FORT WALTON BEACH, FL – Michael Saffell was named one of nine national semifinalists for the Wuerffel Trophy announced Monday. The honor is known as "College Football's Premier Award for Community Service" and is presented annually to the Football Bowl Subdivision student-athlete who best combines exemplary community service with athletic and academic achievement. The award is named after 1996 Heisman Trophy winner Danny Wuerffel.

Saffell took over from Patrick Laird as the lead ambassador for the Cal Athletics Summer Reading Challenge in 2019 and visited approximately 25 organizations and spoke to over 5000 kids that summer to promote reading and combat summer learning loss the returned to the role in the summer of 2020 when the event took place on line due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Saffell has a 3.62 cumulative GPA and is slated to graduate from Cal's prestigious Haas School of Business this month and complete his undergraduate studies in three and a half years.

"It is always an extremely difficult job narrowing down our nominees and this year's class was no different," Wuerffel said. "The work that these young men did in their communities, and in some cases around the world, really stood out. We are proud to announce that they have been named our 2020 Wuerffel Trophy semifinalists."

Three finalists for the 2020 Wuerffel Trophy are scheduled to be announced December 22. The formal announcement of the 2020 recipient is anticipated to made the week of December 26 – January 2 and will be featured on The Home Depot/ESPN College Football Awards Show on January 7, 2021 (4 – 5:30 pm PST). The presentation of the 2020 Wuerffel Trophy is scheduled to occur at the 52nd All Sports Association Awards Banquet on February 20, 2021 in Niceville, Fla.

The Wuerffel Trophy is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA), which encompasses the most prestigious awards in college football. Founded in 1997, the NCFAA and its 25 awards now boast more than 800 recipients, dating back to 1935. Visit www.ncfaa.org to learn more about the association.

Saffell is the second Cal player to be honored for his community service on the national level in 2020 along with Elijah Hicks, who is a member of the AFCA Allstate Good Works Team® and a semifinalist for the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year Award.

Below are additional notes on Saffell with an extended bio available by clicking on his name.
 
Michael Saffell, OL, 6-2, 290, Sr., 3L, Huntington Beach, CA (Edison HS)
– Has played in 28 games with 23 starts since his 2017 arrival at Cal including all four contests as a 2020 senior
– Named Second-Team (Pick Six Previews), Third-Team (Athlon, Lindy's) and Fourth-Team (Phil Steele) Preseason All-Pac-12, as well as being as a semifinalist for the Wuerffel Trophy and Campbell Trophy, as well as on the watch list for the Rimington Trophy as a 2020 senior
– Honored with the Pac-12's annual academic recognition each of the last two seasons as a first-team Pac-12 All-Academic selection as a sophomore and a member of the league's inaugural Pac-12 Academic Honor Roll that replaced its Pac-12 All-Academic teams as a junior