NEW
YORK - While freshman linebacker Jesse
Hiss had aspirations of playing collegiate athletics back in high school,
he also knew how important his academics were.
"Academics
have always been another thing to help get recruited," Hiss said. "A lot of
schools don't recruit guys that don't have great scores. Just another tool to
get noticed."
On
the football field, colleges did take notice of Hiss, who posted 428 tackles, five sacks, 25 tackles for a loss,
12 fumble recoveries, eight forced fumbles, 11 pass breakups and four
interceptions as a linebacker during his high school career. At running back,
he totaled 207 carries for 1,621 yards and 26 touchdowns.
However
his classroom resume is just as impressive as His was the valedictorian at Basehor-Linwood
High School in Bonner Springs, Kan., and had a 4.0 grade point average, an
impressive mark considering none of the classes he took had weighted grades
like many high schools offer today.
In
addition to his grades, he earned the highest honor roll all eight semesters of
high school, was a member of the National Honor Society, a senior class
officer, and spent his Monday nights throughout the school year as a study hall
tutor.
Hiss
won a Greater Kansas City Football Coaches Association Scholar-Athlete Award
and earlier this fall he learned that he added a national scholar-athlete
accolade as well.
In
October, the National Football Foundation & College Football Hall of Fame
announced that Hiss was one of five winners of the 2012 NFF National High
School Scholar-Athlete Award. Each recipient is selected
as the best of the best from their region of the country at the high school
level, with all five winners (currently playing college football) being
recognized solely for their previous accomplishments in high school.
Hiss
is the winner of the Midwest Region, out of the Sunflower (Kan.) Chapter, and
joins Ryan James (from Piscataway High School in Piscataway, N.J.;
currently attending Lehigh University), Alex
Lyons (from DeSoto High
School in DeSoto, Texas; currently attending Rice University), Joshua
Weeks (from Show Low High School in Show Low, Ariz.; currently
attending Brigham Young University), and Sam Yules (from Moses Brown School in
Providence, R.I.; currently attending Stanford University) as the other
regional winners throughout the country.
"It
feels pretty awesome," Hiss said of being one of five student-athletes in the
country to pick up this year's award.
"It
is a great blessing. God has done wonders in my life. Not just physically and
athletically, but he has also given me strong, sharp mind, which I am truly
grateful for."
On
Tuesday, Hiss and the other four winners were honored at the NFF Annual Chapter
Luncheon at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City, just head of the evening's
College Football Hall of Fame ceremonies.
Hiss
was an invited walk-on for the University of Colorado football team this season,
practicing mostly on the scout team while also getting a better understanding
of the college game, both mentally and physically.
A
business management major at CU, he said that he would like to continue to work
in his desired profession after college.
"I
want to start my own company, like my dad did," he said.
His
father, Drew, started a payroll business when Jesse was a little kid, and grew
the company big enough to merge it with another one in Ohio.
"He
grew up on a small farm in western Kansas; a come from nothing story," Hiss
said. "It is kind of inspiring.
Hiss
said he gains inspiration from his father's journey through the business world,
something that he will likely take with him throughout his journey in college
football and in business.
