Austin MacGinnis has been named to the Kentucky Wildcats nominees for the 2018 Southeastern Conference H. Boyd McWhorter Scholar-Athlete Post-Graduate Scholarship. Austin has been the starting star kicker of the UK football team and recently graduated from the One Year MBA program at the University of Kentucky's Gatton College of Business and Economics. This award has been presented by the Southeastern Conference since 1986 to the league's top male and female scholar-athletes.

Each year, the SEC, in conjunction with AT&T, an SEC official sponsor, provides the league's male and female McWhorter Scholar-Athlete Post-Graduate Scholarship recipients with a $20,000 post-graduate scholarship. The 26-remaining male and female finalists for the award will also receive a $10,000 post-graduate scholarship.

MacGinnis reflects on being a student-athlete this year, “I was able to compete at a high level for my senior football season while completing 51-hours of graduates classes in the UK MBA program. None one of this would have been possible without a great support system and I truly believe success lies in who you surround yourself with. The UK MBA program taught me to balance workloads (much like a CEO or top level management would) and I learned to prioritize my time both in the classroom and on the field. I would not have been able to excel in the classroom and on the field without my family, teammates and classmates.”

Austin MacGinnis is the Campbell Trophy semifinalist as National Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2017, CoSIDA Academic All-District Team and four-time SEC Academic Honor Roll member. Austin graduated in May of 2017 with degree in Finance and then enrolled in the Master’s degree in Business Administration (MBA) at the UK's Gatton College of Business and Economics. Austin graduated in just one year with his MBA while preparing for the National Football League. Austin ended his stellar career as UK's all-time leading scorer with 359 points, one of the top-10 scorers in SEC history. He ranks eighth in SEC history in career field goals made (72) and holds school records for career field goals made (72), most field goals made in a season (22 in 2017), consecutive field goals made (11, twice) and longest field goal (54 yards). Austin was All-SEC Third Team in 2017 and was on the Lou Groza Award Watch List in 2016 and 2017.

Austin has recently accepted an invitation to participate in the 2018 Chicago Bears' Rookie Mini Camp and is also balancing other professional offers at this time.