DAPHNE – Outscoring Auburn and Louisville is one thing, but outscoring professional athletes and Olympic gold medalists is something else.

West Virginia University quarterback Pat White was named Alabama Athlete of the Year by the United States Sports Academy for the second time in three years. The football player from Daphne finished a 24-day online election at the top of a 12-person ballot that included two Olympic gold medalists, two NFL football players and two Major League Baseball players.

White is the first two-time winner of this award since former world heavyweight boxing champion Evander Holyfield earned the honor in 1990 and ’96.

White is the NCAA’s all-time leading career rusher among quarterbacks. In January, he won his third consecutive bowl game and second Bowl Championship Series (BCS) game as a starter when he was the Most Valuable Player in a 48-28 victory over Big 12 champion Oklahoma in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl.

Finishing second to White was University of Alabama All-American defensive lineman Terrance Cody finished third. The 6-foot-5-inch, 395-pound junior, Cody was a key to the defensive success of the Crimson Tide’s run to No. 1 in the polls this past fall in a season that produced Alabama’s first Southeastern Conference Western Division championship in nine years and a berth in the Allstate Sugar Bowl. The Tide’s 4–0 start through September included victories over No. 3 Georgia and Clemson in which Cody had 13 tackles, including three for a loss, before missing three games due to an injury.

San Diego Charger quarterback Phillip Rivers finished third. The fifth-year veteran from Athens, Ala. and 2004 first-round draft pick leads the NFL in touchdown passes (32), pass efficiency rating (104) and is fifth in yards passing (3,802).

Votes were collected online through December 1-24 through the Academy and on al.com.

The Academy Alabama Athlete of the Year ballot is the culmination of the Academy’s yearlong Alabama Athlete of the Month program, which recognizes the accomplishments of men and women in any sport in the state of Alabama. The Academy Alabama Athlete of the Month is selected by a voting committee comprised state-wide media and Alabama sports organization representatives.

The Alabama Athlete of the Year award is given to an athlete beyond the high school level who was either born in, is currently playing in or has previously participated in sports at any level within the state of Alabama.