April 29, 2008

CANYON, Texas - After a standout career with the West Texas A&M men's basketball team both on the court and as an achiever in the classroom, Tyler Cooper has been on of only 58 student-athletes from across the country to earn a NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship.

The Amarillo, native, garnered Lone Star Conference Academic Player of the Year honors each of the last three seasons, while also nabbed honorable mention All-LSC accolades following his junior and senior campaigns. Additionally this season, Cooper was selected as a second team Academic All-American by ESPN the Magazine and CoSIDA. Following he graduation, Cooper plans to attend medical school at Texas Tech University.

Fifty-eight NCAA student-athletes have been awarded educational grants through the NCAA postgraduate scholarship program. The winners (29 men and 29 women) represent winter-sports participants who will receive one-time, nonrenewable grants of $7,500. The NCAA will name postgraduate scholars for spring sports later this year.

The scholarships are awarded to student-athletes who excel academically and athletically and who are in their final year of intercollegiate athletics competition. The Association awards up to 174 postgraduate scholarships annually, 87 for men and 87 for women.

The NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship was created in 1964 to promote and encourage postgraduate education by rewarding the Association's most accomplished student-athletes through their participation in NCAA championship and/or emerging sports. For more information about the NCAA Postgraduate Scholarships, go to the Diversity and Inclusion link under the About the NCAA tab at www.ncaa.org.