FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 10, 2012

Contact: Seth Gonzales Rimington Trophy Media Relations [email protected] Phone: 214-986-9968

RIMINGTON TROPHY RELEASES 2012 FALL WATCH LIST Total of 51 players named, including eight sophomores and three graduate students

NEW YORK, NY - The Rimington Trophy committee has announced its 2012 Fall Watch List.

In all, there are 51 members of the Watch List. The Southeastern Conference leads the way with ten candidates. The Big Ten follows with 6 players, while the ACC, Conference USA, Mountain West Conference, and the PAC-12 all check in with five players each.

Players named to the 2012 Rimington Trophy Fall Watch List are as follows:

Eloy Atkinson UTEP C-USA 6'3" 315 Senior Mario Benavides Louisville Big East 6'4" 301 RS Senior Nick Carlson Wyoming MWC 6'4" 292 Senior Braxston Cave Notre Dame Independent 6'3" 304 Graduate Dillon Day Mississippi SEC 6'4" 295 RS Soph. State Auburn SEC 6'3" 302 Sophomore Trent Dupy Tulsa C-USA 6'2" 285 Senior Dillon Farrell New Mexico MWC 6'5" 290 Junior James Ferentz Iowa Big Ten 6'2" 284 Senior Jay Finch Georgia Tech ACC 6'3" 283 RS Junior BJ Finney Kansas State Big-12 6'4" 303 Sophomore Travis Frederick Wisconsin Big Ten 6'4" 328 Junior Dalton Freeman Clemson ACC 6'5" 285 Graduate James Fry TCU Big-12 6'3" 290 Senior Kevin Galeher Western MAC 6'3" 300 Senior Michigan

Hronis Grasu Oregon Pac-12 6'3" 284 Sophomore Ben Habern Oklahoma Big-12 6'4" 292 Senior Gus Handler Colorado Pac-12 6'3" 295 Junior Jonotthan Harrison Florida SEC 6'3" 309 RS Junior Khaled Holmes USC Pac-12 6'4" 305 Senior Andre Huval Louisiana- Sun Belt 6'1" 290 Junior Lafayette Alec Johnson San Diego MWC 6'3" 300 Senior State TJ Johnson South SEC 6'6" 319 Senior Carolina Alabama SEC 6'5" 302 Senior Zac Kerin Toledo MAC 6'5" 300 Junior Tyler Larsen Utah State WAC 6'4" 308 Junior Patrick Lewis Texas A&M SEC 6'2" 306 Senior PJ Lonergan LSU SEC 6'4" 305 Senior Macky MacPherson Syracuse Big East 6'2" 269 Junior Joe Madsen West Virginia Big-12 6'4" 310 RS Senior Mike Marboe Idaho WAC 6'2" 301 Sophomore Will Matte Indiana Big Ten 6'2" 290 RS Senior Blake McJunkin SMU C-USA 6'2" 305 Senior Andrew Miller Virginia Tech ACC 6'4" 300 RS Junior Brian Moore Duke ACC 6'2" 285 RS Senior Graham Pocic Illinois Big Ten 6'7" 305 Senior Ryan Powis Army Independent 6'0" 257 Sophomore Austin Quattrochi Southern CUSA 6'3" 295 RS Senior Miss Jordan Rae UCF C-USA 6'2" 275 Senior Weston Richburg Colorado MWC 6'4" 297 Junior State Sam Schwartzstein Stanford Pac-12 6'3" 290 Senior Matt Smith Kentucky SEC 6'4" 296 Senior Matt Stankiewitch Penn State Big Ten 6'3" 295 Senior Tevita Stevens Utah Pac-12 6'3" 302 Senior Travis Swanson Arkansas SEC 6'5" 305 Junior Evan Swindall Ole Miss SEC 6'2" 300 Junior Ryan Turnley Pittsburgh Big East 6'6" 320 Senior Brandon Vitabile Northwestern Big Ten 6'3" 300 Sophomore Stephen Warner Louisiana WAC 6'0" 295 RS Senior Tech Robert Waterman UNLV MWC 6'2" 290 Sophomore Camden Wentz NC State ACC 6'3" 225 Senior

While more than a dozen All-America football teams are selected annually, the Rimington Trophy committee uses these four prestigious teams to determine a winner:

• American Football Coaches Association • Walter Camp Foundation • Sporting News • Football Writers Association of America

Because the selectors of these four All-America teams can place Centers in a "mix" of offensive linemen that includes guards and tackles, their 11-man first teams can often have two Centers. Our policy is to count all players that play primarily the Center position for their respective teams as Centers, even though they maybe listed as guards or tackles on the four All American teams.

The Center with the most first team votes will be determined the winner. If there is a tie with first team votes, then the Center with most second team votes will win. If there is still a tie, the winner will be determined by the Rimington Trophy committee.

The winner will be honored at Rimington Trophy Presentation banquet at the Rococo Theater in Lincoln, Nebraska on January 12, 2013.

ABOUT THE RIMINGTON TROPHY The Rimington Trophy is presented annually to the Most Outstanding Center in NCAA Division I-A . Since its inception, the Rimington Trophy has raised over $2 million. The twelve- year old award is overseen by the Boomer Esiason Foundation, which is committed to finding a cure for cystic fibrosis and has raised over $100 million for CF Research.

Dave Rimington, the award's namesake, was a consensus first-team All-America center at the University of Nebraska in 1981 and 1982, during which time he became the John 's only double winner as the nation's finest college interior lineman. For more on the Rimington Trophy and a list of past recipients, visit www.rimingtontrophy.com

ABOUT THE NCFAA The Rimington Trophy 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. For more information, visit the association’s official website, www.NCFAA.org.