Credit: Kayla Wolf

Rafael (Rafa) Cervantes Jr. ’25 was a member of the football team for four years, serving as a captain in 2023 and 2024. He had some outstanding games as the team’s kicker, though he was modest about his own accomplishments, and was known for always encouraging his teammates. He was special teams player of the year in 2021 and 2023, and second team All-Conference kicker in 2024. He also often attended other Buccaneer sporting events, supporting the college’s other student-athletes.

Credit: Kayla Wolf“Rafael has developed into an outstanding leader on campus,” says one nominator. “He encourages students to participate and engage in programs on campus, [and] never misses an opportunity to brighten someone’s day or let them know that they matter. He understands the power of visibility, seeing people, and being seen. His smile is a light for Beloit College.”

Rafael’s presence has made a positive impact throughout campus and in the surrounding community. He was a peer mentor in the Student Excellence and Leadership Program and served on the Student Athlete Advisory Committee as well as helping plan Hispanic Heritage Month in 2023. He volunteered at Merrill Elementary School, and with the Rock River Clean-up in Beloit. He is graduating in December 2025 with a major in business management and a minor in sports management.

Warren Miller, namesake of the Blue Skies Award, is a 1960 Beloit alumnus whose witty and insightful cartoons appeared in the New Yorker Magazine for more than four decades.