Courtesy UNI Athletics Communications –
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – Former UNI placekicker Tyler Sievertsen has been named the recipient of the Pursuing Victory with Honor Award as part of the 2014 Cedar Valley Character Counts Awards, it was announced today.
To be eligible for the award, the recipient must exude the six pillars of character which are trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and citizenship. Sievertsen will receive his award on April 15 at the Character Counts Awards dinner.
Being a student-athlete at UNI teaches the young generation to live by the six pillars of character and Sievertsen is no different. As a team captain for UNI during his senior season, he had a chance to teach trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and citizenship to the younger players on the team, leaving his mark in the record books and in the community for some time to come.
During his senior season at UNI, Sievertsen was named to three different All-America teams, including being just the 16th UNI football player in UNI history to earn AFCA All-America honors. He is a three-time All-MVFC honoree and has been named to seven different All-America teams during his career as a Panther.
Sievertsen finished the 2013 season 21 of 27 from field goals and a perfect 34-of-34 on PATs. He set a new school record for consecutive PATs made at 114-of-114 and finished eighth all-time at UNI in scoring to close out his career in the Purple and Old Gold. He scored a career-long 50-yard field goal against North Dakota State and came away with a career-high four field goals made twice during the past season.
He was named one of 10 finalists for the 2013 Fred Mitchell Award, along with being honored with the 2013 College Football Performance Awards Elite Placekicker Award. He was named to the MVFC All-Conference first team and recognized as the MVFC Special Teams Player of the Week and CFPA National Placekicker of the Week twice during the 2013 season.
Sievertsen has accomplished a lot on the field, but he has been able to achieve more in the community by being a leader for the youth of the Cedar Valley and the university in general. He has been an active member in the community by being part of the Just Read Program, which connects UNI student-athletes with elementary schools.
He also served as a mentor for Kickers in the Midwest. He was also a key volunteer while working the Special Olympics during his time at UNI. All of his community service left a special memory for Tyler, but it wasn’t until his senior year that one of his projects really hit “home”.
During the month of November, the town of Washington, Ill. was devastated by an EF-4 tornado. Part of his extended family was affected by the tornado, which sprung Sievertsen into action. He quickly reached out to UNI fans to donate new toys in time for the holiday season. Sievertsen and a group of football players ended up personally delivering the toys to the community in Illinois.
Sievertsen is currently training in hopes to be a part of the National Football League in the upcoming season. He will also take part in UNI’s annual Pro Day today, starting at 9 a.m.
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