DALLAS, TX --- University of Minnesota senior Greg Eslinger, of Bismark, North Dakota was named the unanimous recipient of the Dave Rimington Trophy today. Eslinger was notified today with a personal visit from Rimington Trophy representatives in Orlando, Florida as he prepared for the Home Depot College Football Awards television show. Eslinger will be recognized as the nation’s most outstanding center at the annual Dave Rimington Trophy awards banquet to be held at the Rococo Theater, in Lincoln, Nebraska, January 7 at 6:30 p.m. CST.

This year's Rimington Trophy Gala will feature two keynote speakers including Saint John’s University legendary coach John Gagliardi and 1973 Heisman Trophy winner John Cappelletti from Penn State University.

When asked how he felt about winning the Rimington Trophy, Eslinger responded "This is an amazing honor and it's a great feeling. I’m just a guy from a small town in North Dakota and all I wanted to do coming out of high school was go to Minnesota and start. This award is special because it is only for centers, and we often go unrecognized. But, I can't say anything without mentioning my teammates. There is no such thing as an individual effort from an offensive lineman. We were great as a unit all year long, and without them I wouldn't have won this award."

Eslinger, 6’3”, 285 lbs., was the unanimous first team Center on the four All-America Teams used to select the winner of the Rimington Trophy which includes the American Football Coaches Association, Football Writers Association, The Sporting News and Walter Camp All-America Teams.

“Greg and the entire Minnesota offensive line have had a tremendous season and we are honored to name him the Winner of the 2005 Rimington Trophy. His presence on the field lead Minnesota to the number two rushing offense in the nation and number five overall. You can’t have that kind of offensive output without a strong player at the Center position. Eslinger adds to the distinguished list of past winners and shares the leadership qualities, skill, power and intelligence it takes to be named college football’s top center. Congratulations to all the watch list candidates, finalists and of course to Greg,” added Dave Rimington.

In addition the Rimington Trophy was approved today for Regular Membership in the National College Football Awards Association. The NCFAA was founded in 1997 as a coalition of major collegiate football awards. The purpose of the NCFAA is to protect, preserve and enhance the integrity, influence and prestige of college football’s various awards. The NCFAA also encourages professionalism and the highest standards possible for the administration of college football awards and the selection of their winners.

Rimington the award's namesake was a consensus first-team All-America center at Nebraska in 1981 and '82-years in which he became the John Outland Trophy's only double winner as the nation's finest college interior lineman.

The six-year old trophy (Nebraska’s Dominic Raiola, Ohio State's LeCharles Bentley, Miami’s Brett Romberg, Virginia Tech’s Jake Grove, Michigan’s David Baas and LSU’s Ben Wilkerson are past recipients) is presented by Canon USA, Black & Decker, Mid American Energy Holding Company and Power Sentry. Since its inception the Rimington Trophy Award has raised over $450,000 for the award’s benefactor, the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, which is hosted by the Boomer Esiason Foundation that to date has raised over $45,000,000 for CF Research.