LSU quarterback Joe Burrow brought home the 2019 Heisman Trophy after an impressive regular season campaign that led to the Tigers earning the No. 1 spot in the College Football Playoff rankings. Burrow edged out Ohio State stars Justin Fields and Chase Young, along with Oklahoma Sooners quarterback Jalen Hurts.
During his Heisman acceptance speech, Burrow brought awareness to the struggles with the poverty rate around his hometown in Athens County, Ohio.
“Coming from southeast Ohio it’s a very impoverished area and the poverty rate is almost two times the national average,” Burrow said.
“There’s so many people there that don’t have a lot and I’m up here for all those kids in Athens and Athens County that go home to not a lot of food on the table, hungry after school. You guys can be up here too.”
As a result of that acceptance speech, more than $163,000 has been donated to the local Athens County Food Pantry.
“Let’s answer Joey’s call to action by supporting a local nonprofit that serves food to more than 5,000 households in Athens County each year,” fundraiser organizer Will Drabold wrote. He added, “The students at The Plains (where Burrow went to school) watched Joey’s Heisman speech today at school. This fundraiser was also announced to the kids. One of my wife’s 3rd graders came up to my wife and said, ‘I go to the food bank,’ with her eyes beaming. She was proud to say that she did. She was proud!
“This is the whole point. This is why I felt motivated to start this after watching Joey’s speech. Joey inspired a generation of children who come from nothing in Appalachian Ohio. Some of these kids don’t get toys for Christmas. They get all their food from food stamps and the food pantry. You cannot beat the power of role models and inspiration in their lives. None of these kids, who are in the same classrooms Joey was, will ever forget this.”
Congratulations to everyone involved in helping raise the money for a great cause.
This season, Burrow has thrown for a whopping 4,715 yards, 48 interceptions and just 6 interceptions. Up next for the Tiger is a meeting with the No. 4 Oklahoma Sooners on Saturday, December 28 in the Peach Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. Kickoff is set for 4:00 p.m. ET on ESPN.