DALLAS (FWAA) – The Southeastern, Big Ten and Big 12 conferences accounted for 18 of the 25 players when the 67th Football Writers Association of America All-America Team was announced today. Among the star-studded lineup is Bronko Nagurski Trophy winner Da'Quan Bowers of Clemson and Outland Trophy winner Gabe Carimi of Wisconsin.

The FWAA All-America Team, the second-longest continuously-published team in major college football, was announced on ABC-TV for the seventh straight season during a one-hour show that was sponsored by AT&T. The FWAA has named an All-America team in some form since 1944.

Auburn, LSU, Ohio State, Oklahoma State and Oregon each had two players on the team that included two repeat selections from last season: offensive guard Rodney Hudson of Florida State and linebacker Greg Jones of Michigan State. After those big three conferences, the Atlantic Coast with three players and the Pacific-10 with two were the only other leagues with multiple players on the team.

The team also features three natives of Mobile, Ala. (Hudson, Alabama defensive back Mark Barron, Auburn defensive tackle Nick Fairley) as well as a pair of linebackers from Cincinnati (Jones and Boston College's Luke Kuechly). In addition, the team included one of the tallest – if not the tallest – offensive lines in the team's history. Three of the players are at least 6-7, topped by 6-9 Nate Solder, an offensive tackle from Colorado.

Another interesting feature of the team was the committee’s decision to go with three wide receivers and omitting the tight end – a move that is not unique for an FWAA team. And finally, the committee chose to go with two designated offensive backs after the selecting Boise State's Kellen Moore as its quarterback. One of the offensive backs, Denard Robinson of Michigan, was as much a ball carrier as he was a thrower at his position. In the modern era (since 1967), this marks the just the second time two quarterbacks have been named to the team. In 1990, BYU's Ty Detmer and Virginia's Shawn Moore both earned All-America honors.

First selected three years after the organization was formed, the FWAA's inaugural team included Army's Heisman Trophy tandem of Doc Blanchard and Glenn Davis and Georgia Tech's Frank Broyles, who later became Arkansas' head football coach and athletic director.

Over the years, the FWAA Team has highlighted all the game's great players in several media forums.

From 1946-70, LOOK Magazine published the FWAA team and brought players and selected writers to New York City for a celebration. During that 25-year period, the FWAA team was introduced on national television shows by Bob Hope, Steve Allen, Perry Como and others.

After LOOK folded, the FWAA started a long association with NCAA Films (later known as NCAA Productions), which produced a 30-minute television show and sold it to sponsors. The team was part of ABC Television's 1981 College Football Series.

From 1983-90, the team was either on ABC or ESPN, and now has returned to the national spotlight on ABC.

The FWAA team has included most of the Heisman Trophy and Maxwell Award winners over the years and Outland Trophy winners. Those are the three oldest awards in major-college football.

For 66 years, the FWAA has selected an All-America team with the help of its members and an All-America Committee which represents all the regions in the country. The FWAA also selects the Outland Trophy winner (best interior lineman) and the Bronko Nagurski Trophy winner (best defensive player).

Some of the true greats of the writing profession have helped to select this team over the years: Mark Blaudschun, Grantland Rice, Bert McGrane, Blackie Sherrod, Furman Bisher, Pat Harmon, Fred Russell, Edwin Pope, Murray Olderman, Paul Zimmerman and the list goes on and on. It is a team steeped in tradition and history and selected by a writers' group with the same attributes.

The Football Writers Association of America, a non-profit organization founded in 1941, consists of more than 1,200 men and women who cover college football for a living. The membership includes journalists, broadcasters and publicists, as well as key executives in all the areas that involve the game. The FWAA works to govern areas that include gameday operations, major awards and its annual All-America team. For more information about the FWAA and its award programs, contact Steve Richardson at tiger@fwaa.com or 972-713-6198.

Related links:
• FWAA All-America Team
• All-Time FWAA All-Americans (.pdf)