Odunze, Nelson Named 2023-24 Pac-12 Tom Hansen Medal Winners
June 17, 2024 | Football, General, Softball, Student-Athlete Academic Services
SEATTLE – Husky student-athletes Rome Odunze (football) and Brooke Nelson (softball) have been named the Washington recipients of the 2023-24 Tom Hansen Medal, the Pac-12 Conference announced today.
The award is given annually to each member institution's outstanding senior male and female student-athlete based on the exhibition of the greatest combination of performance and achievement in scholarship, athletics, and leadership. Conference medal winners have been named every year since the 1960-61 academic year. In 2009, the Pac-12 renamed the award the Tom Hansen Conference Medal in honor of Hansen, who retired at the end of June, 2009, after serving for 26 years as Commissioner of the Pac-10.
Odunze was a history and communications major at UW. Following the past season, he was drafted ninth overall by the Chicago Bears in the 2024 NFL Draft. Odunze is the first UW football student-athlete to earn the recognition since Elijah Molden in 2020-21, and the 29th in program history.
A consensus First Team All-American, Odunze led the nation with 1,640 receiving yards, the third-most in Pac-12 history. He is just the second receiver in UW history to record more than one 1,000-yard receiving season, reaching that mark in 2022 and 2023. Odunze was named College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-America Team Member of the Year. He was actively involved in numerous community service activities with organizations including Seattle Children's Hospital, Treehouse and Cancer Pathways.
Nelson graduated from UW with a degree in communication and is continuing to pursue her master's degree in communication in digital media. Following her senior season, Nelson is playing professionally with Cidra Bravas in Puerto Rico. She is the ninth winner for Husky softball.
A 2024 First Team All-American, Nelson finished her career with a .308 batting average over 132 games. This past season, Nelson notched a career-high 12 home runs with 34 RBI on her way to being named First Team All-Pac-12 and All-Region. She was a six-time Dean's List recipient and a NFCA Scholar-Athlete. Off the field, Nelson served as the Washington Athlete Advisory Committee (WSAAC) Vice President in 2020-21 and traveled to Rome in Summer 2022 with UW Athletics' Purple Passport Program.
2023-24 Pac-12 Conference Tom Hansen Medal Winners
The award is given annually to each member institution's outstanding senior male and female student-athlete based on the exhibition of the greatest combination of performance and achievement in scholarship, athletics, and leadership. Conference medal winners have been named every year since the 1960-61 academic year. In 2009, the Pac-12 renamed the award the Tom Hansen Conference Medal in honor of Hansen, who retired at the end of June, 2009, after serving for 26 years as Commissioner of the Pac-10.
Odunze was a history and communications major at UW. Following the past season, he was drafted ninth overall by the Chicago Bears in the 2024 NFL Draft. Odunze is the first UW football student-athlete to earn the recognition since Elijah Molden in 2020-21, and the 29th in program history.
A consensus First Team All-American, Odunze led the nation with 1,640 receiving yards, the third-most in Pac-12 history. He is just the second receiver in UW history to record more than one 1,000-yard receiving season, reaching that mark in 2022 and 2023. Odunze was named College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-America Team Member of the Year. He was actively involved in numerous community service activities with organizations including Seattle Children's Hospital, Treehouse and Cancer Pathways.
Nelson graduated from UW with a degree in communication and is continuing to pursue her master's degree in communication in digital media. Following her senior season, Nelson is playing professionally with Cidra Bravas in Puerto Rico. She is the ninth winner for Husky softball.
A 2024 First Team All-American, Nelson finished her career with a .308 batting average over 132 games. This past season, Nelson notched a career-high 12 home runs with 34 RBI on her way to being named First Team All-Pac-12 and All-Region. She was a six-time Dean's List recipient and a NFCA Scholar-Athlete. Off the field, Nelson served as the Washington Athlete Advisory Committee (WSAAC) Vice President in 2020-21 and traveled to Rome in Summer 2022 with UW Athletics' Purple Passport Program.
2023-24 Pac-12 Conference Tom Hansen Medal Winners
| School | Male | Female |
| Arizona | Gustaf Strom, Tennis | Allie Skaggs, Softball |
| Arizona State | Ryggs Johnston, Golf | Ashley Menne, Golf |
| California | Nikolaos Papanikolaou, Water Polo | Isabel Williams, Water Polo |
| Colorado | Magnus Bøe, Skiing | Jaylyn Sherrod, Basketball |
| Oregon | Bo Nix, Football | Colleen Uzoekwe, Track & Field |
| Oregon State | Javier Armas, Soccer | Kaylee Mitchell, XC/Track & Field |
| Stanford | Ky Robinson, XC/Track & Field | Cameron Brink, Basketball |
| UCLA | Laiatu Latu, Football | Reilyn Turner, Soccer |
| USC | Johnnie Blockburger, Track & Field | Claudia Shevitz, Lacrosse |
| Utah | Tyler Bradbury, Lacrosse | Maile O'Keefe, Gymnastics |
| Washington | Rome Odunze, Football | Brooke Nelson, Softball |
| Washington State | Brennan Jackson, Football | Charlisse Leger-Walker, Basketball |
Players Mentioned
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