Penn State's Sean Clifford Receives Big Ten Medal of Honor

Clifford and softball player Lexie Black represent the Lions in receiving the prestigious Big Ten award.

Kirby Lee/USA Today Sports

Former Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford and softball player Lexie Black received the Big Ten Medal of Honor, the conference's highest award that recognizes athletic and academic success. The Big Ten has awarded the Medal of Honor since 1915 to graduates who "attained the greatest proficiency in athletics and scholastic work," according to a news release.

Clifford, the offensive MVP of the 2023 Rose Bowl, capped his college career by breaking seven Penn State career records, including starts (32), passing yards (10.661), completion percentage (61.4), passing touchdowns (86) and total yards (11,734). He was a finalist for the 2022 Jason Witten Man of the Year Award and a five-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree. Last year Clifford presented a $15,000 donation to Brothers Big Sisters of Centre County, which included $5,000 from Limitless NIL, the agency he started and sold while at Penn State. The Green Bay Packers selected Clifford in the fifth round of the 2023 NFL Draft. 

Black started all 47 games for the Penn State softball team, hitting .319 with a team-high 10 home runs and 36 RBI. Black played ninth in the Big Ten in OPS (1.085) and was named second-team All-Big Ten. Black graduated with a bachelor's in veterinary and biomedical sciences and a 3.91 grade-point average. Black earned a $7,500 Big Ten postgraduate scholarship and pursue her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree at Nebraska.

The Big Ten Medal of Honor was the first in college sports to recognize academic and athletic success. In 1982, the conference began awarding the Medal of Honor to one male and one female athlete per school.  

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