Tre Tipton named to Wuerffel Trophy watch list

Pitt wide receiver Tre Tipton earned a spot on the preseason watch list for the Wuerffel Trophy on Thursday afternoon. The trophy is named for former Florida quarterback Danny Wuerffel and has been awarded on an annual basis since 2005 to the college football player deemed most worthy on the basis of their community service efforts, athletic achievement and academic achievement.

Tipton is the seventh Pitt player to be nominated for the award since 2014, as Adam Bisnowaty, Mike Caprara, James Conner, Darrin Hall, Brian O’Neill and Chad Voytik all made previous Wuerffel Trophy watch lists. However, despite the previous preseason nods, no Pitt player has ever won the trophy.

Since joining the Panthers in 2015, Tipton has earned a reputation for his generous spirit. The native of nearby Apollo, Pennsylvania, has also made a concerted effort to give back to the community through outreach programs and the development of L.O.V.E., which stands for “Living Out Victoriously Everyday.” L.O.V.E. is a program at Pitt that helps student-athletes suffering from depression and anxiety in addition to assisting them with issues related to injuries.

While Tipton has become well known for his contributions off the field, he has yet to make a major impact on the field, as he has dealt with injuries for much of his career and made just three starts since arriving at Pitt. With that said, that could change this year, as he took part in all 14 of the Panthers’ games in 2018 and is listed as a starting wide receiver on the team’s current depth chart.

Tipton is one of 93 college football players on the 2019 watch list. Semifinalists for the Wuerffel Trophy will be named on Nov. 5, finalists will be named on Nov. 18 and a winner will be named on Dec. 10.