Nov. 14, 2005
The Walter Camp Football Foundation has announced the 10 “Players to Watch” for its 2005 Player of the Year award, the fourth-oldest individual college football award in the nation.
The 2005 Walter Camp Player of the Year recipient, who is voted on by the 119 Division I-A head coaches and sports information directors, will be announced live on the 6:00 p.m. edition of ESPN SportsCenter on Thursday, December 8. The winner will then receive his trophy at the Foundation’s annual national awards banquet on Saturday, February 11, 2006 at the Yale University Commons in New Haven. Tickets ($250) are available by calling (203) 288-CAMP.
Last year’s recipient USC quarterback Matt Leinart is on the Watch List for the third consecutive season. In fact, five Pac-10 players – Leinart and USC teammate Reggie Bush, UCLA’s Drew Olson and Maurice Drew as well as Washington State’s Jerome Harrison – made the Watch List. Three defensive players – Louisville’s Elvis Dumervil and linebackers Paul Posluszny (Penn State) and A.J. Hawk (Ohio State) – were also recognized
Walter Camp, “The Father of American football,” first selected an All-America team in 1889. Camp – a former Yale University athlete and football coach – is also credited with developing play from scrimmage, set plays, the numerical assessment of goals and tries and the restriction of play to eleven men per side. The Walter Camp Football Foundation – a New Haven-based all-volunteer group – was founded in 1967 to perpetuate the ideals of Camp and to continue the tradition of selecting annually an All-America team.
The 10 “Players to Watch” for the 2005 Walter Camp Player of the Year award include:
Reggie Bush, RB, Junior, USC – 1,129 rushing yards and 11 TD’s; caught 28 passes and 2 TD’s, 1 punt return for TD
Maurice Drew, RB, Junior, UCLA – Has 1,653 all-purpose yards; 19 touchdowns (12 rush, 4 receiving, 3 punt returns)
Elvis Dumervil, DE, Senior, Louisville – Leads nation with 20.0 quarterback sacks; 56 tackles (34 solo) and 1 INT
Jerome Harrison, RB, Senior, Washington State – Leads nation with 1,693 rushing yards (6.2 avg); 15 rushing TD’s
A.J. Hawk, LB, Senior, Ohio State – Has 102 tackles, including 12 for losses, 7.5 quarterback sacks, 1 INT
Matt Leinart, QB, Senior, USC – Has passed for 3,035 yards (211-of-318) and 23 TD’s; has 5 rushing TD’s
Drew Olson, QB, Senior, UCLA – Has passed for 2,909 yards (218-of-322); leads nation with 30 TD passes
Paul Posluszny, LB, Junior, Penn State – Has 106 tackles, including 10.0 for losses, 3 INT and 2 pass breakups
Brady Quinn, QB, Junior, Notre Dame – Passed for school-record 2,931 yards; has thrown 27 TD passes
Vince Young, QB, Junior, Texas – Has thrown for 2,414 yards and 22 TD’s and rushed for 796 yards and 8 TD’s