Gators long snapper Marco Ortiz has been named as a nominee for the Burlsworth Trophy, the Burlsworth Foundation announced on Tuesday.
The award honors the most outstanding FBS player who began his career as a walk-on. It is named after Brandon Burlsworth, a walk-on offensive lineman at Arkansas who was eventually named an All-American and selected in the third round of the 1999 NFL Draft.
Burlsworth died in a car accident 11 days after being drafted, and his story was captured in the movie “Greater,” released in 2016.
Ortiz walked on to the Gators program in the summer of 2018.