As a leader on the Bucs team, Gerald McCoy is just as big of one off the field in the Tampa Bay community. It’s been announced Thursday morning that McCoy is the Bucs nominee for the Walter Payton Man of The Year award. The award commemorates a players charity work and volunteerism, along with their excellence on the field.

McCoy has been a positive voice in the community ever since he arrived on the scene. He’s been a big part of the Bucs social justice initiative, and has commonly set up events every year that provide families with Holiday gifts, and assisting single-parent households. The “D-Line Delivers Christmas” began in 2012, and “McCoy Family Christmas” started a year after in 2013. He has also been a part of various other programs, including the Bucs “Cut For A Cure” which raises money for the National Pediatric Cancer Center.

His work continues to this day, as McCoy is set to launch a new charity called the Patricia Diane Foundation, in honor of his mother. The plan for this foundation is to support single parent households.

This is the first nomination in McCoy’s career. In part of becoming a nominee, McCoy, along with the other nominees will wear a patch on their jerseys to signify that they were chosen to represent their team.