On June 15th, the DAC will give top honors to Denver Broncos linebacker Von Miller as the Denver Athletic Club 2012 Colorado Athlete of the Year. The award recognizes a professional Colorado athlete who has made significant contributions on the field and in the community. Past winners include Chauncey Billups, Connie Carpenter-Phinney, John Elway, Scott Hamilton, Todd Helton, Craig Morton, Rod Smith, Troy Tulowitzki and Larry Walker.
Miller was recently named the 2011 Associated Press Defensive Rookie of the Year in addition to becoming just the second player in Broncos history to be selected to a Pro Bowl following his rookie season. Drafted by the Broncos with the No. 2 overall pick in 2011, Miller finished his collegiate career at Texas A&M University with several accolades, including back-to-back first-team All-America honors as a junior and senior along with earning the Butkus Award in 2010 as the nation's top linebacker.
Dave Logan will be honored with the Denver Athletic Club's Career Achievement Award. Logan is a former National Football League player along with serving as a radio personality and high school football coach. Logan played nine NFL seasons from 1976-84, spending his first eight campaigns with the Cleveland Browns before ending his career with one season in Denver. He has been a major voice on 850 KOA in Denver for more than 20 years and the "Voice of the Broncos" for more than 15 years. Logan has also coached 19 seasons of high school football with his teams making 17 post season appearances, including six state championships. He is the only high school football coach to win a state championship at three different schools at a state's highest classification level. Logan, along with Dave Winfield is also one of only two players to be drafted by the NBA, NFL and MLB.
The Athlete of the Year ceremony also honors six Denver Athletic Club Athletes and the Denver Post/9News High School Student Athletes of the Year. The 2012 Denver Athletic Club Athletes of the Year are nominated by their club peers and selected by the club's Athletic Committee. Criteria for the award include participation in community and DAC-sponsored tournaments, races and events; multi-faceted athletic ability and talent; and good sportsmanship.
This year's Club honorees are:
Lucy Dikeou-Youth Female (age 12-20)
Bailey Tills-Youth Male (age 12-20)
Laura Stuto-Adult Female (age 21-49)
Eric Eiteljorg-Adult Male (age 21-49)
Catherine Coucoules-Master Female (age 50+)
Ralph Graham-Master Male (age 50+)
Each week during the prep season, The Denver Post, The Denver Athletic Club and 9News honor male and female student-athletes. The top male and female athletes will be announced at the banquet.
All proceeds from the banquet benefit Mile High Squash-an after-school youth enrichment program that combines academic tutoring, squash instruction, community service and one-on-one mentoring to students in order to prepare them for post-secondary education. Mile High Squash was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in the Denver Athletic Club.
For information on tickets and sponsorships, please contact the Denver Athletic Club at 303.534.1211.
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