Eight from men’s basketball team named to ACC academic honor roll
Eight members of Florida State’s ACC Championship men’s basketball team have been named to the 2020 ACC Academic Honor Roll marking the fourth consecutive season at least seven members of the team had been named to the prestigious academic list.
Trent Forrest, who was named the ACC Scholar Athlete of the Year for men’s basketball in the ACC, was named to the list for a program record tying fourth time. He was joined on the honor roll by redshirt juniors Harrison Prieto, Travis Light and Will Miles, junior Nathanael Jack, sophomore Devin Vassell and freshmen Balsa Koprivica and Patrick Williams.
In the last four seasons, the Seminole men’s basketball team has earned a total of 30 ACC Academic Honor Roll selections, earned seven All-ACC Academic men’s basketball team honorees and was named as an NABC Academic Team of Excellence in 2017.
Forrest, Miles and Prieto were named to the ACC Academic Honor for the fourth time in their careers while Light and Vassell earned the honor for the second time in their careers. It was the first mention on the ACC Academic Honor Roll for Jack, Koprivica and Williams.
Trent Forrest finished his career as one of the most experienced NCAA Tournament players in school history.
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“Earning a spot on the ACC academic honor roll requires a lot of commitment and time management,” said team captain Harrison Prieto. “Balancing academics and athletics isn’t always easy, but our coaching staff has developed a culture amongst our players where academic excellence is not optional. Whenever you’re surrounded by teammates trying to accomplish the same goals on and off the court as you are, it makes it a lot easier to be successful in everything you do.”
Forrest (December of 2019, Sport Management) along with Light (Spring of 2020, Business Management), Miles (Spring of 2020, Finance) and Prieto (Spring of 2020, Meteorology) have all earned their bachelor’s degrees from Florida State. Forrest is currently preparing for the upcoming NBA Draft while Light, Miles and Prieto are preparing for the upcoming 2020-21 season as redshirt senior members of the Seminoles.
Under head coach Leonard Hamilton a total of 66 of 69 (.957 percent) of the players who have played through their senior seasons have earned their degrees from Florida State.
“Academic success and earning a degree are two of the things we expect from our players,” said Hamilton. “Performing well in the classroom, developing into outstanding citizens and being good teammates are important parts of becoming great men and great fathers once they finish their careers. Those aspects of life fit our program like a hand in a glove.”
Each of the eight Seminoles named to the 2020 ACC Academic Honor Roll played on at least one NCAA Tournament team. The Seminoles were expected to be one of the highest No. 2 or No. 1 seeds in the 2020 NCAA Tournament before it was cancelled due to the coronavirus.
Forrest finished his career as one of the most experienced NCAA Tournament players in school history. During his career, the Seminoles earned a No. 3 seed (2017), a No 4 seed (2019) and a No. 9 seed (2018) and won six NCAA Tournament games. Forrest helped the Seminoles advance to the Elite Eight of the 2018 NCAA Tournament and the Sweet 16 of the 2019 NCAA Tournament.
Light, Miles and Prieto have also been members of four NCAA Tournament teams during their careers.
“We are so fortunate to have a superior group of professionals guiding our student-athletes in Academic Support Unit for Student-Athletes,” said Hamilton. “Charlie Hogan continues to do a great job with our players as both a mentor and a trusted member of the department.”
Hogan, who has been a member of the Academic Support Unit since 2012, is a driving force behind the academic success of the men’s basketball team.
“The ACC Honor roll is unique in that it based only on the current academic year,” said Hogan, Senior Associate Director of Florida State’s Student Athlete Academic Services Unit. “It’s an award that shows mental strength and determination to continue to achieve academically both while in and out of competition season. Any year a student-athlete earns the award should be lauded. The student-athletes who have earned the right to be on the ACC Honor Roll this year with the additional challenge of remote coursework should be extremely proud of their achievement.”
Florida State won the 2020 ACC Championship with a 26-5 overall record and a 16-4 mark in ACC play. The Seminoles finished with an undefeated record at home for the second time in the last three seasons and won the ACC regular season championship.
The ACC Academic Honor Roll consists of student-athletes who participated in a varsity-level sport and registered a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or better for the full academic year. The conference recognized a record 5,609 student-athletes for their hard work in the classroom.
