Nov. 30, 2005
The Walter Camp Football Foundation has announced the five finalists for its 2005 Player of the Year award.
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 Walter Camp Player of the Year recipient, USC quarterback Matt Leinart, heads the list of finalists. Leinart’s teammate, running back Reggie Bush, is also a finalist for the second straight season. Joining the USC duo on the finalist list are quarterbacks Vince Young (Texas) and Brady Quinn (Notre Dame) and linebacker A.J. Hawk (Ohio State).
The finalists for the 2005 Walter Camp Player of the Year award include:
Brady Quinn – NOTRE DAME – Junior, Quarterback – Has led Notre Dame to a 9-2 record… Quinn has thrown for a school-record 3,633 yards (263-of-405), an average of 330.3 yards per game… He has 32 touchdown passes and just seven interceptions… Quinn has four 400-yard passing efforts, including a season-high 487-yard effort versus Michigan State on September 17.
REGGIE BUSH – USC – Junior, Running Back – Averaging 212.5 all-purpose yards a game for the top-ranked Trojans… Recently named Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year… Bush has rushed for 1,398 yards and 13 touchdowns… Rushed for a season-high 294 yards and two touchdowns versus Fresno State on November 19… He has also caught 31 passes for 383 yards with two touchdowns.
A.J. HAWK – OHIO STATE – Senior, Linebacker – Hawk has led the Buckeyes to a 9-2 record and recorded a team-high 109 tackles (60 solo)… He is the only defensive player to rank in the Big Ten’s top five in tackles (5th, 9.9 per game), sacks (4th, 7.5) and tackles for loss (4th, 13.0)… Hawk leads a Buckeye defensive unit that ranks first in the Big Ten in scoring defense (14.8 points allowed per game) and seventh nationally.
MATT LEINART- USC – Senior, Quarterback – Leinart has led the top-ranked Trojans to a perfect 11-0 record… He has completed 233-of-351 passes for 3,217 yards (292.5 yds/gm)… Leinart has thrown 24 touchdown passes and seven interceptions… He has six 300-yard passing efforts, including a season-high 381 (18-of-24) and four touchdowns versus Arkansas on September 17.
VINCE YOUNG – TEXAS – Junior, Quarterback – Has led second-ranked Texas to a perfect 11-0 record… Young has completed 168-of-268 passes for 2,576 yards and 23 touchdowns… He has thrown for 200 or more yards eight times, including a 336-yard effort vs. Colorado on October 15… Young has also rushed for 792 yards (on 128 carries) and eight touchdowns, including a career-best 267 in a come-from-behind win over Oklahoma State on October 29.
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.