Sept. 16, 2008
For Use as Desired
South Florida’s Selvie Named Lott Player of the Week
University of South Florida Defensive End George Selvie has been named the winner of The Lott Trophy IMPACT® Player of the Week presented by Wachovia.
Selvie broke up three passes and recorded a sack while constantly harassing quarterback Todd Reesing of Kansas in the Bulls’ electrifying 37-34 win last week. South Florida will receive $1,000 for its general scholarship fund in recognition of Selvie’s performance.
Selvie (6-4, 242, Pensacola, Fl.), an All-American last season, was selected by The Legends Football Coaches Association. Former Arkansas Head Coach Frank Broyles, an LFCA member, commented on Selvie’s play: “George Selvie was the player of the weekend. Selvie was playing out there on the edge and pressuring the quarterback all night long. He made big play after big play and South Florida probably wouldn’t have won that close game without his outstanding play.”
Named after Hall of Famer Ronnie Lott, The Lott Trophy is awarded to college football’s Defensive IMPACT® Player of the Year. Now in its fifth year, The Lott Trophy is the first college football award to equally recognize athletic performance and the personal character attributes of the player.
Sponsored by The Pacific Club IMPACT Foundation® in Newport Beach, Ca., the award is given to a player who exhibits the same characteristics Lott embodied during his distinguished career: Integrity, Maturity, Performance, Academics, Community and Tenacity.
David Pollack of Georgia won the initial Lott Trophy in 2004. DeMeco Ryans of Alabama won the award in 2005 Daymeion Hughes of Cal was the recipient in 2006 and Glenn Dorsey of LSU in 2007. Georgia, Alabama, Cal and LSU each received $25,000 for their general scholarship funds. In four years, the Pacific Club IMPACT Foundation® has donated more than $450,000 to various charities, including the four universities.
Voters for the award include selected members of the national media, previous finalists, the Board of Directors of the Pacific Club IMPACT Foundation®, The IMPACT® Foundation Board of Advisers comprised of many retired NFL players and the Legends Coaches, a distinguished group of former head college coaches.
Other players receiving consideration from the Legends Coaches were Brit Miller of Illinois, Sean Weatherspoon of Missouri, Jan Jorgensen of BYU and Asher Allen of Georgia.
The Lott Trophy IMPACT® Players of the Week, 2008
Week I – Alterraun Verner, CB, UCLA
Week II – Zack Follett, LB, Cal
Week III – George Selvie, DE, South Florida
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For further information on The Lott Trophy, please visit our website at Lotttrophy.com.
LOTT SHOTS: USC Linebacker Brian Cushing led a dominating defense in the No. 1-ranked Trojans’ 35-3 pasting of Ohio State. Cushing led USC with 10 tackles…Jan Jorgensen of BYU had a big sack that forced a fumble early in the Cougars’ 59-0 rout of UCLA…Reggie Carter led the Bruins with 12.5 tackles…Brit Miller of Illinois recorded 13 tackles, including 3 tackles for losses, and he had a 27-yard touchdown on a fumble recovery as the Illini defeated Louisiana-Lafayette, 20-17…Tennessee’s Eric Berry came up with his second interception of the season in a 35-3 win over Alabama-Birmingham…Sean Weatherspoon continued his big season, coming up with a team-best 12 tackles, 2.5 for losses and a sack, in Missouri’s 69-17 romp over Nevada…Georgia’s Asher Allen had 6 tackles and a key fumble recovery in a 14-7 win over South Carolina…Zack Potter of Nebraska blocked a field goal on New Mexico State’s first drive and the Cornhuskers improved to 3-0 with a 38-7 win…
UNDEFEATED: 17 of the schools on the Lott Trophy Watch List are undefeated with 14 of the 17 being ranked in the Top 25 (Legends Coaches), including 7 of the Top 10 – USC (1), Georgia (3), Missouri (4), Florida (5), LSU (6), Texas (7) and Wisconsin (9). Only Oklahoma (2), Alabama (8) and Penn State (10) do not have players on the Watch List.
NFL Update: 7 of 12 Lott Trophy finalists in the first four years of the award are currently listed as starters in the NFL. A 13th finalist, James Laurinaitis of Ohio State, has returned to school for his senior season. Here are the 7 starters.
Derrick Johnson, LB, Kansas City (‘04 finalist)
DeMeco Ryans, LB, Houston (‘05 winner)
A.J. Hawk, LB, Green Bay (‘05 finalist)
Darryl Tapp, DE, Seattle (‘05 finalist)
Paul Posluszny, LB, Buffalo (‘06 finalist)
Glenn Dorsey, DT, Kansas City (‘07 winner)
Chris Long, DE, St. Louis (‘07 finalist)
Three other Lott finalists are also in the league – Jim Leonhard (Reserve safety, Baltimore, ‘04 finalist), Dante Hughes (Reserve cornerback, Indianapolis, ‘06 winner) and Quinn Pitcock (Injured reserve, Indianapolis, ‘06 finalist). The other two – David Pollack (winner, ‘04) and J Leman (finalist, ‘07) are out of football.