{"id":27002,"date":"2025-01-17T14:40:47","date_gmt":"2025-01-17T14:40:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=27002"},"modified":"2025-01-17T14:40:47","modified_gmt":"2025-01-17T14:40:47","slug":"49ers-george-kittle-nominated-for-prestigious-award","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=27002","title":{"rendered":"49ers George Kittle Nominated for Prestigious Award"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"post-featured-container-id\">\n<div id=\"post-featured\">\n<div>\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/George-Kittle-e1737049314844.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 820px) 95vw, 780px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/George-Kittle-e1737049314844.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780 780w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/George-Kittle-e1737049314844.jpg?quality=15&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1100 1100w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/George-Kittle-e1737049314844.jpg?quality=35&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1350 1350w\" alt=\"49ers George Kittle Nominated for Prestigious Award\" width=\"780\" height=\"437\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>Getty<\/p>\n<p>San Francisco 49ers&#8217; tight end George Kittle takes the field prior to a game against the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Wild Card playoff game<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>San Francisco 49ers <span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">\u2018 tight end George Kittle is<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> one of a kind. <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">On the field,<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> he is a dominant force, somehow shifting immovable objects.<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> Coming off his fourth 1,000-yard receiving season, Kittle will likely represent the NFC in the 2024 Pro Bowl. It will be his sixth time getting the nod, and at the age of 31, <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">is<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> showing no signs of slowing down.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Having already played in two Super Bowls, <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">broken the receiving yard record for tight ends in 2018, and made two AP All-Pro teams, it\u2019s hard to imagine Kittle accomplishing more in his illustrious career.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">However, on Thursday, the 49ers\u2019 tight end was named a finalist for one of the most <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">prestigious awards given out by the NFL<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> each year.<\/span><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>George Kittle Named Finalist for Salute to Service<\/h2>\n<p>The NFL and USAA, announced San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle, alongside Minnesota Vikings running back Aaron Jones and Los Angeles Chargers defensive end Morgan Fox, as finalists for the 14th annual Salute to Service Award.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur three finalists for the 2024 Salute to Service Award are all deserving of recognition for their long-standing and unwavering commitment to honoring the military community,\u201d said USAA Senior Vice President and head of Military Affairs, Major General (Ret.) John Richardson. \u201cWe commend Aaron Jones, George Kittle, and Morgan Fox for continually using their platforms as NFL players to advance and enrich the lives of our military service members and their families, putting service to others above themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Salute to Service Award reflects the ongoing dedication of the NFL to honor the veteran community throughout the year. The initiative fosters a sense of respect by recognizing, empowering, and supporting service members and their families. In November, the committee announced the 32 nominees from each team, highlighting active and retired players, coaches, and team personnel who have shown exceptional commitment to uplifting the military community.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>Kittle\u2019s Connection to the Military<\/h2>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Kittle has deep, familial ties to the military as his Uncle Pat and Grandfather Carl are among those <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">to<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> have served.<\/span> <span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">At every game,<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> Kittle hosts military and frontline heroes, donating over 400 tickets in the last six years.<\/span> <span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">He also <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">makes time to take pictures and meet<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> with each service member before kickoff.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">In 2020, Kittle, alongside his family, founded the <\/span>Hidden Pearls Podcast. <span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Their goal is to<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> \u201c<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">unite the world through storytelling,<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">\u201d <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">which includes nearly 60 veterans. Inspired, he and his family created an app offering free mental health resources to veterans. The services include the meditative practices he uses while playing.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Kittle has donated over $250,000 to military nonprofits and further highlighted military organizations through <\/span>My Cause My Cleats.<\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Kittle\u2019s<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> bond with service members runs deep<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">. He generously provided Super Bowl tickets to the family of fallen Army soldier SGT Martin LaMar. And to this day, continues to support the LaMar family by hosting them at training camp. He also proudly keeps SGT <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">LaMar\u2019s<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> Purple Heart in his locker. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">At an away game, Army veteran Chris Kleinsorge presented <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Kittle\u2019s<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> wife, Claire, with <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">the uniform he wore<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> in Afghanistan symbolizing gratitude from all military veterans. Recognizing the <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">significance of the moment<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">, Kittle went above and beyond by flying Kleinsorge and his wife to a 49ers home game. These instances are just a glimpse into <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Kittle\u2019s<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> unwavering commitment to the military community. He actively participates in the <\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">team\u2019s<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> Salute to Service initiatives and consistently seeks ways to uplift those who serve.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">If Kittle wins the award, the NFL Foundation will donate $25,000 t<\/span>o the military charity of his choice.<\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">The Salute to Service Award recipient will be announced<\/span><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\"> in February and recognized at NFL Honors on Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Sterling Bennett is a Heavy.com contributor covering the NFL. He has half a decade of experience as a sports broadcaster at 95.7 The Game covering the San Francisco 49ers as part of the weekly &#8220;Overtime&#8221; show, where he covered Super Bowl 58. Bennett was the Golden State Warriors Network Coordinator from 2020-2024, where he was responsible for all gameday radio broadcasts, including the 2022 NBA Finals. More about Sterling Bennett<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The NFL and USAA, announced San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle as a finalists for the annual Salute to Service Award.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":27003,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27002","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>49ers George Kittle Nominated for Prestigious Award - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=27002\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"49ers George Kittle Nominated for Prestigious Award - 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