Tuesday's Chalktalk - February 21, 2012

Tuesday's Chalktalk - February 21, 2012

Five 2011 NFF National Scholar-Athletes Head to NFL Combine

Beginning Wednesday and lasting through Tuesday, Feb. 28, five 2011 NFF National Scholar-Athletes will participate in the NFL Combine. Georgia punter Drew Butler, Michigan State quarterback Kirk Cousins, Northern Illinois quarterback Chandler Harnish, Texas A&M quarterback Ryan Tannehill and Yale quarterback Patrick Witt. The Combine will once again be held at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind., with coverage provided by NFL Network and NFL.com.

Additionally, 2011 Campbell Trophy semifinalists Emmanuel Acho (Texas), Miles Burris (San Diego State), Danny Coale (Virginia Tech), Austin Davis (Southern Miss), Bradie Ewing (Wisconsin), Tyler Nielsen (Iowa), Nate Potter (Boise State) and Brandon Weeden (Oklahoma State) will partake in the week’s events.


THE BLITZ

2008 NFF Gold Medal recipient John Glenn on Monday celebrated the 50th anniversary of becoming the first American to orbit Earth when he circled the globe three times on Feb. 20, 1962. Glenn marked the occasion by speaking in Columbus, Ohio. See a photo gallery of that day provided by the Washington Post here.

NFF Board Member Ray Anderson will serve as the keynote speaker for Saturday’s NFF Central Indiana Chapter scholar-athlete banquet.

NFF Board Member Jim Delany served as the keynote speaker at the NFF Chicago Metro Chapter Awards Luncheon on Monday.

College Football Hall of Famer Pat Fitzgerald (Northwestern) will participate in Northwestern’s panel on the media and college sports entitled “Beyond The Box Score: Covering College Sports in 2012 and Beyond” on Wednesday. Fitzgerald will be joined by SI.com writer Stewart Mandel and New York Times writer Pete Thamel, with ESPN reporter Rachel Nichols serving as the moderator.

College Football Hall of Fame coach Terry Donahue was in attendance at the NFF Touchdown Club of Houston Senior Showcase on Saturday.

1973 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Mark Harmon (UCLA) provided voice-over work for a new campaign of public service announcements promoting UCLA. The campaign will be aired during Bruins athletics events and on video screens at the L.A. Sports Arena. View the clip here.

College Football Hall of Famers Harry Carson (South Carolina State) and Willie Richardson (Jackson State) were enshrined into the Black College Football Hall of Fame on Saturday.

College Football Hall of Famer Ron Simmons (Florida State) has been selected to the WWE Hall of Fame, it was announced Monday evening.

College Football Hall of Famer Tracy Ham (Georgia Southern) has been chosen to the state of Georgia Sports Hall of Fame.

College Football Hall of Fame coach Chris Ault has signed a two-year contract extension to remain at Nevada.

College Football Hall of Famer Chuck Cecil (Arizona) has been tabbed as the secondary coach for the St. Louis Rams.

The Doak Walker Award Banquet was held Friday evening in Dallas, with College Football Hall of Famer Tommy McDonald (Oklahoma) receiving the Legends Award. 2011 NFF Outstanding Contribution to Amateur Football Award winner Verne Lundquist introduced 2011 Doak Walker Award winner Trent Richardson of Alabama. The crew ESPN’s College GameDay, the 2006 NFF Outstanding Contribution to Amateur Football Award honorees, co-emceed the event. College Football Hall of Famers Lee Roy Jordan (Alabama) and Emmitt Smith (Florida) were also in attendance.

The Davey O’Brien Award Banquet was held Monday evening in Fort Worth, Texas, with 2009 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Colt McCoy (Texas) providing the invocation. Also in attendance were NFF Board Member Roger Williams, College Football Hall of Famers Chuck Long (Iowa), Jim McMahon (BYU), Don McPherson (Syracuse) and Gino Toretta (Miami, Fla.) along with 2011 Outstanding Contribution to Amateur Football Award winner Verne Lundquist and FWAA Executive Director Steve Richardson, who is writing a book on the history of the NFF, and David O’Brien, the son of Davey O’Brien. Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin III was honored as the winner of the 2011 Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award and former Miami (Fla.) quarterback Jim Kelly was recognized as the Davey O’Brien Legends Award honoree.

Campbell Trophy semifinalist Leon Beckum of Indiana is the NFF's Scholar-Athlete of the Day, presented by Fidelity Investments. Check daily at FootballFoundation.org to see which Campbell Trophy candidate is the Scholar-Athlete of the Day.

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OVER THE MIDDLE

NFF President and CEO Steve Hatchell served as a presenter at the NFF Colorado Chapter scholar-athlete banquet on Monday evening. 2011 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Clay Garcia (Colorado School of Mines) also spoke at the event, while 1983 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Dan DeRose (Colorado State – Pueblo), 1995 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Greg Myers (Colorado State) and 2009 NFF Chris Schenkel Award honoree Larry Zimmer were in attendance. Colorado athletics director Mike Bohn (who served as the event’s keynote speaker), Colorado State head coach Jim McElwain, Colorado State – Pueblo athletics director Joe Folda and head coach John Wristen and Colorado School of Mines athletics director Tom Spicer and head coach Bob Stitt were also in attendance in support of the chapter. . . . The sold out NFF Chicago Metro Chapter Awards Ceremony was held at Halas Hall Monday, thanks to the Chicago Bears. College scholarships totaling $24,000 were provided. Among the attendees were Chicago Bears Chairman George McCaskey, Virginia Halas McCaskey, College Football Hall of Famer and Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald and Offensive Coordinator Mick McCall, Illinois head coach Tim Beckman, Northern Illinois head coach Dave Doeren, Saint Xaver (Ill.) head coach Mike Feminis, Illinois State head coach Brock Spack, Deloitte Chairman/CEO Carl Allegretti, College Football Hall of Famer Jim Covert (Pittsburgh) and NFF Director of Membership Ron Dilatush among others. Saint Xavier (Ill.) was saluted for their NAIA national championship. Big Ten Network's Dave Revsine was the Master of Ceremonies. The Mental Toughness Award was provided to 2011 Campbell Trophy finalist Chandler Harnish (Northern Illinois) and 2011 Campbell Trophy semifinalist Dan Persa (Northwestern). NFF Board Member and Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany received the Outstanding Contribution to Amateur Football Award, in addition to providing the keynote address. The Fred Mitchell Outstanding Place-Kicker Award was presented to St. Xavier's Tom Lynch. . . . The NFF Cincinnati Chapter will honor a courageous high school senior at its banquet on Feb. 28. Cincinnati head coach Butch Jones will be the featured speaker . . . . The NFF Orange County (Calif.) Chapter will hold its 42nd Scholar-Athlete Banquet on Monday at the Anaheim Convention Center. . . . Other upcoming February scholar-athlete banquets include the NFF S.M. McNaughton (La.) Chapter and the NFF Northern California Chapter on Thursday, the NFF Central Indiana Chapter on Saturday and the NFF South Jersey Chapter on Sunday. . . . Penn State head coach Bill O’Brien will speak at the NFF Central Pennsylvania Chapter banquet on March 25.

TWO-MINUTE DRILL

Scheduling

The Big 12 has unveiled its 2012 schedule. . . . The Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game has announced a double-hosting format for the first time in the five-year history of the event. N.C. State and Tennessee will meet on Friday, Aug. 31, while Auburn and Clemson will play on Saturday, Sept. 1. Both games will take place at Atlanta’s Georgia Dome. . . . Arkansas will host Rutgers on Sept. 22 while the Razorbacks will travel to Piscataway, N.J. on Sept. 21, 2013. . . . Arkansas will host LSU in Fayetteville, Ark. on Nov. 24 or 23. The game was moved from Little Rock, Ark., where the Razorbacks have hosted LSU every other year since 1994. This year will mark the second time Arkansas has hosted the Tigers in Fayetteville in the series’ 57-game history. . . . Oklahoma will visit UTEP on Sept. 1 and host Florida A&M on Sept. 8. . . . Minnesota at UNLV has been moved from Saturday, Sept. 1 to Friday, Aug. 30. . . . UAB will host Southeastern Louisiana on Oct. 6. . . . Texas A&M and Arkansas will meet in College Station, Texas on Sept. 29 and in Fayetteville, Ark. in 2013. Both meetings had originally been scheduled to take place at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas. . . . Texas A&M will host Sam Houston State on Nov. 17.

Media

ESPN college football analyst and former Washington player Ed Cunningham is among five producers of the documentary film Undefeated, which is nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary on Sunday. The film follows an inner-city high school football team in the Memphis, Tenn., area. . . . Pac-12 Enterprises has broken ground on its San Francisco studios. The Pac-12 expects to launch its six regional networks and national network by mid-August. . . . The New York Times has provided a review for Dear Jay, Love Dad: Bud Wilkinson’s Letters to His Son by Jay Wilkinson. Bud Wilkinson coached at Oklahoma from 1947-63 and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1969.

Community Service

Arizona State will host a free youth football clinic at Sun Devil Stadium on March 31. . . . Six Wisconsin football players visited Mendota School in Madison, Wis., on Friday to promote “Read Your Heart Out Day” and National African-American Parent Involvement Day. . . . Twenty-five Frostburg State (Md.) players volunteered with Big Brothers Big Sisters last week. . . . The South Dakota School of Mines football program recently participated in a community service program last week. Members of the Hardrocker football team volunteered for the South Dakota Child Identification Program.

Facilities

Missouri will install a new FieldTurf playing surface at Faurot Field in time for the 2012 season. . . . San Jose State has announced plans for a 60,000 football complex on the north end of Spartan Stadium to be called the Bill Walsh Center. . . . Michigan's newly dedicated Player Development Center will be named in honor of the late William Davidson.

Miscellaneous

The Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl has announced a $22.2 million economic impact on the city of Nashville, Tenn., for its 2011 matchup pitting Mississippi State and Wake Forest.

Obituaries

Longtime assistant coach and creator of the National Championship Coaches' Trophy for the American Football Coaches Association Billy Proulx passed away Thursday, Feb. 9. He was 70. . . . Former Penn State radio voice Mickey Bergstein passed away Tuesday, Feb. 14. He was 89. . . . Former University of Tampa football player Freddie Solomon passed away Monday, Feb. 20. He was 59.

Spring Football Primer: Week Two

The NFF takes a look at each Football Bowl Subdivision Conference program as they head into spring football, noting when each school opens spring football, plays its annual spring game, and key coaching positions. This week, the Big 12 and Sun Belt are the focus of the Spring Football Primer.

Big 12

Baylor
Spring football starts: March 19 Spring game: April 14
Head coach: Art Briles Offensive coordinator: Philip Montgomery Defensive coordinator: Phil Bennett

Iowa State
Spring football starts: March 20 Spring game: April 14
Head coach: Paul Rhoads Offensive coordinator: Courtney Messingham Defensive coordinator: Wally Burnham

Kansas
Spring football starts: March 27 Spring game: April 28
Head coach: Charlie Weis Defensive coordinator: Dave Campo

Kansas State
Spring football starts: April 4 Spring game: April 28
Head coach: Bill Snyder Offensive coordinators: Dana Dimel/Del Miller Defensive coordinator: Tom Hayes

Oklahoma
Spring football starts: March 5 Spring game: April 14
Head coach: Bob Stoops Offensive coordinators: Josh Heupel/Jay Norvell Defensive coordinator: Mike Stoops

Oklahoma State
Spring football starts: March 12 Spring game: April 21
Head coach: Mike Gundy Offensive coordinator: Todd Monken Defensive coordinator: Bill Young

TCU
Spring football starts: Feb. 25 Spring game: TBA
Head coach: Gary Patterson Offensive coordinators: Jarrett Anderson/Rusty Burns Defensive coordinator: Dick Bumpas

Texas
Spring football starts: Feb. 23 Spring game: April 1
Head coach: Mack Brown Offensive coordinator: Bryan Harsin Defensive coordinator: Manny Diaz

Texas Tech
Spring football starts: Feb. 17 Spring game: March 24
Head coach: Tommy Tuberville Offensive coordinator: Neal Brown Defensive coordinator: Art Kaufman

West Virginia
Spring football starts: March 11 Spring game: April 21
Head coach: Dana Holgorsen Defensive coordinator: Joe DeForest

Sun Belt

Arkansas State
Spring football starts: March 12 Spring game: April 21
Head coach: Gus Malzahn Offensive coordinator: Rhett Lashlee

Florida Atlantic
Spring football starts: March 19 Spring game: April 14
Head coach: Carl Pelini Offensive coordinator: Brian Wright

Florida International
Spring football starts: March 2 Spring game: March 30
Head coach: Mario Cristobal Defensive coordinator: Todd Orlando

Louisiana - Lafayette
Spring football starts: TBA Spring game: TBA
Head coach: Mark Hudspeth Offensive coordinator: Jay Johnson Defensive coordinator: Greg Stewart

Louisiana - Monroe
Spring football starts: TBA Spring game: TBA
Head coach: Todd Berry Offensive coordinator: Steve Farmer Defensive coordinator: Troy Reffett

Middle Tennessee
Spring football starts: March 17 Spring game: April 14
Head coach: Rick Stockstill Offensive coordinator: Buster Faulkner Defensive coordinator: Tyrone Nix

North Texas
Spring football starts: March 28 Spring game: April 21
Head coach: Dan McCarney Offensive coordinator: Mike Canales Defensive coordinator: John Skladany

Troy
Spring football starts: March 18 Spring game: March 31
Head coach: Larry Blakeney Offensive coordinator: Kenny Edenfield Defensive coordinator: Jeremy Rowell

Western Kentucky
Spring football starts: March 19 Spring game: April 14
Head coach: Willie Taggart Defensive coordinator: Lance Guidry

South Alabama – joining in 2013
Spring football starts: Feb. 15 Spring game: March 24
Head coach: Joey Jones Offensive coordinator: Robert Matthews Defensive coordinator: Bill Clark

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2012 Key NFF Dates

May 15, 2012 - Announcement of the 2012 Football Bowl Subdivision inductees into the College Football Hall of Fame - New York City

July 20-21, 2012 - College Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Festival - South Bend, Indiana

Dec. 4, 2012 - 55th NFF Annual Awards Dinner - Waldorf=Astoria Hotel, New York City

NFF Information

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The 55th NFF Annual Awards Dinner will be held Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2012, at New York City's Waldorf=Astoria. For more ticket information, please contact NFF Director of National Events Will Rudd at 1-800-486-1865 or via email at wrudd@footballfoundation.com.

Purchase the 54th NFF Annual Awards Dinner Program

The 54th NFF Annual Awards Dinner Program is still available for purchase, but only a limited number remain. The program can be obtained by sending a check for $20, plus $4.75 for shipping and handling to: NFF Annual Awards Dinner Program, 433 Las Colinas Blvd., Suite 1130, Irving, TX 75039.

Notes

The NFF would like to thank correspondent Bo Carter for his contributions to this report.

NFF Chalktalk items are welcome, and should be submitted to news@footballfoundation.com.