By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information Coordinator
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Add one more honor to the already impressive trophy case of Tennessee Tech forward Dennis Ogbe. On Thursday, the senior was named to the Capital One Academic All-America® Division I Basketball Team selected by CoSIDA.
Arguably the most prestigious academic award presented to student-athletes, Ogbe becomes the 36th Golden Eagle since 1976 to achieve the honor, sporting a 3.91 GPA in electrical engineering.
To be eligible for Academic All-America® consideration, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative G.P.A. of 3.30 on a scale of 4.00, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings at his/her current institution and be nominated by his/her sports information director.
The senior has also earned CoSIDA Academic All-District honors twice in his career, once last season and again this year. Prior to the 2013-14 season, he was also named a Senior Class Award candidate for his leadership abilities, time on the court, dedication in the classroom, and work in the community.
Ogbe has been a staple on the Golden Eagle squad this season, leading the team in both scoring and rebounding, averaging 10.3 points and 5.9 boards per game. He ranks second on the team in field goal percentage with a mark of .598, which is also good for seventh in the Ohio Valley Conference. He also ranks in the top 10 in offensive rebounds. For his career, the senior ranks second on Tech's all-time list for field goal percentage with a mark of .608. He will also play in his 118th career game tonight, ranking him for 10th on the all-time list.
A strong player with outstanding knowledge of the game of basketball, Ogbe is again recognized for being a leader with great work ethic, both on the court and in the classroom. The forward has been named to the Athletic Director's Honor Roll all seven semesters of his time at Tech, has landed on the OVC Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll each of the past three years, and has earned the OVC Medal of Honor twice.
Earlier this year, Ogbe was named as a 2012-13 OVC Scholar Athlete, the first time the honor has been given to a member of the Tennessee Tech men's basketball team. One of the most prestigious awards given by the Ohio Valley Conference, the Scholar-Athlete Award is the highest individual honor that can be earned by OVC student-athletes, and is given annually to three men and three women student-athletes of junior or senior status for their accomplishments in both the classroom and athletic arena, and because of their leadership qualities.
Beginning his basketball career in the second grade of elementary school in a small town near Munich, Ogbe played there until 2007 when he joined the basketball club "Franken Hexer" in Nurenberg. There he averaged 18 points, eight rebounds and two steals per game in the NBBL and was selected to play in the All-Star Game (the equivalent to the USA's McDonald's High School All-Star Game), scoring 13 points in that spotlight event. In his NBBL Final Four contest, Ogbe chipped in with 23 points and nine rebounds.
Dennis is the son of Festus Ogbe and Margitta Linue.
The CoSIDA Academic All-America and Academic All-District is organized and voted on by the College Sports Information Directors of America.