100 Alabama Student-Athletes Slated to Earn Degrees in the Spring

The Crimson Tide’s spring total is comprised of 88 undergraduate and 14 master’s degrees, including two that earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree con

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — A total of 100 University of Alabama student-athletes are slated to receive their degrees following the spring semester, which came to a close Friday, including 86 bachelor’s, 12 master’s and two who earned one of each.

The Crimson Tide’s graduates included 17 All-Americans, four Academic All-Americans, 10 who were on a national championship team, 23 who were on a Southeastern Conference championship squad, as well as a World and NCAA Champion, a CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year, an NCAA Elite 90 Award winner and a pair of NFL veterans.

Zane Waddell, who capped his Alabama career as a FINA World Champion, World University Games gold medalist, NCAA Champion, 21-time All-American, eight-time SEC Champion, SEC record holder, SEC Swimming and Diving Scholar-Athlete of the Year and SEC Commissioner’s Trophy winner, earned degrees in finance and management information Sciences.

All-Americans and Academic All-Americans Bailey Hemphill and Kaylee Tow, who were named the CoSIDA Softball Academic All-American of the Year and an NCAA Elite 90 Award winner, respectively, both earned their bachelor’s degrees.

A total of 16 football players earned degrees this spring led by All-American Alex Leatherwood and NFL veterans Chris Goode and Le’Ron McClain.

Sports Illustrated

All-American Graduates

• A total of 17 spring graduates earned All-America honors, while four earned CoSIDA Academic All-America honors during their Crimson Tide careers.
• The track and field/cross country program led the way with eight All-American graduates, including Symone Darius, Nickolette Dunbar, Esther Gitahi, Mauricia Prieto, Keitavious Walter, Portious Warren, Kiara Williams and Samantha Zelden.
• All-American swimmers Waddell, Alexis Preski and Allie Surrency earned diplomas this spring.
• All-American gymnasts Nicki Guerrero and Kiana Winston both earned graduate degrees in the spring.
• Hemphill (softball), Leatherwood (football) and Tow (softball) round out the Tide’s All-American spring graduates.
• Raein Emery (rowing), Hemphill (softball), Nealy Martin (soccer) and Tow (softball) all graduate with Academic All-America honors to go with their diplomas.

Championship Teams

• A total of 10 spring graduates were part of Alabama’s 2017 College Football Playoff Championship team in 2017, including Connor Adams, Deonte Brown, Joseph Bulovas, Joe Donald, Thomas Fletcher, Miller Forristall, Nigel Knott, Leatherwood, John Parker and Daniel Wright.
• In addition, Adams, Brown, Bulovas, Donald, Fletcher, Forristall, Knott, Leatherwood, Parker and Wright, along with Joe Donald, Sean Kelly, Nigel Knott, Chadarius Townsend and Loren Ugheoke were on an SEC Football Championship squad.
• Hemphill, Tow and SEC Pitcher of the Year Sarah Cornell all graduate after earning and SEC Championship ring as part of Alabama’s 2019 regular-season league title.
• Henry Barrett, Elliott Miller, Oliver Rigg, Walter and Drew Williams were part of the team that won the SEC Indoor Track and Field Championship in 2018.
• Winston and Guerrero were both on the Tide’s 2015 SEC Championship squad.

Alabama Athletics

More About Alabama’s Spring Graduates

• Alabama’s 100 spring graduates includes two student-athletes – Luca Fabian (women’s tennis) and Drew Williams (men’s track and field) who earned their bachelor’s and master’s degrees simultaneously through UA’s Accelerated Master’s Program (AMP), giving the Tide a total of 102 degrees this spring, including 88 undergraduate and 14 master’s degrees.
• In addition to Fabian and Williams, Crimson Tide student-athletes earning master’s degrees this spring are Eva Borrowdale (volleyball), Makena Clark (rowing), Kylie Diffley (rowing), Emery (rowing), Forristall (football), Nicki Guerrero (gymnastics), Ashley Homan (volleyball), Kelly (football), Shea Mahoney (gymnastics), Hayley McSparin (volleyball), Amber Richardson (basketball) and Kiana Winston (gymnastics).
• Three members of the spring graduating class earned SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year honors for their respective sports, Mahoney (gymnastics), Martin (soccer) and Waddell (swimming and diving).
• There are four individual SEC Champions among the Tide’s spring graduates including Ariana Guerra (gymnastics), Waddell, who won eight conference titles during his career, Portious Warren (track and field), who took home four titles, and Winston (gymnastics), who earned two.
• 14 spring graduates also earned All-SEC honors including Cornell (softball), Maddie Desch (gymnastics), Gitahi (track and field), Guerra (gymnastics), Guerrero (gymnastics), Hemphill (softball), Leatherwood (football), Mahoney (gymnastics), Tow (softball), Waddell (swimming and diving), Walter (track and field), Warren (track and field), Kiara Williams (track and field) and Winston (gymnastics).

Combined with the 30 graduates that earned degrees following the fall semester, the Crimson Tide has seen 130 of its student-athletes take home diplomas during the current academic year, a total that will rise when the summer commencement list is announced in August.