Christmas came early for FAMU mechanical engineering major Roshard Jackson, who won a $75,000 Dr. Pepper Tuition scholarship to pay for his education during the halftime of the Big 12 Conference Football Championship.
Over the weekend, Jackson and six others competed for a total of $600,000 in tuition by throwing the greatest number of footballs into an oversized Dr. Pepper can in 30 seconds.
Recorded footage of the competition was aired during the BIG12, ACC and SEC conference championship games. Dr. Pepper and FOX then awarded four students from the BIG10 and PAC12 with $50,000 each as FOX broadcasters participated in a throw competition on their behalf.
Jackson, a resident of Tampa, was the runner-up and among those chosen to participate in the annual Dr. Pepper head-to-head Throw Competition based on personal stories of funding needed to achieve their academic dreams.
"As a young boy, I loved the idea of understanding how things work. So only naturally, I concluded that I want to become an engineer," Jackson said in his application for the contest. "I aspire to create agile robotic systems to help with the jobs that are too dangerous for people to do themselves. Bringing forth the future today!”
A total of $2 million in tuition was distributed this college football season – the largest giveaway in the program's 12-year history.
"Dr. Pepper goes hand-in-hand with college football and its fans. We are proud to offer the gift of tuition in support of students who are passionate about their dreams and are driven to pursue their goals, despite the challenging year we've had for sports and academics," said Derek Dabrowski, Vice President of Brand Marketing for Dr. Pepper.