A Sugar Bowl to remember for Central’s Wassenaar
Central College
PELLA — Looking back on a trip to New Orleans and the Allstate Sugar Bowl as a member of the AFCA Good Works Team last week, Central College senior tight end Jake Wassenaar (Pella) knows it’s an experience he won’t soon forget.
Wassenaar was one of 22 players across NCAA Division I, II, III and NAIA selected to the honor squad and is the fourth Central player tabbed for the elite award, which the AFCA touts as “the most esteemed off-the-field honor in college football.” Central’s Cory Nikkel was selected in 2011, with Stephen Barnes picked in 2005 and Marc Poortinga in 1997, the first year that the AFCA helped present the award.
An elementary education major with a 3.92 grade point average, Wassenaar and the others were cited for their service work. He is deeply involved with The Raining Season, an organization supporting orphaned children in Sierra Leone. He’s also part of Central’s Fellowship of Christian Athletes leadership team, has participated in a pair of two-week service trips to south Texas with Central’s Campus Ministries program and helped teach English to Burmese refugees in Des Moines.
A two-time academic all-Iowa Conference honoree, Wassenaar knows Central played an important role in his selection.
“There are so many experiences I have had at Central that translated into this opportunity,” Wassenaar said. “The community service opportunities Central proved me with, the professors and Campus Ministries all paved the way for me to win this award. I truly feel if I had gone to a different school, I would not have been selected to be a part of this tremendous experience.”
Service learning is a Central hallmark. The college was among just 16 in the U.S. named to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll and one of four finalists for General Community Service. Central students completed 71,850 community service hours in the past year.
Wassennar was quick to show his appreciation to Allstate, as well.
“Allstate could not have been a better host,” he said. “I got to take my whole family to New Orleans and we were treated like royalty from the time we stepped off the plane until we headed home.”
The unforgettable adventure began last Thursday at the Allstate AFCA Good Works Day. Wassenaar and the other players conducted a football clinic for kids in the local community.
“It was great to be able to give back to the city of New Orleans and the surrounding communities,” Wassenaar said. “I love to give back any chance I get.”
Later that day, the players were part of the Allstate Sugar Bowl New Year’s Eve Parade.
“We were right in the front of the parade on a float,” Wassenaar said. “There were so many people there and the energy surrounding it was amazing.”
To conclude the day, players were invited to the Allstate New Year’s Eve Gala at the Roosevelt Hotel in downtown New Orleans.
“It was a great experience to be among Allstate’s top executives and have them congratulate you,” Wassenaar said.
The highlight of the trip came New Year’s Day when the players were recognized during a special halftime presentation at the evening Allstate Sugar Bowl, a 48-20 Mississippi victory over Oklahoma State.
“It was incredible to be a part of the Sugar Bowl,” Wassenaar said. “Not only did we get to go on the field at halftime, but we got to watch the game from a suite on the 50-yard line.”
Some former football stars were even on hand.
“We were being congratulated by Marshall Faulk and Tim Tebow,” Wassenaar said. “It is something I will remember forever.”
Wassenaar has stayed grounded throughout the entire experience.
“There have been so many people who have served much more than I have, yet I was selected to receive this award,” he said. “I am humbled by the amount of people who surrounded me at Central and within the organizations I have worked with. Sometimes their work goes unrewarded, but they were instrumental in me getting this honor.”
