Christian Francisco
RICE RUNNING BACK NAMED GO BOWLING
MILITARY BOWL STEM SCHOLAR-ATHLETE
Rice University running back Christian Francisco, a graduate student who completed his undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering in just three years, has been named a Go Bowling Military Bowl STEM Scholar-Athlete for the second year in a row.
Francisco, who is from Rogers, Ark., has a 3.95 grade-point average. He graduated early by taking upper-level and grad-level courses early and organized a summer class with one of his favorite professors to stay ahead of schedule. As part of his senior capstone project – and while dealing with two of his own knee injuries — Francisco developed a rehabilitation device for postoperative bedridden orthopedic surgery patients for the MD Anderson Cancer Center Hospital.
Francisco has received the conference commissioner’s academic medal and been named to the conference all-academic team. He also is a member of the Rice University Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and serves as a peer academic advisor for teammates, tutoring them in math, science and computer science.
“Christian Francisco is an outstanding example of everything a scholar-athlete should be,” said Julie Griswold, associate director/academic advising for athletics at Rice. “The mechanical engineering curriculum is incredibly demanding, both in the depth and the breadth of courses required, and Christian has excelled in all of his classes. His technical knowledge in the classroom is very strong and he is a frequent and helpful part of class discussions. Christian has also shown himself to be a terrific leader for his peers, building teams and advocating for additional educational opportunities for other students.”
The Go Bowling Military Bowl is proud to announce the members of the fourth annual STEM Scholar-Athlete Program, recognizing some of the brightest minds competing on the gridiron in the ACC and the American Athletic Conference.
“The Go Bowling Military Bowl STEM Scholar-Athlete Program honors an amazing group of young men who truly showcase what it means to be a student-athlete,” Military Bowl Foundation President & Executive Director Steve Beck said. “We are thrilled to honor this group of talented players for their success on and off the field while continually challenging themselves in the classroom.”
The Go Bowling Military Bowl STEM Scholar-Athlete Program honors one football player at each university that is a member of the ACC and the American Athletic Conference – the two conferences that are represented in the Go Bowling Military Bowl college football game. These players are studying STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) subjects and/or aspire to STEM careers.
The two players whose teams compete in the 2024 Go Bowling Military Bowl will be recognized at the game, which takes place on Saturday, Dec. 28 at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Md. Kickoff is at 5:45 p.m. ET and the game will be televised on ESPN. Bowl tickets are on sale now. A donation will be made in the name of these two players to their respective school’s general scholarship fund.