Senior Nick Chiocco and his family will spend New Year's in New Orleans with Nick joining his fellow Good Works Team members at the Allstate Sugar Bowl. |
Senior defensive lineman joins fellow Good Works Team® members to take part in three days of activities, be honored at halftime of Sugar Bowl®
EASTON, Mass. (December 29, 2015) – Stonehill College senior defensive lineman Nick Chiocco (Mansfield, Massachusetts/Mansfield) and his family will be headed to New Orleans on Wednesday to take part in several activities surrounding the 2016 Allstate® Sugar Bowl® as a member of the 2015 Allstate, American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Good Works Team®.
Chiocco, the first Stonehill football student-athlete named to the Good Works Team®, is one of 11 out of the 22 honorees recognized from NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), Division II, Division III and NAIA out of a record 197 nominees from across all levels of college football. He was the lone Northeast-10 Conference student-athlete nominated and one of just three NCAA Division II student-athletes to earn a spot on the Good Works Team®. Since being established in 1992, the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team® has highlighted the importance of community service and volunteerism.
"I am extremely honored to have been selected to the 2015 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team®," said Chiocco. "Now to have the opportunity to meet the other members of the team this week and to take part in all of the activities is truly a once in a lifetime opportunity that I have been looking forward to for three months."
Chiocco, who will be joined on the trip by his family, will depart for New Orleans on Wednesday with welcome receptions and meetings with the Allstate representatives scheduled for the evening. Among the highlighted events over his three days at the Sugar Bowl® is a Fan Fest Concert, featuring Usher, a youth clinic, participation in the Sugar Bowl® New Year's Eve Parade, introduction at the Allstate Guest Brunch, attending the 82nd Allstate® Sugar Bowl® at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome between Oklahoma State University and Ole Miss where the Good Works Team will be honored on the field at halftime of the nationally televised game (ESPN, 8:30 PM). Chiocco will return home on Saturday, January 2.
Below is a highlight of Chiocco's New Orleans itinerary (All times EST):
Wednesday, December 30
Depart for New Orleans
4:00 PM – Allstate Welcome Reception
7:15 PM – Allstate Fan Fest Concert – featuring a performance by Usher.
Thursday, December 31
11:00 AM – Allstate AFCA Good Works Day at Isidore Newman School
(Children from various YMCA of Greater New Orleans will be participating in a football clinic in which Good Works Team® members will be acting as coaches/camp counselors)
4:30 PM – Allstate® Sugar Bowl® New Year's Eve Parade
(Good Works Team members will ride on Allstate float)
9:30 PM – Allstate New Year's Eve Gala
Friday, January 1
11:30 AM – Allstate AFCA Good Works Team® introduction at Allstate Guest Brunch
6:00 PM – Allstate® Sugar Bowl® Pre-game Party
8:30 PM – 82nd Allstate® Sugar Bowl® at Mercedes-Benz Superdome
Halftime – presentation of Good Works Team® on field (Game is televised on ESPN)
Saturday, January 2
Return home
Chiocco will be updating the Stonehill community via Twitter through @NChiocco during his trip, with regular retweets by @SkyhawkTalk and @SCskyhawkFB as well. He will then provide a journal and photos from his experience following his return that will be posted at stonehillskyhawks.com.
Chiocco appeared in 15 career games over his four year career at Stonehill and has an impressive list of charitable and community service endeavors to his credit. His annual Home Run Derby to benefit the Hearts for Hope Foundation, in memory of Fallon Finnegan a classmate at Mansfield High School who passed away from cystic fibrosis in 2010 at the age of 16, has raised $10,000 over the three years of its existence. His third annual Home Run Derby in August raised over $5,000 alone after raising that total over the first two years combined, the first year of the Derby raised money for One Fund Boston. Chiocco also helped plan, execute and host a charity benefit concert for Sabrina Kelly, the daughter of Stonehill criminology instructor Pamela Kelly, which raised $3,000 for medical expenses and was held just days before Sabrina's passing from cystic fibrosis in April. Chiocco has also volunteered his time with the Special Olympics of Massachusetts and Team IMPACT, while also participating in Relay for Life for six straight years.
Chiocco has been named to the Northeast-10 Commissioner's Honor Roll three times for having a semester grade point average of 3.0 or higher over his Stonehill career. He earned Scout Team Player of the Week honors during the 2014 season and finished the season with a career-high four tackles (three solo), including a forced fumble, as part of a Stonehill defensive unit which led the NE-10 for total defense (284.0 yds allowed/gm), passing defense (189.3 yds/gm) and rushing defense (94.7 yds/gm), while ranking second for scoring defense (19.6 ppg). He has totaled seven career tackles (four solo), including 2.0 tackles for a loss of five yards and the one forced fumble.
Stonehill finished 2015 with its second winning season over the past three years, posting a 7-4 record overall, including 5-4 in NE-10 play to finish fourth in the Conference standings. The Skyhawks capped the season with three wins over their last four after a 17-14 win at third place Merrimack College during NE-10 Championship Weekend.
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