Courtesy of the Walter Camp Award
NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Three quarterbacks, including last year’s recipient Colt
McCoy (Texas), headline the list of finalists for the Walter Camp Football
Foundation 2009 Player of the Year award.
Florida’s Tim Tebow and Houston’s Case Keenum join McCoy as finalists.
Alabama running back Mark Ingram and Nebraska defensive tackle Ndamukong
Suh round out the list.
The 2009 Walter Camp Player of the Year recipient, who is voted on by the
Football Bowl Subdivision head coaches and sports information directors,
will be presented live on Thursday, December 10 during the 6 p.m. edition
of ESPN SportsCenter. The winner will receive his trophy at the
Foundation’s annual national awards banquet on Saturday, January 16, 2010
at the Yale University Commons in New Haven. Sponsorships and tickets are
available by calling (203) 288-CAMP.
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 continue the tradition of selecting an annual
All-America team.
The Walter Camp Football Foundation is a member of the National College
Football Awards Association (NCFAA). The NCFAA was founded in 1997 as a
coalition of the major collegiate football awards to protect, preserve and
enhance the integrity, influence and prestige of the game’s predominant
awards. The NCFAA encourages professionalism and the highest standards for
the administration of its member awards and the selection of their
candidates and recipients. Visit www.ncfaa.org.
The finalists for the 2009 Walter Camp Player of the Year award include:
MARK INGRAM – ALABAMA – Sophomore – Running Back – Ingram has led the
Crimson Tide to a 12-0 record and a berth in the SEC championship game… Has
rushed for 1,429 yards and 12 touchdowns… Seven 100-yard rushing efforts,
including a season-high 246-yard effort in a win over South Carolina… Has
caught 28 passes for 246 yards and three touchdowns.
CASE KEENUM – HOUSTON – Junior – Quarterback – Keenum has led the
high-scoring Cougars (10-2) to a berth in this weekend’s Conference USA
title game… Leads the nation with 4,922 passing yards (412-of-584) and tied
for the nation’s lead with 38 touchdown passes… Has thrown for 400 or more
yards six times, including a season-high 559 in a win over Southern Miss.
COLT McCOY – TEXAS – Senior – Quarterback – Last year’s Walter Camp Player
of the Year recipient, McCoy has led the Longhorns (12-0) to a third
straight berth in the Big 12 title game…. Has passed for 3,328 yards
(310-of-432) and 27 touchdowns… Has thrown for 300 or more yards five times
this season… Has rushed for 368 yards and two touchdowns.
NDAMUKONG SUH – NEBRASKA – Senior – Defensive Tackle – The leader of the
Cornhuskers’ defense that ranks 11th in the nation in total defense… Suh
has registered 70 tackles and 7.5 quarterback sacks… Has 22 quarterback
hurries, 16 tackles for loss, 10 pass breakups, and three blocked kicks.
TIM TEBOW – FLORIDA – Senior, Quarterback – A Player of the Year finalist
for the third straight year, Tebow has led the top-ranked Gators (12-0) to
a berth in this weekend’s SEC championship game… Has thrown for 2,166 yards
and 17 touchdowns, while rushing for 796 yards and 13 more scores… He had
two games where he passed for two touchdowns and rushed for two as well.