DAVEY O’BRIEN National QUARTERBACK Award® FINALISTS ANNOUNCE

by Dan M | Posted on Monday, November 19th, 2012

FORT WORTH, Texas – The Davey O’Brien Foundation today announced the three finalists for the 2012 Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award^®, presented annually to the nation’s best college quarterback.

Collin Klein (Sr., Kansas State), Johnny Manziel (Fr., Texas A&M) and Braxton Miller (So., Ohio State) were selected by the Davey O’Brien National Selection Committee, with the Fan Vote accounting for five percent of the total vote. The committee was asked to consider the following criteria: quarterback skills, athletic ability, academics, reputation as a team player, character, leadership and sportsmanship.

The three Davey O’Brien finalists will be highlighted on ESPNU during The Home Depot College Football Awards Nomination Special airing Tuesday, Nov. 20 at 5 p.m. (CT). The 30-minute show, hosted by Matt Schick, will include player interviews and analysis from Kevin Carter surrounding finalists for the Davey O’Brien and other members of the National College Football Awards Association.

Collin Klein, Kansas State

The senior from Loveland, Colo. has quarterbacked the Kansas State Wildcats to the top of the Big 12 Conference and into the national spotlight. Through 11 games, Klein has passed for 2,306 yards and 14 touchdowns while rushing for 787 yards and 20 touchdowns, becoming the first quarterback at a Bowl Championship Series school to record at least 20 rushing touchdowns and 10 passing touchdowns in back-to-back seasons.

Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M

Manziel has had a record-setting season. The redshirt freshman became the fifth player and first freshman in Football Bowl Subdivision history to pass for at least 3,000 yards and rush for 1,000 yards in a season, and his 4,161 yards of total offense are a school record. The dual-threat quarterback leads the SEC in rushing (101.27 yards per game), total offense (378.27 yards per game) and scoring (9.27 points per game).

Braxton Miller, Ohio State

In his second season as the Ohio State Buckeyes’ starting quarterback, Miller has led his team to a perfect 11-0 record. He has proved to be a defense’s worst nightmare amassing 1,214 yards, which ranks him second in the Big Ten, and 13 touchdowns on the ground while throwing for 1,850 yards and 14 scores.

Fans may now help determine which quarterback will win the coveted Davey O’Brien Award by voting as often as once daily at www.VoteOBrien.org. Fan voting will close at noon (CT) on Dec. 2.

The 2012 Davey O’Brien Winner will be revealed on ESPN during The Home Depot College Football Awards airing live from the Atlantic Dance Hall at Disney’s BoardWalk at the Walt Disney World Resort on Thursday, Dec. 6 at 6:30 p.m. (CT). The 36th Annual Davey O’Brien Awards Dinner will be held on Feb. 18, 2013 in Fort Worth, Texas.

About the Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award^®

The Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award is presented annually to the nation’s best college quarterback and is the oldest and most prestigious national quarterback award. The Davey O’Brien Award honors candidates who exemplify Davey O’Brien’s enduring character while exhibiting teamwork, sportsmanship and leadership in both academics and athletics. The award is overseen by the Davey O’Brien Foundation, which is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, and has given away more than $850,000 in scholarships and university grants to help high school and college athletes transform leadership on the field into leadership in life. For more information, visit www.DaveyOBrien.org.

The Davey O’Brien Award 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.