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Aug. 11, 2004
HOUSTON, Texas – Five University of Virginia football players have been named to the 2004 Lombardi Award Watch List, the award’s Executive Committee announced in its updated version of the official Watch List, featuring the names of 113 players.
The preliminary 2004 list had been released in early May and contained 54 names.
Representing Virginia on the watch list are LB Darryl Blackstock (Newport News, Va.), LB Ahmad Brooks (Woodbridge, Va.), G Elton Brown (Hampton, Va.), DE Chris Canty (Charlotte, N.C.), and TE Heath Miller (Swords Creek, Va.).
This year, the Rotary Lombardi Award will celebrate the 35th year of honoring the finest linemen in college football. The annual Rotary Lombardi Award Dinner will be held in Houston on December 8, with all net proceeds from the dinner and related activities adding to the total of nearly $3 million that has been raised for the American Cancer Society since the event’s inception. Chris Spielman, the 1987 winner of the award, will serve as the featured speaker.
The list includes 27 offensive tackles, 24 defensive ends, 20 linebackers, 13 centers, eight defensive tackles, seven offensive guards, and four tight ends.
The 113 members of the Watch List earned a place on the Watch List by earning All-American honors at the end of the 2003 or previous seasons, by being named to their respective All-Conference team as selected by the conference’s head coaches, or by being named to one of the preseason honor teams.
Eligibility for the Rotary Lombardi Award is limited to down linemen and those defensive players who line up within five yards of the football. While the Watch Lists highlights players who have already received national recognition, any Division I player who meets the position requirements is eligible for consideration from the Rotary Lombardi Selection Committee, which is comprised of over 500 members, including all past finalists, all Division I head coaches and a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters. The Rotary Lombardi Watch List, intended as a reference tool for the Selection Committee, will be periodically updated and revised through the conclusion of the voting to determine the 12 semifinalists for 2004.
Virginia kicks off the 2004 season on Saturday, Sept. 4 at Temple in Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field. ESPN2 will televise the game, beginning at Noon.