Football Writers Association of America Jan. 9, 2012
For Immediate Release
Contact: Mike Griffith
865-755-5599
11th annual team features 12 true freshmen
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FWAA NAMES 2011 FRESHMAN ALL-AMERICA TEAM

NEW ORLEANS (FWAA) – The 11th annual Football Writers Association of America Freshman All-America Team has been announced, with all six Bowl Championship Series conferences and Notre Dame well represented on the 26-man roster. A total of 23 players came from the Pac-12, SEC, Big 12, Big Ten, ACC and Big East conferences and the independent Fighting Irish.

Southern California and Kansas State were the only schools with two players on the team. Two of the special teams selections hail from Australia.

West Virginia's first-year coach Dana Holgorsen claimed the first-year coaching honors after his Mountaineers won the Big East Conference championship and finished with a 10-3 record after routing Clemson, 70-33, in the Discover Orange Bowl.

The team and coach are selected by an 11-person panel of nationally-prominent writers led by Mike Griffith of the Knoxville News Sentinel. Both true freshmen (14 players) and redshirt freshmen (12 players) were considered for the team and are so noted.

OFFENSE
Pos. Player, School Ht. Wt. Hometown
QB Sean Mannion, Oregon State 6-5 218 Pleasanton, Calif.
RB Giovani Bernard, North Carolina 5-10 205 Davie, Fla.
RB Lyle McCombs, Connecticut 5-8 172 Staten Island, N.Y.
WR Matt Miller, Boise State 6-3 213 Helena, Mont.
WR Marqise Lee, USC 6-0 190 Inglewood, Calif.
WR Sammy Watkins, Clemson 6-1 200 Fort Myers, Fla.
AP De'Anthony Thomas, Oregon 5-9 173 Los Angeles, Calif.
OL Reese Dismukes, Auburn 6-3 300 Spanish Fort, Ala.
OL B.J. Finney, Kansas State 6-4 297 Andale, Kan.
OL Chaz Green, Florida 6-5 306 Tampa, Fla.
OL Kaleb Johnson, Rutgers 6-4 298 Jacksonville, Fla.
OL Jake Smith, Louisville 6-4 315 Jacksonville, Ala.
DEFENSE
Pos. Player, School Ht. Wt. Hometown
DL Jadeveon Clowney, South Carolina 6-6 254 Rock Hill, S.C.
DL Timmy Jernigan, Florida State 6-3 297 Lake City, Fla.
DL Aaron Lynch, Notre Dame 6-6 265 Cape Coral, Fla.
DL Marcus Rush, Michigan State 6-2 250 Cincinnati, Ohio
LB Dion Bailey, USC 6-0 200 Lakewood, Calif.
LB Jeremy Grove, East Carolina 6-1 230 Frederick, Md.
LB A.J. Johnson, Tennessee 6-3 245 Gainesville, Ga.
DB Blair Burns, Wyoming 5-10 170 Plano, Texas
DB Ibraheim Campbell, Northwestern 5-11 205 Philadelphia, Pa.
DB Quandre Diggs, Texas 5-10 200 Angleton, Texas
DB Merrill Noel, Wake Forest 5-10 180 Pahokee, Fla.
DB Eric Rowe, Utah 6-1 185 Spring, Texas
SPECIALISTS
Pos. Player, School Ht. Wt. Hometown
P Brad Wing, LSU 6-3 184 Melbourne, Australia
K Michael Hunnicutt, Oklahoma 6-0 175 Richardson, Texas
PR Scott Harding, Hawaii 5-11 195 Brisbane, Australia
KR Tyler Lockett, Kansas State 5-11 170 Tulsa, Okla.
HEAD COACH
Dana Holgorsen, West Virginia
• Denotes true freshman

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.

All-Time FWAA Freshman All-America Teams
2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010

2011 FWAA FRESHMAN ALL-AMERICA COMMITTEE
Marc Anderson Las Vegas Review Journal Mountain West
Marc Blaudschun Boston Globe ACC
Mike Griffith Knoxville News Sentinel SEC
Blair Kerkhoff Kansas City Star Big 12
Paul Letlow Scout.Com Sun Belt
Phil Miller Minneapolis Star Tribune Big Ten
Brian Murphy Idaho Statesman WAC
George Schroeder Eugene Register-Guard Pac-12
Phil Stukenborg Memphis Commercial Appeal Conference USA
Tom Luicci Newark Star-Ledger Big East
Doug Zaleski Muncie Star Press MAC