For the second week in a row, South Dakota State quarterback Mark Gronowski has been named a finalist for a college football scholar-athlete award.
On Wednesday, the Jackrabbit signal-caller was announced as one of 13 finalists one from each of the conferences that makes up the Football Championship Subdivision for the 2024 FedEx Doris Robinson Scholar-Athlete Award.
The award is presented annually to an FCS student-athlete who exemplifies excellence on the field, in the classroom and across the community. The values embody the leadership and integrity championed by Doris Robinson, a former school teacher and the wife of legendary Grambling State University coach Eddie Robinson.
A native of Naperville, Illinois, Gronowski has been a four-year starter for the Jackrabbits, leading the program to a combined 43-5 record and back-to-back FCS national championships. He was honored as the recipient of the 2023 Walter Payton Award, as well as the FCS Athletics Directors Associations Offensive Player of the Year last season after leading the subdivision in passing efficiency with a 179.6 rating.
Gronowskis career totals include 8,974 passing yards and 81 touchdowns, while accounting for another 1,653 rushing yards and 31 scores.
In addition, Gronowski graduated this past May with a 3.76 grade-point average in mechanical engineering and is currently pursuing a masters degree in engineering management. He also has been active in his communities as a youth flag football coach and Special Olympics volunteer.
The award winner will be announced on Dec. 10, then honored at the Stats Perform FCS National Awards Banquet on Jan. 4 in Frisco, Texas. Previous winners include former SDSU wide receiver Jake Wieneke in 2017. Former Jackrabbit running back Zach Zenner was honored as the top scholar-athlete in the FCS in 2014, when the award was presented as the Mickey Charles Academic Achievement Award.
Last week, Gronowski was selected as one of 16 finalists for the William V. Campbell Trophy, which is awarded annually to the top scholar-athlete in all divisions of college football.
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