AU's Pugh a candidate for Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award - WSFA.com Montgomery Alabama news.

AUBURN, AL. - Auburn senior Ryan Pugh has been named as one of 30 candidates for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award for NCAA football bowl subdivision schools, it was announced Tuesday. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence - community, classroom, character and competition. 

An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities. 

Pugh has excelled on the field, having started 31 games for the Tigers during his career, including all 25 games at center over the past two seasons. He was selected to the Associated Press All-SEC second team following the 2009 season after leading the team with 70 knockdown blocks, and was named a preseason second-team All-SEC selection by the league's coaches last month. 

In the classroom, Pugh carries a 3.56 grade-point average majoring in building science. He was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District Second Team following the 2009 season, and is a two-time Southeast Conference Academic Honor Roll selectee and a three-time Academic Top Tiger. 

Pugh has also been active in the community, volunteering at Camp ASSCA, a camp for disabled children near Auburn. He has also spent time working at Storybook Farm, a theraputic horse riding center, working with the Student-Athlete Advisory Council Toys for Tots campaign and with canned food drives for the East Alabama Food Bank. 

The candidate class for the Senior CLASS Award will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans, who will select one finalist who best exemplifies excellence in the four Cs of community, classroom, character and competition.

 Lowe's, an official Corporate Partner of the NCAA, will announce the Senior CLASS Award® winner at the conclusion of the regular season. 

INFORMATION SOURCE: Auburn University Athletics