Courtesy: Texas A&M Athletics
BIRMINGHAM – Texas A&M’s Sam Hankins of track & field team and Chloe Stepanek of swimming & diving have been nominated for the SEC H. Boyd McWhorter Scholar-Athlete Post-Graduate Scholarship, the league announced Monday.
The H. Boyd McWhorter Scholar-Athlete Post-Graduate Scholarship has been presented by the SEC since 1986 to the league’s top male and female scholar-athletes.
The SEC provides the league’s male and female McWhorter Scholar-Athlete of the Year Post-Graduate Scholarship recipients with a $20,000 post-graduate scholarship. The 30 remaining male and female finalists for the award will also receive a $10,000 post-graduate scholarship.
The award recipients are chosen by a committee of Faculty Athletics Representatives from the 16 SEC institutions and are announced in April, as well as honored by the league membership in late May at SEC Spring Meetings in Destin, Florida.
Hankins has impressed in the classroom, as he graduated Cum Laude for his bachelor’s degree in sport management with a 3.78 GPA in the Spring of 2024. Taking his education further, he is now pursuing a master’s degree also in sport management and currently holds an unblemished 4.0 GPA. The track & field standout earned a plethora of awards for his academic success, including being named to the Athletic Director’s honor roll eight times, while being an SEC Honor Roll and Dean’s Honor Roll member on four occasions. Pairing his athletic and academics, Hankins was recognized by the USTFCCCA, garnering Academic All-America status three times.
“Being nominated by Texas A&M for the H. Boyd McWhorter Scholar Athlete of the Year is an incredible honor and one of the most meaningful recognitions of my career as a student-athlete,” Hankins said. “This award reflects the hard work I have put into my academic and athletic pursuits, as well as the support I have received from my coaches, professors and teammates. I am extremely honored and grateful for the opportunity to be considered for this award given the number of outstanding student-athletes here at Texas A&M and across the SEC.”
In the field, Hankins boasts a pair of All-America honors in the javelin and has finished in top five of the SEC Championships in the event in his last three trips to the meet. After returning from injury, he recorded his personal-best mark in his season opener last season at the Carolina Spring break Classic with a toss of 77.95m/255-9 which landed him third on the A&M all-time performers list. Throughout his collegiate career he has captured seven event wins, all coming in the javelin.
Stepanek has boasted a 4.0 GPA while earning her undergraduate degree in biomedical sciences and in pursuit of her master’s in kinesiology. She earned SEC Swimming & Diving Scholar-Athlete of the Year honors in 2023 and 2024 and is a four-time CSCAA First Team Scholar All-American, as well as a CSC First Team Academic All-American. She has also spent time working as a student technician at the Huffines Institute for Sports Medicine and Human Performance and has previously served as a teaching assistant for Physiology for Biomedical Engineers and Biomedical Anatomy. This year, Stepanek earned the highest honor bestowed upon a student-athlete at Texas A&M, garnering the Distinguished Letterman Award for her extraordinary talent and honor in the areas of athletics, scholarship, leadership and service.
“It is an honor to be named the Texas A&M female nominee for the SEC H. Boyd McWhorter Scholar-Athlete of the Year,” Stepanek said. “Being able to represent Texas A&M as a member of the swimming & diving team these past five years has been nothing short of extraordinary and the support that this institution provides is unmatched. This scholarship will help me continue to reach my graduate and professional school goals in my journey to becoming a physician.”
In the pool, Stepanek is a 16-time All-American and medaled five times in her career at SEC Championships. She holds the school record in the 200 free and ranks among the top-five all-time at A&M in the 50 and 100 free, and as a member of the 200 and 400 medley relays. The Northport, New York, native was named to the SEC Community Service Team earlier this year after working with REVved Up to Read, AggiesCAN and The Big Event, the largest one-day, student-run community service project where she cleaned yards and houses of those in need in the local community. She served as a team captain and team SAAC representative, while also working as an ambassador for the 12th Man Foundation and their 1922 fund.
Definitely well deserved. Congrats Chloe.