The Rotary Lombardi Award is an award for college football in the United States. Awarded by the Rotary Club of Houston, Texas annually to the college football player "who best embodies the values and spirit of NFL's legendary coach Vince Lombardi" the Rotary Lombardi Award program was created in 1970 shortly after the death of Lombardi. The committee outlined the original criteria for eligibility for the award, which remained in place until this day:
History Following the death of highly regarded football coach Vince Lombardi in 1970 his widow, Marie, authorized the Rotary Club of Houston to establish the Rotary Lombardi Award. The award began as recognition to only interior line positions that Vince Lombardi played while an undergraduate at Fordham University, offensive and defensive guard, and later expanded to include linebackers and tight ends, with the addition of including non-performance values: leadership, courage, desire, respect for authority, and discipline.
To be considered for the award, players must be an NCAA FBS College Football team member and meet the following qualifications:
Be a down Lineman, end to end, either on offense or defense, setting up no further than ten yards to the left or right of the ball at the time of the snap. Be a Linebacker on defense, setting up no further than five yards deep from the line of scrimmage. Must not come out of the offensive backfield and set up on the line of scrimmage as a Blocker or a Receiver or listed in the program as an Offensive Back or Receiver. Be eligible to participate in the current season.
The voting electorate is made up of the head coaches from all NCAA Division I schools, sports media personnel from across the country, and former winners and finalists of the Lombardi Award. The total number of voters is approximately 500. The Ohio State University holds the record for most Lombardi awards with six. Orlando Pace, the only two-time winner (1995 and 1996), was the most recent offensive lineman to be honored until 2024, when Kelvin Banks, Jr. of the Texas Longhorns took home the award.
Net proceeds from the award activities are contributed to cancer research, awareness, and treatment, on the stipulation of Marie Lombardi.
Expansion of candidates, then retraction In 2017, the presenting Rotary Club expanded the award's eligibility to include all positions. This lasted until 2021, when they reverted to the original criteria. The winners from 2017 through 2020 are not recognized by the current award committee, although 2020 winner Zaven Collins qualified under the original criteria. + Unrecognized recipients Year Player Position School 2017 Bryce Love Running back Stanford 2018 Ugo Amadi Safety Oregon 2019 Joe Burrow Quarterback LSU 2020 Zaven Collins Linebacker Tulsa
Trophy The main part of the trophy is a block of granite, paying homage to Lombardi's college days at Fordham University as an offensive lineman when his offensive line was referred to as the "Seven Blocks of Granite".
Winners Year Player Position School 1970 Middle guard Ohio State 1971 Defensive tackle Notre Dame 1972 Middle guard Nebraska 1973 Offensive tackle Ohio State (2) 1974 Defensive tackle Maryland 1975 Defensive tackle Oklahoma 1976 Defensive tackle Houston 1977 Defensive end Notre Dame (2) 1978 Defensive tackle Penn State 1979 Guard USC 1980 Defensive end Pittsburgh 1981 Defensive tackle Texas 1982 Center Nebraska (2) 1983 Offensive tackle Nebraska (3) 1984 Defensive tackle Texas (2) 1985 Defensive tackle Oklahoma (2) 1986 Linebacker Alabama 1987 Linebacker Ohio State (3) 1988 Defensive tackle Auburn 1989 Linebacker Michigan State 1990 Defensive tackle Notre Dame (3) 1991 Defensive tackle Washington 1992 Linebacker Florida State 1993 Offensive tackle Notre Dame (4) 1994 Defensive tackle Miami (FL) 1995 Offensive tackle Ohio State (4) 1996 (2) Offensive tackle Ohio State (5) 1997 Defensive end Nebraska (4) 1998 Linebacker Texas A&M 1999 Defensive end Virginia Tech 2000 Defensive tackle Florida State (2) 2001 Defensive end North Carolina 2002 Defensive end Arizona State 2003 Defensive tackle Oklahoma (3) 2004 Defensive end Georgia 2005 Linebacker Ohio State (6) 2006 Defensive end Michigan 2007 Defensive tackle LSU 2008 Defensive end Texas (3) 2009 Defensive tackle Nebraska (5) 2010 Defensive tackle Auburn (2) 2011 Linebacker Boston College 2012 Linebacker Notre Dame (5) 2013 Defensive tackle Pittsburgh (2) 2014 Linebacker Arizona 2015 Defensive end Penn State (2) 2016 Defensive tackle Alabama (2) 2017 Running back Stanford 2018 Safety Oregon 2019 Quarterback LSU (2) 2020 Linebacker Tulsa 2021 Defensive end Michigan (2) 2022 Linebacker Alabama (3) 2023 Defensive end UCLA 2024 Offensive tackle Texas (4) 2025 Linebacker Texas Tech Source:
See also Outland Trophy, awarded annually to the best interior lineman in college football Rimington Trophy, awarded annually to the best center in college football Ted Hendricks Award, awarded annually to the best defensive end in college football UPI College Football Lineman of the Year
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