Ragnow named to ‘Wuerffel’ watch list

FORT WALTON BEACH, Fla. — Arkansas senior center Frank Ragnow was named to the preseason watch list for the Wuerffel Trophy on Tuesday.

The Wuerffel Trophy is “College Football’s Premier Award for Community Service,” presented annually by the All Sports Association of Fort Walton Beach to the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) player who best combines exemplary community service with athletic and academic achievement.

One of a record 109 nominees for the prestigious award, Ragnow has participated in a variety of community service projects atArkansas and is three credit hours away from graduating with a degree in recreation and sport management.

Ragnow is also a candidate for the Rimington Trophy, Outland Trophy and Allstate AFCA Good Works Team.

He boasts spots on several preseason All-America teams, including earning first-team honors from Athlon Sports and Lindy’s Sports as well as second-team status from Sporting News.

Last Friday, he earned preseason first-team All-SEC honors, as voted on by the media at SEC Football Media Days.

Ragnow’s Community Service Projects

• Made visits to elementary schools in Northwest Arkansas throughout the Spring 2017 semester.

• Participated in Razorback Relief: Operation Baton Rouge, which benefited those impacted by floods in Louisiana last August.

• Participated in the Book Hogs — Read to Win Kickoff at Root Elementary School in Fayetteville, Arkansas, last March, an initiative that encourages students at the elementary school level to enjoy reading, has been one of the Razorbacks’ most successful programs over the years.

• Helped host Special Olympics Arkansas at football practices this past spring.

• Volunteered with Hogs for Hope, a registered student organization at the University of Arkansas whose goal is to fundraise and support the Arkansas Children’s Hospital.

• Volunteered with and made regular visits over the last three years to the Northwest Arkansas Children’s Shelter, a private, non-profit organization that provides 24-hour emergency residential care to children who are victims of family violence, neglect and physical and sexual abuse.