The Dave Rimington Trophy is awarded to the player considered to be the best center in college football. Dave Rimington was a center who played at the University of Nebraska from 1979 to 1982.
A member of the National College Football Awards Association, the Rimington Trophy serves as a fundraiser for the Boomer Esiason Foundation's fight against cystic fibrosis. The sculptor of the Dave Rimington Trophy is Marc Mellon, also the sculptor of the NBA MVP Trophy.
Selection process The winner of the Rimington Trophy is selected by determining the consensus All-American center pick from four existing All-America teams. While more than a dozen All-America football teams are selected annually, the Rimington Trophy committee uses these four prestigious teams to determine a winner:
• American Football Coaches Association • Walter Camp Foundation • The Sporting News • Football Writers Association of America
Because the selectors of these four All-America teams can place centers in a "mix" of offensive linemen that includes guards and tackles, their 11-man first teams can often have two centers. The Rimington Trophy committee's policy is to count all players who play primarily the center position for their respective teams as centers, though they may be listed as guards or tackles on the four All-American teams. The center with the most first-team votes is determined to be the winner. If a tie occurs with first-team votes, then the center with most second-team votes wins. If a tie still exists, the winner is determined by a majority vote from the Rimington Trophy committee.
Winners
Year Player School Ref 2000 Dominic Raiola Nebraska 2001 LeCharles Bentley Ohio State 2002 Brett Romberg Miami (FL) 2003 Jake Grove Virginia Tech 2004 David Baas Michigan Ben Wilkerson LSU 2005 Greg Eslinger Minnesota 2006 Dan Mozes West Virginia 2007 Jonathan Luigs Arkansas 2008 A. Q. Shipley Penn State 2009 Maurkice Pouncey Florida 2010 Jake Kirkpatrick TCU 2011 David Molk Michigan (2) 2012 Barrett Jones Alabama 2013 Bryan Stork Florida State 2014 Reese Dismukes Auburn 2015 Ryan Kelly Alabama (2) 2016 Pat Elflein Ohio State (2) 2017Billy PriceOhio State (3)2018Garrett BradburyNC State2019Tyler BiadaszWisconsin2020Landon Dickerson Alabama (3) 2021Tyler Linderbaum Iowa2022Olu Oluwatimi Michigan (3)2023Jackson Powers-Johnson Oregon2024Seth McLaughlinOhio State (4)2025Logan JonesIowa (2)
Gerald R. Ford Legends Award Since 2005, the Rimington Trophy also recognizes legendary centers from the past by presenting the President Gerald R. Ford Legendary Center Award, which is named after Gerald Ford. The award is presented annually to a former collegiate or professional center who was either a legend on or off the field by making extraordinary contributions through business, civic, or philanthropic endeavors.
Winners Season Player School Tenure 2005 Gerald Ford Michigan 1932–1934 2006 Jim Otto Miami (FL) 1957–1959 2007 Alex Kroll Yale Rutgers 1956 1960–1961 2008 Bill Curry Georgia Tech 1961–1964 2009 Jim Ritcher NC State 1976–1979 2010 Dwight Stephenson Alabama 1976–1979 2011 Mick Tingelhoff Nebraska 1958–1961 2012 Jay Hilgenberg Iowa 1977–1980 2013 Dermontti Dawson Kentucky 1984–1987 2014 Courtney Hall Rice 1985–1988 2015 Jeff Saturday North Carolina 1993–1997 2016 Carl Mauck Southern Illinois 1965–1968 2017 Joe Montgomery William & Mary 1971–1974 2018 Robert Caslen Army 1972–1975 2019 Dominic Raiola Nebraska 1997–2000 2020 colspan="3" 2021 Aaron Graham Nebraska 1991–1995 2022 Jake Grove Virginia Tech 2000–2003 2023 Kevin Mawae LSU 1989–1993 2024 Shaun O'Hara Rutgers 1995–1999 2025 Kevin Glover Maryland 1981–1984
Sources:
References General
Footnotes
External links