Perkins is one of 20 Wooden Cup semifinalists

ATLANTA - Lake Superior State senior guard Scott Perkins is one of 20 semifinalists for the 2010 John Wooden Citizen's Cup, an award given for the most outstanding role model among athletes and sponsored by the Athletes for a Better World organization. 

The Wooden Cup is given to a collegiate and a professional athlete who have made the greatest positive influence in the lives of others. The award recipients will be announced at a ceremony held at Atlanta's East Lake Golf Club on Wednesday, Jan. 19. The five finalists are Division I athletes from the University of South Florida, University of Texas, University of North Carolina, Dartmouth College and Harvard University. Soccer player Mia Hamm is the professional honoree.

With Peyton Manning, John Smoltz, John Lynch, Andrea Yaeger and Cal Ripken, Jr. as  previous recipients, the Wooden Cup is becoming one of the most prestigious awards in all of sports. Recipients are considered role models and athletes of excellence both on and off the field.

Founded by Athletes for a Better World (ABW), a non-profit organization committed to changing the culture of American sports, the Wooden Cup is unique in that it is open to athletes in all collegiate and professional sports. Nominations come from every conference in the NCAA.

Perkins, who is one of only four non-Division I athletes to make the semifinal cut, is a four-year starting guard at LSSU and the current Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference scoring leader averaging 21.9 points per game. He is a sociology major with a 3.4 grade point average. Off the court, Perkins has been one of the most-active members of the LSSU Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and a willing participant in community activities such as the Big Brothers/Big Sisters Bowling, the Make-A-Wish Foundation fund-raiser, assisting senior citizens during the holidays and mentoring of younger athletes.

"Anytime you're even nominated for something like that it means you're the best of the best," LSSU men's basketball coach Steve Hettinga said. "To make the semifinal list means you're in exclusive company. It's a true credit to him. It's not just for what he's done this year. But for four years he's been a model citizen and a model student, and a true pleasure to coach."

The Wooden Cup is named in honor of John Wooden, one of the most successful coaches in collegiate history. Wooden's legacy as a person of integrity, high moral character, compassion, and civic-mindedness continues to make him one of the most admired coaches in the history of sport.

Recipients of the Coach Wooden Citizenship Cup are chosen by a committee chaired by Vincent Dooley, former University of Georgia athletic director, and other distinguished individuals involved in athletics across the country.

The list of semifinalists and finalists includes men and women representing 11 sports. The only non-Division I athletes recognized were Perkins, Kimberly Reeves (basketball) of Agnes Scott College, Amy Smith (basketball) of Lewis University and Kara Teresi (soccer) of Georgia College and State University.

Complete list of finalists, semifinalists and honorable mentions

During the past four years, Hettinga has repeatedly emphasized how much Perkins cares about his teammates, his team and Lake Superior State.

"You don't see that in guys," Hettinga noted. "He just cares about people. I don't have a bad kid on this team, but he's the standard I wish all kids lived up to."

About Athletes for a Better World:

Founded in 1998, Athletes for a Better World (ABW) exists to change the culture of sport by developing individual character, teamwork, and civic responsibility through commitment to the Code for Living.  ABW's vision is to have the Code become a part of every sport at every level, so that it becomes the common language and standard expectation of behavior for everyone. ABW provides free support and resources to coaches and athletes across the country who want to teach and live out these values. "The Code for Living" can be found on playing fields, locker rooms and athletic facilities across the country. Currently, ABW players and coaches are represented in every state and several foreign countries.