FRISCO, Texas - Northwestern State junior tight end Justin Aldredge and Texas State junior center Steven Kenney represent the Southland Conference as semifinalists for the Allstate American Football Coaches Association Good Works Team, the organization announced earlier this week.

The two are among only 112 student-athletes from all levels of college football, including only 16 student-athletes from the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision. As semifinalists, the two are eligible for the 22-man Good Works Team, which recognizes players for outstanding community service.

Aldredge was Northwestern State's male Scholar-Athlete of the Year for 2009-10 after a breakout season for the 2009 Demons coupled with a 3.90 grade point average in accounting. He has a series of community service activities to his credit associated with Demon football team endeavors and his involvement as a member of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee.

Aldredge had a breakout year in his first season at tight end last fall after playing linebacker as a freshman. The 5-foot-11, 215-pounder led Northwestern with four touchdown receptions and ranked third on the team with 25 catches for 328 yards. He also scored another touchdown on a 1-yard run.

He is a Demon Deacon, serving as one of the elected representatives by his teammates on the football squad's Leadership Council. He is a member of Phi Kappa Pi National Honor Society. Aldredge is a product of Cedar Creek High School and grew up in Ruston, although he was born in Natchitoches and is the grandson of 1964 Demon All-America end Corwyn Aldredge.

Kenney is a two-year letterman at Texas State who was the starting center for the Bobcats last season. He graded out at 83 percent on 740 snaps in his first season as a starter. He also recorded 33 knockdown blocks and helped anchor a Texas State offensive line that ranked among the nation's Top 25 offensive lines for fewest sacks allowed with an average of just 1.36 per game. The Bobcats also had one of the nation's top seven passing offenses and 12th best overall offensive teams with an average of 288.9 yards passing per game and 422.2 total yards.

 
Kenney is a three-time member of the Southland Conference Commissioner's Honor Roll and receive Texas State's Oak Farms Dairy Academic Award in 2008 and 2009. He has a series of community service activities through Texas State. They include serving as a tutor in math and chemistry for the Texas State Athletic Academic Center, serving as a mentor for special needs children through work with the Texas State Peer Buddies program, being involved in several community service projects including Bobcat Build, a Texas State project that enlist students to go out into the San Marcos community and help with things such as yard work, painting, neighborhood clean-up among other things.

In addition, he has also volunteered at the Wonderland School Carnival, Travis Elementary School Reading Program and for the Salvation Army at CVS Pharmacy in San Marcos. Kenney participated in the Texas Hill Country Adventure with the Sunshine Kids, an organization that provides positive and fun activities for young children with cancer. His work with Special Olympics began at Pearland High School when he was a volunteer bowling coach.

From the record 112 nominees submitted by sports information directors on behalf of their schools, a special voting panel consisting of former Good Works Team® members and prominent college football media members is responsible for selecting two 11-player Good Works Teams® - one comprised of players from the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision and another representing players from the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision, Divisions II, III, and the NAIA - to be announced in September.

College Football Hall of Fame member and ESPN broadcaster Lou Holtz is returning for a third year to serve as spokesperson for the program and raise awareness for the stories of the nominees and team members.

Those include appearances at local schools, nursing homes, hospitals, youth centers, participation in the Demon football team's annual LifeShares Blood Drive, trash pickups, and work with troubled youth through a SAAC program in collaboration with the Natchitoches Parish Sheriff's Office.

This year's class of nominations includes student-athletes with a wide range of accomplishments, including developing programs to support Haitian relief efforts, working with rural and minority students to help them reach their goal of attending medical school, and organizing a campus fundraiser to incentivize students to shave their heads to raise money for pediatric cancer research.

"For the third straight year, the AFCA is pleased to partner with Allstate in highlighting football student-athletes who have achieved outstanding success, both on and off the football," said Grant Teaff, AFCA Executive Director. "From the record total of nominees that were submitted from colleges and universities around the country, it is apparent that collegiate football is producing some of the best and brightest that our country has to offer."

ESPN.com will launch a customized Allstate AFCA Good Works Team® web site featuring profiles and images of the final 22 award recipients, as well as unique and interactive content for college football fans. For the first time in the program's history, fans will be able to vote for a Team Captain on ESPN.com.

The 2010 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team® voting panel includes: former Good Works Team® members Matt Stinchcomb (Georgia, 1997, 1998 teams), Mike Proman (Amherst, 2002 team), Mewelde Moore (Tulane, 2003 team), Brian Brenberg (St. Thomas, 2001 team), Zaid Abdul-Aleem (Duke, 1994 team); media members Holtz (ESPN), Pat Forde (ESPN.com), Tom O'Toole (USA Today), Gary Shelton (St. Petersburg Times), Blair Kerkhoff (Kansas City Star); current AFCA President and Mount Union College Head Coach Larry Kehres; 1996 AFCA President Fisher DeBerry, former head coach at the United States Air Force Academy; and Hill.

Click here for a complete list of honorees.