The 2021 Biletnikoff Award Banquet & Celebration on March 6, 2021, Will Honor 2020 Biletnikoff Award Winner DeVonta Smith of Alabama and Recognize Thirteen Foundation Scholarship Recipients

The 2021 Biletnikoff Award Banquet & Celebration on March 6, 2021, Will Honor 2020 Biletnikoff Award Winner DeVonta Smith of Alabama and Recognize Thirteen Foundation Scholarship Recipients

For Immediate Release: February 26, 2021

The 2020 Biletnikoff Award winner DeVonta Smith of the University of Alabama

Tallahassee, FL - The Tallahassee Quarterback Club (TQC) Foundation, Inc., the Florida-based creator and sponsor of the prestigious Biletnikoff Award, will honor Alabama's DeVonta Smith, unanimous, consensus 1st-team All-America receiver, as the 2020 winner of the Biletnikoff Award and the thirteen Foundation scholarship winners at the 27th annual Biletnikoff Award Banquet & Celebration on March 6, at the University Center Club at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee, Florida.

The Biletnikoff Award annually recognizes the college football season's outstanding FBS receiver. Any player, regardless of position (wide receiver, tight end, slot or inside receiver, wingback, and running back) who catches a pass is eligible for the award. As such, the Biletnikoff Award recognizes college football's outstanding receiver, not merely college football's outstanding wide receiver.

The semifinalists, finalists, and award recipient are selected by the highly distinguished Biletnikoff Award National Selection Committee, a group of prominent college football journalists, commentators, announcers, Biletnikoff Award winners, and other former receivers. Foundation trustees do not vote and have never voted. For a list of voters, please see BiletnikoffAward.com/voters.

The Biletnikoff Award candidate eligibility and voting criteria, transparently explicit and detailed, are available for review at BiletnikoffAward.com/criteria.

The TQC Foundation's charitable mission is the provision of college and vocational scholarships to North Florida high school seniors who have overcome significant barriers to achieve at the highest academic and extracurricular levels. Participation in sports is not a requirement. The Foundation has provided many millions of dollars for nearly three hundred scholarships and related benefits through 2021.

The TQC Foundation 2021 scholarship recipients are:

Student	School
Molly Buchanan	James Madison Preparatory High School
Calya Denson	Florida State University School (Florida High)
Samantha Ellrich	Leon High School
Addisan Langston	Florida State University School (Florida High)
Anna McGibany	Leon High School
Emmett Mitchell	Leon High School
William Newell	Leon High School
Daniel Porter	Leon High School
Noah Saylor-Savona	Donald Ralph Cook School (Florida Sheriffs Boys Ranch)
Lacie Smith	Lincoln High School
Olivia Unger	SAIL High School
Maddox Whittaker	St. John Paul II Catholic High School
Roderick Williams, Jr.	Madison County High School

2020 Scholarship Recipients

2019 Scholarship Recipients

2018 Scholarship Recipients

The correlation between Biletnikoff Award winners and stardom in the National Football League is nearly uniformly consistent. Past Biletnikoff Award winners include Calvin Johnson, Randy Moss, Michael Crabtree, Amari Cooper, the late Terry Glenn, and Larry Fitzgerald.

DeVonta Smith will be presented the Biletnikoff Award trophy by TQC Foundation Chairman George Avant, Jr. and keynoter and college hall of famer Chad Hennings at the Biletnikoff Award banquet & celebration at the University Center Club at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee on Saturday, March 6, 2021. The banquet was hailed by 2014 keynote speaker Dick Vermeil, as well as by 2013 keynoter Larry Csonka, as "the best banquet in college sports."

2021 Biletnikoff Award keynote speaker and college hall of famer Chad Hennings

The banquet has featured distinguished keynoters of profound character and accomplishments including the late Bart Starr, Dick Vermeil, the late Floyd Little, Larry Csonka, Steve Largent, Mike Ditka, the late Don Shula, Dan Reeves, Archie Manning, Ron Jaworski, Gene Stallings, Bob Griese, Bill Curry, Bobby Bowden, Jim Kelly, Jerry Kramer, Joe Theismann, Dan Fouts, Lou Holtz, and Aaron Taylor.

2020 banquet keynote speaker Lou Holtz, Founding Trustee & past chairman Walter Manley II, Chairman Steve Dobson III, and 2019 Biletnikoff Award winner Ja'Marr Chase


Florida State's Fred Biletnikoff


	2020-2021 Foundation Chairman George Avant, Jr.

The name Biletnikoff is synonymous with the term

receiver. Fred Biletnikoff, a member of the pro and college football halls of fame, was a consensus All-America receiver at Florida State University, and an All-Pro receiver for the Oakland Raiders. He caught 589 passes for 8,974 yards and 76 touchdowns in his 14-year Raiders career from 1965 through 1978. Fred was the Most Valuable Player of Super Bowl XI.

The Biletnikoff Award

(BiletnikoffAward.com/about_award)

The TQC Foundation, Inc., is an independent, charitable organization that was founded in 1994. Past Chairman & Founding Trustee Professor Walter W. Manley II, Founding Trustee L. Thomas Cox, Jr., Founding Trustee Rocky Bevis, and Founding Trustee Bob Teel established the award and the TQC Foundation, Inc., that sponsors it. Many more trustees have contributed to its development as one of the most prominent awards in college football. The TQC Foundation, Inc., joined the idea of a college receiver's award to the organization's vision and created the outstanding award and dynamic organization.

The trophy, presented to each winner, is the most beautiful in college football - it has won several national, juried competitions for design excellence and aesthetic appeal.

Likewise, the website and printed banquet program have been cited nationally for excellence in design.

The Tallahassee Quarterback Club Foundation, Inc., a 501(c)(3) organization, is the creator and sponsor of the Biletnikoff Award. The Foundation administers the Biletnikoff Award, its charitable activities, and the distinguished Biletnikoff Award National Selection Committee. Foundation Trustees are prohibited from serving on the National Selection Committee. For a full recounting of the Foundation's activities, please consult BiletnikoffAward.com.

National College Football Awards Association

The Biletnikoff Award 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 over 800 recipients, dating to 1935. Visit ncfaa.org and @NCFAA on Twitter to learn more about the association.