Brandon Scherff of Iowa with his 2014 Outland Trophy.
Brandon Scherff, the 2014 Outland Trophy winner from Iowa, was taken by the Washington Redskins with the No. 5 overall pick in the NFL Draft on Thursday.
Here are the dates and locations of pre-season football media days upcoming this summer:
Atlantic Coast Conference: July 19-21, Pinehurst Resort, North Carolina
American Athletic Conference: August 2-4, Hyatt Regency, Newport, Rhode Island
Big Ten Conference: July 30-31, Hyatt Regency McCormick Place, Chicago
Big 12 Conference: July 20-21, The Omni, Dallas
Conference USA: July 21-22, Boca Resort, Boca Raton, Fla.
Mid-American Conference: July 28-29, Ford Field, Detroit
Mountain West Conference: July 28-29, The Cosmopolitan, Las Vegas
Pac 12: July 30-31, Warner Bros. Studios, Burbank, Calif.
Southeastern: July 13-16, Wynfrey Hotel, Hoover, Alabama
Sun Belt: July 19-20 at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans
The medical examiner in Rochester, N.Y., has identified a body found Friday in Lake Ontario as Max Maisel, the 21-year-old son of FWAA member Ivan Maisel. Max had been missing since Feb. 22. The cause of death has yet to be determined.
Click here to read the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle’s story.
Former FWAA president Ivan Maisel and his wife, Meg, are focusing on their special memories of their son, Max, a student at the Rochester Institute of Technology who disappeared Feb. 22 and is presumed dead.
Click here to read the entire story from the Fairfield Citizen.
We are having a memorial service and a celebration of Max’s life on Friday, March 27 at Congregation Bnai Israel in Bridgeport, CT. If anyone is interested in attending, please contact me at Ivan.Maisel@gmail.com.
Thanks,
Ivan Maisel
Bob Mancuso is the main reason the FWAA’s Outland Trophy Dinner has been in Omaha since 1996. His sons, Bob Jr., Mike and Joe, now run it each January. Tom Shatel, FWAA President in 2000, writes a column about Bob Sr”s legacy in Omaha.
In the March CoSIDA Digest, FWAA Executive Director Steve Richardson offered 10 tips that can help Sports Information Directors have better relations with beat writers.
Click here to read the CoSIDA Digest. Richardson’s tips are on Pages 20-21.
There’s a saying in sports: “You can’t tell the players without a scorecard.” With the uniforms being worn by some NCAA teams these days, you can’t tell the players even with the scorecard.
College sports’ never ending uniform craze had included a number of jerseys with unreadable numbers, which have in turn created competitive concerns. It’s a small but increasing minority of schools with numbers on their jerseys that are tough to read. In the grand scheme of NCAA problems these days, this one hardly rises to the top.
But there are enough concerns being raised about deciphering jersey numbers that the NCAA is taking efforts to clean up what’s apparently becoming a gamesmanship issue. Some coaches want the confusion to gain an edge so future opponents have trouble scouting their team.
To read this entire commentary by FWAA member Jon Solomon at CBSSports.com, CLICK HERE.
DALLAS – Duke offensive guard Laken Tomlinson is the winner of the 2014 Orange Bowl-FWAA Courage Award.
Tomlinson, a 6-3, 330-pound senior from Chicago (Lane Tech), has started 51 consecutive games and has helped the Blue Devils (9-3) score 390 points this season, the third-most in program history. Duke’s offensive line leads the country in fewest tackles-for-loss per game allowed with just 3.33 and has surrendered just 13.0 sacks, tied for the 13th fewest in the nation.
Duke offensive guard Laken Tomlinson (center) accepts the Orange Bowl-FWAA Courage Award from Orange Bowl Committee member Matt Morrall and FWAA member David Hale of ESPN.com.
But Tomlinson just making a college roster and winding up in Durham was a challenge. Duke’s current football captain offers a slightly different version of the “The Blind Side,” the famous story of Michael Oher, who came from a broken family in Memphis, lived in numerous foster homes, and eventually became a star offensive tackle at Ole Miss and went on to the NFL.
“I am both grateful and humbled to be honored by the Football Writers Association of America and the Orange Bowl with this award,” said Tomlinson, who will finish his Duke career against Arizona State in the Hyundai Sun Bowl on Dec. 27. “My mother has been the greatest influence on my life, and none of this recognition would be possible without her sacrifice, love and support.
“It means the world to me to make her proud. If not for her, I could still be in Jamaica, living a life of poverty. Every time I go home or have an opportunity to talk to my mother, she always tells me before she hangs up, ‘Laken, I love you and I’m extremely proud of you and everything that you do for our family. Keep doing what you are doing. The Lord has a plan for you, Laken.'”
College Football Hall of Fame
ATLANTA – Beginning in 2015, each year’s college football stars will be honored at the home of the game’s greatest legends as The Home Depot College Football Awards will move to the College Football Hall of Fame and Chick-fil-A Fan Experience in downtown Atlanta as part of a new multi-year agreement between ESPN and the Hall of Fame. Airing live on ESPN on December 10, 2015, The Home Depot College Football Awards will feature the presentation of nine of the most prestigious accolades in college football and pay tribute to the remarkable successes of each year’s standout student-athletes both on and off the field. The 45-yard-long indoor football field at the new 94,000-square-foot attraction doubles as a fully-functioning event facility and will serve as the show’s new home.
“Disney gave us a wonderful home for The Home Depot College Football Awards for more than two decades. Now, the National Football Foundation and the College Football Hall of Fame will provide us the opportunity to enhance both our coverage and the experience for attendees and fans. The show and this new venue are not only a natural fit, but a great way to mark 25 years of ESPN televising the awards,” said Burke Magnus, ESPN senior vice president, programming and acquisitions.
“The Home Depot College Football Awards celebrates exceptional student-athletes, and there’s no more fitting venue for this prestigious ceremony than at our spectacular new facility, which celebrates college football every day,” said John Stephenson, president & CEO of the College Football Hall of Fame. “The Hall of Fame was designed, built and wired for premier broadcast events like this, and we will honor this decision to move the show by providing exceptional hospitality and a celebratory experience to the players, their families, coaches and fans.”
The Fifth Down 