RACINE, Wis. — Wisconsin’s Mariano Talamantez has been awarded the NFL Latino Youth Honors award. 

What You Need To Know

  • Wisconsin’s Mariano Talamantez has been awarded the NFL Latino Youth Honors award

  • He will receive a $25,000 grant to use toward college. He will also spend time at events in New Orleans for Super Bowl LIX and received an invitation to HHF’s National Youth Awards ceremony later this year

  • Talamantez was one of 59 student-athletes nominated across the country. Nominees were pared down to eight finalists representing each of the NFL’s eight divisions

  • Talamantez is a senior at St. Catherine’s High School in Racine, Wis. He will continue to play football at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wis. 

The award is given out to a male and female Latino high school senior football player who shows outstanding academic and athletic excellence.

 

Talamantez, who hails from Racine, is the male winner of the national award presented by the NFL and Hispanic Heritage Foundation (HHF). He will receive a $25,000 grant to use toward college.

He will also spend time at events in New Orleans for Super Bowl LIX and received an invitation to HHF’s National Youth Awards ceremony later this year.

HHF is a nonprofit created by the White House in 1987 to connect minority leaders in the community.

Talamantez was one of 59 student-athletes nominated across the country. Nominees were pared down to eight finalists representing each of the NFL’s eight divisions.

Talamantez was the Green Bay Packers’ 2024 NFL Latino Youth Honors nominee; 32 NFL clubs were able to nominate students. 

 

He is a senior at St. Catherine’s High School in Racine, Wis. His accomplishments at St. Catherine’s include two-time team captain, two-time All-State, one-time state champion and Metro Classic Conference Defensive Player of the Year.

The linebacker's accomplishments have allowed him to continue playing football in college once he graduates from high school. He'll attend Carthage College in Kenosha, Wis. 

 

But Talamantez’s accomplishments on the football field are just one part of why he received this award. His leadership as captain and his involvement in volunteering throughout the community reflect strong character. Academically, he maintains a 3.72 grade point average. 

He shared a response on social media after earning this award, saying, “God is good!”

Flag football player Sophie Guitron, from Redondo Beach, Calif. and nominated by the Los Angeles Rams, was the female winner of the award. 

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