Empey named semifinalist for the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year Award

DALLAS — BYU offensive linemen James Empey has been named one of 20 semifinalists for the 2021 Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year Award. The award is named after 11-time NFL Pro Bowler Jason Witten and focuses on leadership, integrity, exceptional courage and sportsmanship both on and off the field.

A team captain the Cougars, Empey has started in all 41 games he has played over his BYU career. He was 2018 FWAA Freshman All-American and was named a 2021 preseason All-American by both Phil Steele and Athlon Sports. 

In addition to the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year Award, Empey has been named a semifinalist for the Wuerffel Trophy, the NFF William V. Campbell Trophy and the Rotary Lombardi Award. He is also a candidate for the 2021 AFCA Good Works Team and was selected to the Rimington Award Watch List for the third time and the Outland Trophy Watch List for the second-straight year. 

Empey has been active in serving others off the field through volunteer work in the community. He has worked with BYU head coach Kalani Sitake's More to Life Foundation in California and New York and organized football's involvement with the My Tiny Hero program in Utah, raising awareness for congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH). 

In the classroom, Empey is a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-District selection who graduated this summer with a 3.84 GPA as a finance major with a minor in nonprofit management. He is a two-time team captain, member of the BYU Football Leadership Council and served on the Student Athlete Advisory Council at BYU.

The 2021 semifinalists for the Witten Award include: Grant Morgan (Arkansas), Brandon Martin (Ball State), James Empey (BYU), Elijah Hicks (California), Desmond Ridder (Cincinnati), Darien Rencher (Clemson), Jake Bobo (Duke), Vederian Lowe (Illinois), Skylar Thompson (Kansas State), Joshua Paschal (Kentucky), Tanner Morgan (Minnesota), Austin Williams (Mississippi State), Adrian Martinez (Nebraska), Patrick Fields (Oklahoma), Sean Clifford (Penn State), Nick Figueroa (Southern California), Kingsley Jonathan (Syracuse), Tony Bradford, Jr. (Texas Tech), Bryce Harris (Toledo) and Brock Hoffman (Virginia Tech).    

Three finalists for the Witten Award will be named on Wednesday, Dec. 15 and the winner will be announced at an awards ceremony in Frisco, Texas, on Feb. 17, 2022. The winner will receive a $10,000 contribution in his name to his school’s athletic scholarship fund from the SCORE Foundation, the official charity of Jason and his wife Michelle. 

Previous award winners include Sam Ehlinger of Texas (2020), Trey Smith of Tennessee (2019), D’Cota Dixon of Wisconsin (2018) and Shaquem Griffin of UCF (2017).