Barry Alvarez, Director of Athletics at the University of Wisconsin, will present the keynote address at the January awards banquet for the 2009 Rimington Trophy.

Alvarez is in his sixth year as Wisconsin’s AD. The Badgers have enjoyed remarkable success during his tenure, winning a combined 12 team national titles and 23 conference regular-season or tournament crowns. The school’s student-athletes have achieved success off the playing field as well, compiling some of the highest grade-point averages on record and performing 1,500 hours in community service projects.

Prior to being named to his current post, Alvarez served as Head Coach of Wisconsin’s football team from 1990 to 2005. (He served as both AD and football coach from 2004-05.) Alvarez piloted Wisconsin to three Big Ten and Rose Bowl titles en route to becoming the winningest football coach in school history with a 118-73-4 record.

Alvarez was just the tenth coach in Big Ten history to win 100 games at one conference institution. His 8-3 record in bowl games with the Badgers is the best in college football history (among coaches with at least 11 bowl appearances). Alvarez was named the National Coach of the Year in 1993, was a two-time Big Ten Coach of the Year (1993 and 1998) and also was a finalist for ESPN’s Coach of the Decade honor for the 1990s. Alvarez co-chairs the NCAA’s Football Academic Enhancement Group and also serves on the NCAA Football Issues Committee. He graduated in 1969 from the University of Nebraska, where he played linebacker and went on to earn a master’s degree.

The Rimington Trophy is awarded annually to the top center in college football. The award was created in 2000 and is named for David Rimington, Nebraska’s two-time consensus All-America center and the only player to earn two John Outland trophies. The Rimington Trophy is sponsored by the Boomer Esiason Foundation, which supports the cystic fibrosis community and research to find a cure for the disease.

“The Rimington Trophy shines a light on an often-overlooked but very important position in football, and it also supports a very important cause,” Alvarez said. “I am honored to have been invited to speak at the Rimington Trophy presentation banquet and look forward to catching up with old friends and celebrating the success of the best centers in college football today,” he said.

The 2009 Rimington Trophy presentation banquet will be held January 16, 2010, at the Rococo Theatre in Lincoln, Neb. In addition to Alvarez, the event’s speakers will include Jim Ritcher, who will receive the 2009 Gerald R. Ford Legends Award. Ritcher, the first center to win the Outland Trophy, had a stellar career at North Carolina State University and went on to play 16 years in the NFL for the Buffalo Bills and Atlanta Falcons. The banquet also will feature Jerry Cahill, a 53-year-old cystic fibrosis patient who will share with the audience his own personal struggles – and triumphs – with the fatal disease.

To purchase tickets to the 10th Annual Rimington Trophy Presentation, please call 402-330-6164.