Gio Nowotarski to Play in Tropical Bowl

ORLANDO, Fla. – Gio Nowotarski was selected to compete at the SPIRAL Tropical Bowl in Orlando, Florida on January 19.

The SPIRAL Tropical Bowl is a premier FBS Division I level College Football All-Star Game played in Orlando, Florida annually in mid-January at Camping World Stadium during SPIRAL "Bowl Week". The SPIRAL Tropical Bowl showcases the top college football seniors, as well as NFL scouts and GMs who travel from around the country to the event. The weekend is focused on scouting, teaching, and football. Over 350 Tropical Bowl alumni have gone on to the NFL since its inception.

This is the second postseason bowl game that Nowotarski will compete in this year. The senior defensive back from Reading, Pennsylvania, Gio Nowotarski competed in the FCS National Bowl in December.

"First and foremost, I need to thank my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for blessing me with the ability to play this game that I love and for allowing me the opportunity to play in another bowl game, said Nowotarski. "To me, this is what I have worked for my whole life. My dream has always been to play in the NFL or to be a professional athlete, and this is my opportunity to show my skills in front of scouts. This opportunity is not something many people get especially at the D3 level. With that being said, this game is for much more than just myself. It's for my family, coaches, friends, and for Concordia. These people have all believed in me and pushed me every day to be the best that I can be on and off the field. Concordia especially has helped transform me as an individual and my game to another level. I can't express my gratitude and thanks to all the coaches who helped me get better every single day. Coming into this game from a small D3 school such as Concordia already puts a chip on my shoulder and allows me to show what I can do and why I know I can compete with some of these bigger schools I will be playing against. I am truly blessed for this opportunity and like I said before it's for something much bigger than myself. This is for my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, family, coaches, teammates, and CUW." 

Gio Nowotarski earned second-team honors for the second consecutive season in November. Nowotarski played in all nine games, totaling 42 tackles, 31 solo, and adding three interceptions. He made an immediate impact in the season opener with a 21-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown against Calvin. He added another fumble recovery for a touchdown in the season finale against Wisconsin Lutheran.

Nowotarski was also a threat in coverage, recording three pass breakups in a win over Rockford and earning NACC Special Teams Player of the Week honors on September 17.

Fans can visit tropicalbowl.com/tv to watch the pay-per-view stream.