Aug. 18, 2009
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; - A trio of Penn State's All-Big Ten performers have been named to the Watch List for the 40th Rotary Lombardi Award.
Junior linebacker Navorro Bowman (District Heights, Md.), senior linebacker Sean Lee (Pittsburgh) and senior defensive tackle Jared Odrick (Lebanon) are among the candidates for the prestigious award, which is limited to down linemen and those defensive players who line up within five yards of the football.
Penn State's three Rotary Lombardi Award candidates lead all Big Ten schools. The 2009 Rotary Lombardi Award recipient will be
announced at a December 9 dinner in Houston, which benefits the American Cancer Society.
Penn State All-American Dan Connor was a Rotary Lombardi Award semifinalist in 2007. Nittany Lion
All-America linebacker Paul Posluszny was a finalist for the honor in 2005 and `06.
Also, Nittany Lion senior Daryll Clark has been named to the Watch List for the 2009 Manning Award, presented to the nation's top quarterback. Sponsored by the Allstate Sugar Bowl, the list includes 38 of the top quarterbacks in the nation heading into the season. The winner will be announced after all the bowl games in January and will be honored at a February, 2010 banquet in New Orleans.
The Manning Award was created by the Allstate Sugar Bowl in honor of the college football accomplishments of Archie, Peyton and Eli Manning. It is the only quarterback award that takes into consideration the candidates' bowl performances.
Coach Joe Paterno's No. 8 Nittany Lions are in their second week of pre-season practice in anticipation of the Sept. 5 season opener vs. Akron at 12:00 p.m. The contest will air on the Big Ten Network, the Penn State Sports Network and www.GoPSUsports.com.