school season-record average of 45.24 yards per punt, with 26 kicks inside the opposition's 20-yard line.  His 43.17 average per punt is best in South's career record books, and he also ranks third in program history with 37 punts inside the 20-yard line.

A resident of Milton, Fla., Waitman is slated to earn his undergraduate degree in communication from the university in December.  During his time as a Jaguar, he has volunteered on campus, with the Special Olympics, at the Wilmer Children's home and with a Christmas toy drive while also speaking at a special services event.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/WeAreSouth_JAGS. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

Join the South Circle, the unrestricted giving option of the University of South Alabama Athletics.  Contributions to South Circle directly support all 17 sports in addition to various support programming. For more information on how you can join visit: http://jaguarathleticfund.com/give

—USA—