STANFORD, Calif. – Stanford senior Brian Nana-Sinkam was named a Senior CLASS Award Second Team All-American on Thursday morning.
The award for men's soccer is chosen by a vote of Division I men's soccer coaches, national soccer media and fans and is given annually to outstanding senior student-athletes in Division I men's soccer. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: classroom, community, character and competition.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete in 10 NCAA sports and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
One of 27 Stanford student-athletes majoring in product design, Nana-Sinkam has been a three-time Pac-12 all-academic selection. Among a number of extracurriculars, he is an associate in the Stanford Marketing Group, a mentorship program participant in the Stanford Biomedical Engineering Society and was one of 300 in the country chosen for the 2016 Management Leadership for Tomorrow Career Prep Program, an 18-month professional development program for high-achieving, diverse talent.
A Cardinal co-captain this season, Nana-Sinkam plays an active role in service projects in and around Stanford. He helps to organize events between the AYSO VIP (Very Important Players) Green Giants team and the Stanford men's soccer team. He's also on the Stanford Athletics Cardinal Council, which brought together 23 Stanford teams for an annual Date Auction, raising over $4,500 for Camp Kesem, which offers recreational camps in the United States for children of parents with cancer.
Additionally, Nana-Sinkam is a creative consultant for The Releaf Group, a non-profit organization that connects Nigerian entrepreneurs in the agricultural industry with the talent of the African diaspora in the United States and United Kingdom to drive the Nigerian economy and catalyze the African Renaissance. His role in the organization has been to create meaningful brand recognition and develop beneficial relationships both in the U.S. and in West Africa to expand the group's network and drive its mission.
Nana-Sinkam has commanded the Cardinal from his spot at center back, making 65 starts since his freshman year and leading a defense that has a 0.69 goals against average since 2014.
Stanford has done well recently as far as the Senior CLASS Award is concerned. Last season, Brandon Vincent was also named a Senior CLASS Award Second Team All-American.