National Football Foundation

An All-Big 12 performer with a 4.00 GPA, Gabe Ikard epitomizes what it takes to become a scholar-athlete. The two-time CoSIDA Academic All-American from The Village, Okla., becomes the Sooners’ ninth NFF National Scholar-Athlete.

On pace to be Oklahoma’s first-ever three-time Academic All-American, Ikard earned First Team honors in 2012 and Second Team laurels in 2011. A three-time selection of the Big 12 All-Academic First Team, he has twice earned CoSIDA First-Team Academic All-District honors, and he was the recipient of the 2013 Division IA FAR Academic Excellence Award. Named one of the NFF Oklahoma Chapter’s College Players of the Year, he claimed the Cotton Bowl Association’s Dan S. Petty Scholar-Athlete Award, and he is a three-time recipient of the Dan Gibbens Outstanding Scholar-Athlete Award. An eight-time Sooner Scholar, President’s Honor Roll member and Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll selection, Ikard received the 2013 Gerald Lage Award, the Big 12’s highest academic honor.

A two-year team captain and anchor of Oklahoma’s offensive line, Ikard has twice earned First-Team All-Big 12 honors, and he was named a Third-Team All-American in 2011. Named a 2010 First-Team Freshman All-American by Rivals, he plays an integral role in an offensive unit that has ranked in the top five in passing during each of his first three seasons. Helping the Sooners to a strong 7-1 start, he has blocked for an offense ranked second in the Big 12 in rushing offense (1,872 yards) and has outgained opponents in total offense 3,480 yards to 2,514.

Named to Oklahoma’s prestigious “Big Man on Campus” list, which honors academics, campus participation, leadership and community service, Ikard went on a mission trip to Haiti in 2010 to help rebuild and repair damage caused by earthquakes. A member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and the Oklahoma Leadership Team, he still makes time for activities with the 14 Foundation and the Special Spectators program. Ikard was signed by the Tennessee Titans as an undrafted free agent after the 2014 NFL Draft.