Patrick Mohorcic, a three-year starter on the offensive line during his career with The College of Wooster football team, was selected as one of 29 male fall sport student-athletes to be awarded a prestigious NCAA postgraduate scholarship, the NCAA announced on Friday.
Mohorcic is the fifth Fighting Scot football player to have received the scholarship and 15th Wooster student-athlete overall. He's the first one to earn this prestigious honor since fellow football offensive lineman Nick Flannery did so during the 2015-16 academic year.
"We are so proud of Patrick," said Frank Colaprete, who has now had two student-athletes earn the competitive scholarship in his five years as the Scots' head coach. "It is great to see Patrick's hard work pay off and help provide him with this prestigious scholarship that will allow him to pursue a graduate degree."
On the gridiron, Mohorcic played in 34 games overall, and earned the starting right tackle position as a sophomore. The Highland Hts., Ohio native shifted over to center for his junior season, and remained at that position for the final 20 games of his career. The 6-5, 285-pound lineman earned All-North Coast Athletic Conference recognition as a senior, and played an integral role on a unit that broke or matched 28 program records this past fall.
A political science major with a 3.62 cumulative GPA at Wooster, Mohorcic was a semifinalist for the National Football Foundation's 2017 Campbell Trophy (college football's premier scholar-athlete award), and was a first-team Academic All-District® selection this past fall among honors.
"I am grateful for the opportunity to further my education and have a successful post-football career," added Mohorcic, who intends to use the $7,500 NCAA postgraduate scholarship towards his pursuit of a MBA or J.D. He will be finalizing his postgraduate plans soon.
Off the field, Mohorcic's well-rounded plethora of campus involvement, community service, and internships have led to a host of major accolades. Mohorcic's one of four finalists for the prestigious Wooden Citizenship Cup, and he was the captain of the 2017 Allstate American Football Coaches Association Good Works Team®, which led to an interview live on ESPN in December.
NCAA postgraduate scholarships are awarded annually to 174 student-athletes, who are selected by a committee that screens candidates whom maintain at least a 3.2 GPA, have performed and behaved with distinction on and off the playing field, and intend to continue their academic work beyond the baccalaureate degree.