Junior Carson Dunn was named the winner of the Troy Barboza Most Courageous award. Troy played at Grinnell in the mid-80's, and upon graduating had taken up a career in law enforcement in Hawaii. In October of 1987, Barboza was scheduled to testify as part of a large undercover sting operation, when he was murdered by another drug dealer. The Pioneers have honored the memory of the fallen officer by naming a Most Courageous player each year.
Based on his service to the campus community, as well as his play on the field, Carson Dunn made for a worthy recipient of the Barboza award. Carson is a member of Grinnell SALSC (Student-Athletes Leading Social Change), he presented at the Apple Conference and to the Grinnell College community on ways to use student-athletes to promote sexual respect, and he was voted a team captain in December. On the field, Carson was arguably the most versatile player we had this past year. He took snaps at tight end, running back, slot receiver, quarterback, kick returner, and (believe it or not!) cornerback. We're hoping he'll be able to focus his efforts on a single position this year, but Carson rushed for 371 yards and 2 td's, including two 100-yard rushing performances, and caught 28 passes for 262 yards and another score. He also averaged over 18 yards per kick off return and recorded 12 tackles on kick and punt coverage. Carson was obviously very busy last year, and the courage and determination with which he played was evident to all on his own team, as well as his opponents. He is a worthy recipient of the Troy Barboza Most Courageous award.
