NFF Chalktalk

News and Notes From Around College Football for Oct. 6, 2008

NFF Announces 2008 Draddy Trophy Semifinalists


Selected as the best and brightest from the college gridiron, the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame denoted 164 semifinalists for the 2008 Draddy Trophy, presented by HealthSouth, and the candidates for the 2008 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards.

Nominated by their schools, which are limited to one nominee each, semifinalists must be a senior or graduate student in their final year of eligibility, have a GPA of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale, have outstanding football ability as a first team player or significant contributor, and have demonstrated strong leadership and citizenship. Established to honor former NFF Chairman Vincent dePaul Draddy, a Manhattan College quarterback who developed the Izod and Lacoste brands, the award comes with a 25- pound bronze trophy and a $25,000 post-graduate scholarship.

The NFF Awards Committee will select and announce up to 15 finalists on Oct. 29. Each finalist will be recognized as part of the 2008 National Scholar- Athlete Class, receiving an $18,000 post-graduate scholarship. The Draddy winner, who will receive a $25,000 postgraduate scholarship, will be announced at the NFF's Annual Awards Dinner on December 9 at the prestigious Waldorf=Astoria in New York City. A total distribution of more than $300,000 in scholarships will be awarded that evening.

Notable NFF National Scholar-Athlete alumni include NFL standout Derrick Brooks (Florida State); actor Mark Harmon (UCLA); NASA astronaut Leland Melvin (Richmond); former Dateline NBC anchor Stone Phillips (Yale); chairman of Augusta National Golf Club, home of the Masters Tournament, Billy Payne (Georgia); famed NFL quarterback Steve Young (BYU); and Heisman Trophy winners Terry Baker (Oregon State), Gary Beban (UCLA); Doug Flutie (Boston College), and Danny Wuerffel (Florida).

For a complete list of the semifinalists, please visit www.footballfoundation.com.

NFF News

2008 College Football Hall of Fame inductee Coach Lou Holtz will guide former Notre Dame student-athletes in the July 25, 2009, Japan Bowl against a Japanese national all- star team. The legends' squad will host a two-day mini-camp in South Bend, Ind., and will appear at several functions in the Tokyo area from July 19-26 as part of the Japan American Football Association's 75th anniversary festivities.

Stanford and Purdue are the latest college football teams to visit the College Football Hall of Fame in South Bend in recent weeks, and both have held alumni functions at the facility.

Liberty Mutual has proudly partnered with the College Football Hall of Fame to honor one coach from each division who demonstrates excellence on and off the field through victories, community service, charitable endeavors and academic support. Visit www.coachoftheyear.com now to find out how to vote for your favorite coach.

To become a member of the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Alumni Association, please contact NFF Director of Special Projects Hillary Jeffries at 800-486-1865 or via email at hjeffries@footballfoundation.com.

Two-Minute Drill

Missouri downed Nebraska in Lincoln for the first time since 1978... Vanderbilt is 5-0 for the first time since 1943... Southern California seeks its 400th victory at Los Angeles Coliseum against Arizona State Saturday... Brigham Young won its NCAA-best 15th consecutive game last Friday against Utah State... Western Michigan captured its 500th victory by downing Ohio last Saturday... Kansas is on pace to set a single-season attendance record for the fourth consecutive year... Oklahoma is only 10 points away from becoming the first college football team to score 30,000 points all-time... Graham Harrell became Texas Tech's all-time leading passer last Saturday... Seven college bands are competing in ESPN's "Battle of the Bands" promotion to commemorate the DVD and Blu-ray Disc release of "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" with the winning school taking a $25,000 prize. Voting will be done online, and the participating bands are from Southern California, Georgia, Florida, Texas, Clemson, LSU and Auburn... The "2008 SEC Together We CAN Drive" raised more than 150,000 pounds of food for local charities and food banks... East Carolina's Board of Trustees officially extended head coach Skip Holtz's contract through 2013 with a new compensation and incentive plan... College Football Hall of Fame coach Frank Broyles will headline the 13th Annual Hendrix College (Ark.) Fellowship of Christian Athletes Bob Courtway Memorial Breakfast on Oct. 14.

Doreen and Jerry Hammes have made a donation to Notre Dame Athletics for facilities revamping and enhancement... California has broken ground on a new athletics and office support facility.

New Georgia State head football coach, standout center at Georgia Tech and television commentator Bill Curry has been named as winner of the 2008 President Gerald R. Ford Legends Award... West Virginia honored its 1988 Fiesta Bowl team, the only Mountaineer team to play for a national championship, at its game against Rutgers last Saturday... Princeton will honor two of its most famous athletes - 1951 Heisman Trophy winner and NFF Hall of Famer Dick Kazmaier and All-America hoopster and former U.S. Senator Bill Bradley - by retiring their numbers in ceremonies on Oct. 24-25 around the Princeton-Harvard weekend in Princeton, N.J... The 17th annual 2008 Allstate American Football Coaches Association Good Works Team features top student-athletes who have demonstrated off-field leadership and community service... The Atlantic Coast Conference's 2008 Dr Pepper ACC Football Championship Game Legends include memorable standouts Claude "Tee" Moorman II of Duke, Maryland's Stan Jones, Miami (Fla.) standout DT Russell Maryland, Virginia RB Tiki Barber, Florida State QB Danny Kanell, North Carolina DT Marcus Jones, Georgia Tech LB Pat Swilling, Clemson LB Levon Kirkland, Boston College LB Steve DeOssie, NC State guard Bill Yoest, Virginia Tech QB Don Strock, and Wake Forest TE John Henry Mills. The legends will be honored at '08 Dr Pepper ACC Football Championship in Tampa, Fla... TCU celebrated its 40th annual Frog Club Hall of Fame Class with additions of football standouts W.C. Nix, Dr. John Richards and the remaining members of the 1938 TCU national championship squad not already admitted to the school's Hall of Fame. Six members of the '38 squad attended the celebration.

The AT&T Cotton Bowl has a record pre-2009 public sale of 60,000-plus in the renovated 90,000- seat Cotton Bowl Stadium... Scott McCune has been named chairman of the Chick-fil-A Bowl... John Sudsbury to become director of communications and media relations at the Allstate Sugar Bowl... Tulsa's Wilson Holloway is the latest nominee for the 2008 FedEx Orange Bowl/FWAA Courage Award.

FSN Southwest will replay 22 classic Big 12 games from 1998-2007 over the next eight weeks and will culminate the series with Bedlam Series games between Oklahoma and Oklahoma State on Thanksgiving, Nov. 27... Jacked, Inc. and the Big Ten Network are seeing increased viewing numbers for Big Ten Conference football contests via a video stream collaboration by the two groups... The Mtn. has launched in South Central Communication Cable affiliates.

The Sun Belt Conference is teaming with the Leffler Agency for a marketing and promotions campaign... Under Armour Inc. signed South Florida to a uniform deal for the next five years.

Tennessee had its first live streaming of a game on UTSports.com against Northern Illinois to statewide residents without cable or satellite capabilities... Clemson's new iTiger project blends the expertise of athletics and the university's School of Computing in the College of Engineering and Science for a new game experience through texting and other in-stadium communication methods.

Former Southern California QB great, assistant coach and radio analyst Craig Fertig, 66, died of cancer last Saturday in Newport Beach, Calif.... John Godfrey, 87, head coach at Whittier (Calif.) from 1960-79, died last week in Tualatin, Ore.... Larry Birleffi, 90, former voice of the Wyoming Cowboys, passed away on Sept. 27.

National Football Foundation Chalk Talk

NFF News

With more than $300,000 in scholarships and 15 all- expense paid trips to New York City at stake, The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) is set to announce Wednesday more than 160 semifinalists for college football's most prestigious academic honor - The 2008 Draddy Trophy presented, by HealthSouth.

One of college football's most sought after and competitive awards, the Draddy Trophy recognizes an individual as the absolute best in the country for his combined academic success, football performance and exemplary community leadership. From the 160- plus candidates from all divisions of play creating the pool of semifinalists, the NFF Awards Committee will select the 15 finalists for the award, which will be announced on Oct. 23. Each of the Draddy Trophy finalists will win a $18,000 NFF National Scholar- Athlete Award for his post-graduate education.

NFF Chairman Archie Manning will be the keynote speaker for the Murphy Enterprise Center's 2008 Leadership Luncheon at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas on Friday, Nov. 14.

To become a member of the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Alumni Association, please contact NFF Director of Special Projects Hillary Jeffries at 800-486-1865 or via email at hjeffries@footballfoundation.com.

Two-Minute Drill

College Football Hall of Famers Doug Flutie, Bob Griese, Lou Holtz, Mark May, and Andre Ware are among the broadcast teams for ABC Sports and ESPN football this autumn... Hall of Famer and 2007 NFF Gold Medal co-recipient Roger Staubach was honored for his efforts in the construction of Pope John Paul II High School Stadium in Plano, Texas, last week. The Navy great performed the ceremonial coin toss as John Paul II faced Trinity Christian-Addison last Friday night... Georgia broadcasting legend Larry Munson officially retired from the Bulldogs' radio booth... SEC schools participated in the "Together We Can" food drive collected 40,000 pounds of food for underserved families in the region during 12-day activities. For every yard gained by both teams in the Raycom SEC Game of the Week, Regions Bank will donate a new tree to the Arbor Day Foundation's work to reforest areas in the southeastern part of the country... Duke head coach David Cutcliffe entertained students and faculty at "Chat With Coach Cut" activities on the Durham, N.C., campus last week... Tulane hosted "Bring Your 'A' Game - Celebrating Education in New Orleans," as the Green Wave took on SMU at the Superdome... Navy and UNLV have scheduled a first-ever four-game series from 2014-17. Navy also has been designated as one of the teams represented in the 2010 San Diego County Poinsettia Bowl pending eligiblity after the '10 regular campaign... NCAA Football has launched a special link via NCAAFootball.com to download schedules for all schools... Thom Gossom, Jr. , the first African- American athlete to graduate from Auburn, recently released his memoir "Walk On," which depicts his struggles on and off the football field in the 1970s... Mike Flynt, who started playing linebacker for Sul Ross State (Texas) at age 59, released his new book "The Senior" detailing his experiences as the oldest contributing member of a college football team in NCAA history... HBO Sports has opened production on "Breaking the Huddle: The Integration of College Football," noting integration of college football in the South and the Civil Rights movement of the '60s. It will debut on Dec. 16. The program uses extensive research from the College Football Hall of Fame archives and culminates with the famed Southern California- Alabama of Sept. 1970. ESPN's acclaimed primetime E60 newsmagazine program Tuesday at 7 p.m. (EDT) features Hawai'i graduate assistant coach Brian Kajiyama and his courage of fighting through a cerebral palsy affliction since birth... The Big Ten Network will premiere Hail to the Victors: Greatest Stories of Michigan Football, a new show which traces the lineage of the storied program, following the Michigan-Toledo game on Oct. 11. Narrated by Thom Brennaman, Hail to the Victors will examine some of the most successful seasons of Michigan football with archived interview footage with legendary coach Bo Schembechler.

Minnesota's TCF Bank Stadium will honor American Indian tribes with the new Minnesotal Tribal Nations Plaza. An 18-foot sky marker for each of the state's 11 tribal nations will be placed outside the main gate of the new stadium... Cal recently kicked off a $250 million football fundraising drive, pushing the purchase of premium seats at its new stadium... North Texas students will vote Oct. 13-17 on an expanded fee structure to help finance a new on-campus stadium for the Eagles... Dick Jacobson of Iowa State has contributed $5 million to ISU - most of the gift to help revamp Jack Trice Stadium... Smithville Communications has made a $250,000 donation to Indiana athletics... Ellen and Dr. Brent Feller have made a $500,000 contribution for Iowa athletics facilities... Sacramento State has received a $50,000 endowed scholarship from the family of the late Hank Elespuru... Arkansas State Athletics received its largest single donation from Charles Luter for improvements to its athletic academic facility.

College Football Hall of Famer Joe Theismann was recently named the 2008 Davey O'Brien Legends Award recipient in recognition of his life-long contributions to football. Theismann will be presented with the award at the 32nd Annual Davey O'Brien Awards Dinner on Feb. 16, 2009, at The Fort Worth Club in Fort Worth, Texas... Miami (Fla.) added five former standouts to its Football Ring of Honor: RB Edgerrin James, QB Jim Kelly, DT Cortez Kennedy, C Jim Otto and QB Gino Torretta... R. C. Slocum, Texas A&M's winningest football coach, was inducted into the schools's athletic hall of fame... College Football Hall of Famer John Gagliardi (St. John's, Minn.) was named the 2009 recipient of AFCA's Amos Alonzo Stagg Award... Beth Holtz, wife of former Notre Dame football coach and 2008 College Football Hall of Fame inductee Lou Holtz, has been awarded an honorary monogram by the Notre Dame Monogram Club. Coach and Mrs. Holtz founded the Lou and Beth Holtz Charitable Foundation in 1998 to help support disadvantaged persons of all ages and homeless shelters in South Bend, Ind., and Columbia, S.C.... DB Ron Allen is the most recent inductee into the Rutgers Athletics Hall of Fame... Baylor's 2008 Hall of Fame class includes football great Ray Crockett and former director of athletics Tom Stanton, who spearheaded the fundraising efforts for the Texas Sports Hall of Fame Southwest Conference wing... Kansas State inducted retired head coach Bill Snyder and university president Jon Wefald into its Athletics Hall of Fame as key participants in the "Miracle in Manhattan" turnaround of the Wildcats' football program... New Mexico State added Pervis Atkins, Denvis Manns and Walt Williams to its Aggie Football Legends Ring of Honor... The Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation released its "Watch List" for its 2008 Dodd Trophy.

Connecticut and IMG College have signed a multi-year year agreement for broadcast and marketing rights... Arkansas has extended its corporate partnership with Collegiate Licensing Co. for five years.

Charles Walemon "Cotton" Price, 90, quarterback and captain of the 1939 national champion Texas A&M squad, died last Wednesday. The 1937-39 letterman paced the '39 squad to a 11-0 record... Dick Lynch, 72, 41- year member of the New York Giants' radio broadcasting crew and a standout at Notre Dame and in the NFL, died last week... Former San Jose State HB and decorated World War II pilot Bert Robinson, 86, passed away... Wally Hilgenberg, a standout lineman at Iowa, passed away at 66... Plato Gus Andros, all- conference guard for the 1946 Oklahoma team, died at 86.


Key NFF Dates

Oct. 19: First Release of 2008 BCS Standings - Irving, Texas
Dec. 9: NFF Annual Awards Dinner at the Waldorf=Astoria - New York, N.Y.
Jan. 5, 2009: National Hall of Fame Salute at the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl - Glendale, Az.
Jan. 9, 2009: Presentation of MacArthur Trophy to BCS champion - Miami, Fla.

2009 BCS Schedule

Jan. 1: Rose Bowl presented by Citi - Pasadena, Calif., ABC
Jan. 1: FedEx Orange Bowl - Miami, Fla., Fox
Jan. 2: Allstate Sugar Bowl - New Orleans, La., Fox
Jan. 5: Tostitos Fiesta Bowl - Glendale, Ariz., Fox
Jan. 8: FedEx BCS National Championship Game - Miami, Fla., Fox

This Date in College Football History

Sept. 4, 1982: Future College Football Hall of Fame quarterback Doug Flutie ruins debut of new Texas A&M head coach Jackie Sherrill, as Boston College beats the Aggies 38-16 in College Station. Boston College scores on its first four possessions, as Flutie completes 18-26 for 346 yards, three touchdowns, adding another one on the ground.

Credit: The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame