DALLAS, TX --- Finalists for the Rimington Trophy, presented to the outstanding center in college football, are Mark Bihl (University of Michigan), Doug Datish (Ohio State University), Ryan Kalil (University of Southern California), Jonathan Luigs (University of Arkansas), Dan Mozes (West Virginia University), and Darnell Stapleton (Rutgers University).

The winner of the Rimington Trophy will be announced at The Home Depot College Football Awards show, broadcast live from Orlando, Florida on ESPN on Thursday, December 7, 2006.

The winner of the Rimington Trophy is selected by determining the consensus All-American center pick from four existing All-America teams.

While more than a dozen All-America teams are selected annually, the Rimington Trophy committee uses these four prestigious teams to determine a winner:


American Football Coaches Association (AFCA)
Walter Camp Foundation (WCF)
Sporting News (SN)
Football Writers Association of America (FWAA)

Because the selectors of these four All-America teams can place centers in a "mix" of offensive linemen that includes guards and tackles, their 11- man first teams can often have two centers. The Rimington Trophy committee's policy is to count all players that play primarily the center position for their respective teams as centers, even though they may be listed as guards or tackles on the four All- America teams.

The center with the most first team votes will be determined the winner. If there is a tie with first team votes, then the center with the most second team votes will win. If there is still a tie, the winner will be determined by a majority vote from the Rimington Trophy committee.

The winner will be recognized at the Rimington Trophy Presentation at the Rococo Theatre in Lincoln, Nebraska on Saturday, January 13, 2007.

About the Rimington Trophy
The seven-year old trophy is presented by Canon, The Cornhusker Marriott, and Logitech. Past recipients include Dominic Raiola (Nebraska), LeCharles Bentley (Ohio State), Brett Romberg (Miami), Jake Grove (Virginia Tech), co- winners David Baas (Michigan) and Ben Wilkerson (LSU), and Greg Eslinger (Minnesota). Since its inception the Rimington Trophy Award has raised over $700,000 for its benefactor, the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. It, in turn, is hosted by the Boomer Esiason Foundation which, to date, has raised over $40 million for Cystic Fibrosis research.
Dave Rimington, the award's namesake, was a consensus first-team All-American center at Nebraska in 1981 and 1982. During this time, he became the John Outland Trophy's only double winner as the nation's finest college interior lineman.

The Rimington Trophy is a fully accredited member of the National College Football Awards Association.



The Sports Group
Eric E. Lindberg
Principal
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phone: 214-631-7747

The Sports Group
Seth Gonzales
Project Coordinator
email: [email protected]
phone: 214-631-7747

Biographical data is courtesy of the College Football Hall of Fame and Syd Russell