This week’s SCVTV and Wendy’s of Santa Clarita Student Athlete of the Week is Jourdan Nguyen from Valencia football. Jourdan has a 3.5 GPA with plans to take the SAT later this fall. He is considered one of the best lineman in the league, but he knows that alone will not get him to college.

“That’s kind of like what I’ve needed to fall back on,” Jourdan said. “I’ve never been big. I’ve never tried to rely on football as a way to try to get to college. I’ve always needed the grades to push me there.”

Admitting that football is the love of his life and he would want a career in that, Jourdan also has interests away from the field that might turn into a career.

“I really want to be somewhere in the business field or a science field,” he said. “Those are two of the things I love doing.”

When it comes to college choices, Jourdan doesn’t have anything definitive. He wants to stay close to home, but still feel like he’s away.

“I’ve actually really liked UNLV,” Jourdan said. “I’ve gone to Las Vegas since I was little and we go there every six months. So that’s kind of like a second home to me. I’ve also liked Arizona (the University of Arizona and Arizona State). I visited all the campuses and they caught my attention.”

This big tough lineman has a soft spot for the person at home who has always motivated him to do well in school.

“My mom,” he said. “She’s always been an inspiration and one of my main heroes. She just works so hard to help out with anything and throughout her high school years she always tried so hard and to get to where she is at she needed those grades and the success in school. That’s always been my motivation.”

Jourdan has a very specific message for youngsters as they enter high school.

“Don’t take it for granted,” Jourdan said. “When you go into high school you think it could be fun because it’s high school. I don’t need to worry about grades because I can worry about that later in life. But high school is the foundation. We need high school to prepare us for the future. So getting good grades will help us to be successful in the future.”

Congratulations to Jourdan Nguyen of Valencia High School, the SCVTV and Wendy’s of Santa Clarita Student Athlete of the Week.