Hope College linebacker Mason Dekker has been nominated for the 2018 Allstate American Football Coaches Association Good Works Team®.
The senior from Holland, Michigan (West Ottawa HS) is one of 169 nominees from the
Football Bowl Subdivision, NCAA Division III, NCAA Division III and NAIA.
The Allstate AFCA Good Works Team® is comprised of 11 players from the NCAA Football
Bowl Subdivision and 11 players from the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision, Divisions
II, III and the NAIA and one honorary head coach.
To be considered by Allstate and the AFCA for a nomination, each student-athlete must be actively involved with a charitable organization or service group while maintaining a strong academic standing.
The final roster of award recipients and honorary head coach will be unveiled in September.
Dekker is pursuing a major in social studies composite and minoring in psychology
education at Hope. He currently is serving as a Camp Sunshine counselor, Big Brother
mentor and coordinator at Holland Heights School, Life Group leader at Engedi Church,
and designated group representative for Dance Marathon - a Hope College student fundraiser
for Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital in Grand Rapids.
Earlier this summer, Dekker participated in a Hope College Sport Evangelism to Equip Disciples mission trip to Costa Rica.
Head football coach Peter Stuursma and Sports Information Director Alan Babbitt nominated Dekker for the AFCA Good Works Team®.
“Coach Stuursma and I are proud of Mason and the impact he is making off the field — in our community,” Babbitt said. “He is an outstanding leader within our program and a stellar student-athlete who takes the time to care for others.”
A special voting panel consisting of former Allstate AFCA Good Works Team® members and prominent college football media members will review submissions from sports information directors across the nation to select the 2018 Good Works Team®.
"There are always a lot of great stories that come out every year during the college football season, but none of them compare to the inspiring stories that each of these Allstate AFCA Good Works Team nominees live out on a daily basis,” said Todd Berry, AFCA Executive Director. “How these student-athletes spend their time helping others should be a motivation to everyone who reads about them to give back. It’s an honor to partner with Allstate to publicize the great works these student-athletes achieve each year.”