Nov. 8, 2007
Orlando, Fla. (www.ucfathletics.com) - Three UCF football players were honored for their academic success on Thursday as CoSIDA officials released the organization's ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District first and second teams. Defensive tackle Keith Shologan, strong safety Sha'reff Rashad and wide receiver Rocky Ross were all named to the District 3 first team.
The Knights led the District 3 University Division with three first-team honorees. For Shologan and Ross, it is their first All-District honors, while Rashad collected his second CoSIDA mention. His first came as a redshirt freshman during the 2005 season.
Shologan, a finance major, carries a 3.52 cumulative grade point average and has been named to the Dean's List five times in his tenure at UCF. Rashad and Ross, who are both criminal justice majors and Jacksonville, Fla., natives, carry 3.46 and 3.31 cumulative GPAs, respectively. Rashad was the 2006 UCF Male Scholar Athlete of the Year.
"I'm very proud of the players and their academic success," head coach George O'Leary said. "Their achievements display how important academics our to the success of our program."
All three players are also contributing to the Knights' success on the field where the team has won three straight to improve to 6-3 on the season. Shologan has 45 career starts, including 42 consecutive, on the defensive line and has a career-high 2.5 sacks this season. Rashad leads the team with 68 tackles and three interceptions, while Ross leads the club with 31 receptions.
With their status on the All-District first team, the three players are now eligible for the ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-America honors, which will be voted on next week by sports information directors across the country.
This is the eighth time in program history that UCF has had players earn Academic All-District honors. The 1980 squad also had three players earn All-District honors.
Tickets for UCF's final regular season home game in 2007 vs. UTEP are still available and can be purchased by calling 407-UCF-1000.
For the latest news and information on the Knights, tickets or apparel log on to www.ucfathletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. Also check out www.ucfphotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.
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