Ryan Braun - College

College

Offered scholarships by Stanford University and the University of California, Berkeley, he instead attended the University of Miami on an academic scholarship, due to his high school grades. He chose Miami for its academics, its athletics, and its social scene, noting: "I think the girls were the deal closer on the recruiting trip."

There, Braun was named "National Freshman of the Year", and a first-team "Freshman All-American", by Baseball America in 2003, as well as first team All American by the Jewish Sports Review. He was also named first-team All-American by Collegiate Baseball. He clinched the awards by batting .364 with 76 runs batted in (RBIs) and 17 home runs. As a sophomore shortstop/designated hitter, Braun hit .335, slugged .606, and had 21 stolen bases.

During his junior year, his final and most successful at Miami, Braun batted .396 with 18 home runs, a .726 slugging percentage, 76 RBIs and 23 stolen bases. He was ninth in slugging and 10th in RBIs in NCAA Division I, and was named to Baseball America's 2005 College All-American Team as the DH. He moved from shortstop to third base during the year. His performance earned Braun the Atlantic Coast Conference Baseball Player of the Year award, and a spot as one of the finalists for the Golden Spikes Award, the most prestigious individual award in college baseball.