2012 NCAA Division One Winner Announced for National Awards & Recognition Association Sportsmanship Award

GLENVIEW, Ill., Nov. 29, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Notre Dame University has another first place under its belt now that the winner of the 2012 Awards and Recognition Association Sportsmanship Award has been revealed - the association is proud to announce Notre Dame linebacker, Manti Te'o is this year's award recipient.

"Te'o blew us away and that is saying a lot," said LaVell Edwards, the award-winning retired Brigham Young University head football coach and chairman of the Awards and Recognition Association Sportsmanship Award http://arasportsmanshipaward.com selection committee. "This is our eighth year for the award and we continue to see outstanding candidates that are redefining sportsmanship and taking it to the next level. Te'o's performance on the field is unparalled, but it was his work as a conscientious student and citizen who gives back that made him this year's winner."

Given annually to one outstanding NCAA Division I collegiate football player who best personifies the spirit of sportsmanship, the Awards and Recognition Association Sportsmanship Award is the only national award that recognizes an athlete's character as it relates to sportsmanship," Edwards said.

Te'o has worked hard to earn numerous prestigious academic and athletic accolades while simultaneously demonstrating quiet humility on and off of the field. From his humble beginnings in Hawaii to volunteering at homeless shelters during his college summer vacations, to helping serve as a positive role model for local underprivileged youth, he takes time to help those less fortunate.