Heath Benedict made his mark as one of the most prolific athletes in Newberry College history before his death in March of 2008. As an offensive lineman on the football team, Heath started for four seasons at tackle and was expected to be drafted on the first day of the 2008 NFL Draft.
Benedict, who transferred to Newberry from Tennessee in 2004, was a two-time winner of the South Atlantic Conference’s Jacobs Blocking Trophy, which is awarded annually to the conference’s best offensive lineman. He was also a two-time national finalist for the Gene Upshaw Award, which is presented to the best lineman in Division II.
While he was named to the all-South Atlantic Conference first team for three years, he also racked up more all-American and all-region awards than any athlete in Newberry College history. He was also the only Newberry College player to participate in the Senior Bowl.
He started collecting awards in 2005, when he was named to the D2Football.com all-Southeast Region team. In 2006, he collected three all-region awards and three Division II all-American awards, as well as the Associated Press’ Little All-American team.
Following the 2007 season, Heath was once again named to the AP Little All-American team after earning four preseason all-American and three postseason all-American nods. All told, Benedict collected 13 different All-American honors in his career.
