Ohio State's Urban Meyer and Penn State's Bill O'Brien have been named finalists for the 2012 Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year, just one day after both were named finalists for the 2012 Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year by the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA). Established in 2006, the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year recognizes coaches who demonstrate sportsmanship, integrity, responsibility and excellence both on and off the field. 

Beginning today through December 20, fans can log their Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year vote by visiting coachoftheyear.com on their PC, tablet or mobile device and posting a pre-populated tweet. As part of Liberty Mutual's partnership with the National Football Foundation, a selection committee of more than 50 College Football Hall of Fame players and coaches, as well as national college football media, will evaluate the coaches based on their responsibility, integrity and on-field success to help determine the four coaching winners from FBS, the Football Championship Subdivision, Division II and Division III.  Winners are ultimately determined using the following voting weight:  fan voting (20 percent), College Football Hall of Fame (55 percent) and media (25 percent).
 
Liberty Mutual will announce the four winners the morning of the BCS National Championship game, January 7, 2013, in South Florida.  The FBS coaching winner will receive a $50,000 donation from Liberty Mutual to the charity or charities of his choice, as well as a $20,000 scholarship grant in their name to their school's alumni association.  Since 2006, the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award has celebrated the work of its 21 winners by donating more than $1.5 million to over 90 charities and college alumni scholarship funds.

Penn State senior quarterback Matt McGloin was honored by the Springdale Rotary Club as the winner of the Third Annual Burlsworth Trophy, presented to the nation's outstanding college football player who began his career as a walk-on. The record-setting signal-caller broke nine school passing records and tied another during his impressive senior campaign. The Burlsworth Trophy was first presented in 2010 in honor of Brandon Burlsworth, a former All-American and walk-on offensive lineman at the University of Arkansas. Burlsworth died in an automobile accident 11 days after being selected by the Indianapolis Colts as the 63rd overall pick in the 1999 NFL Draft. Michigan safety Jordan Kovacs (Michigan) was also a finalist for the Burlsworth Trophy.
 
McGloin joined the Nittany Lions in 2008 and has emerged as one of Penn State's most prolific signal-callers in its 126-year history. A starter in 10 games prior to this season, McGloin was named the starting quarterback in June and flourished in Coach Bill O'Brien's offense, starting all 12 games this year. The former West Scranton High School standout broke nine school records and tied another during his superlative senior campaign. He was instrumental in helping the Nittany Lions win eight of their last 10 games, compiling an 8-4 overall record and 6-2 Big Ten mark, finishing second in the Leaders Division. For the season, McGloin was 270 of 446 (60.5) for 3,266 yards, with 24 touchdown passes and only five interceptions. He also was second on the team with five touchdown runs. An honorable mention All-Big Ten choice, McGloin was selected Big Ten Co-Offensive Player of the Week on Nov. 19 after throwing for 395 yards, just four yards off the school record, and a career-high tying four touchdowns in Penn State's 45-22 win over Indiana.

Ohio State's Urban Meyer and Penn State's Bill O'Brien have been named finalists by the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) for the 2012 Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award, whose winner will be revealed on Thursday, Dec. 13. Of the finalists, only Meyer previously has captured the FWAA coaching award, in 2004 during his final season at Utah. Coaches from current Big Ten schools have claimed the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award on 17 occasions, most recently by Ohio State's Jim Tressel (2002), Northwestern's Gary Barnett (1995) and Wisconsin's Barry Alvarez (1993). Last season, Michigan's Brady Hoke was named the national coach of the year by the Maxwell Football Club.

Meyer's Buckeyes completed the school's sixth perfect regular season in his first season at the school. Meyer won the award in 2004 at Utah and was a finalist in 2008 while at Florida. O'Brien kept the Nittany Lions focused despite an 0-2 start and capped an 8-4 season with a 24-21 overtime win over eventual Big Ten champion Wisconsin.

Penn State's Matt Stankiewitch has been named one of six finalists for the Rimington Trophy, given annually to the nation's outstanding center. Dave Rimington, the award's namesake, was a consensus first-team All-America center at the University of Nebraska in 1981 and 1982, during which time he became the Outland Trophy's only double winner as the nation's finest college interior lineman. Six players from current Big Ten schools have claimed the Rimington Trophy, including last year's winner in David Molk of Michigan.

Ohio State football standout and Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year Braxton Miller was named a finalist for the Manning Award, it was announced on Wednesday. The award, which is sponsored by the Allstate Sugar Bowl, is given to the nation's top quarterback and was created in honor of the college football accomplishments of Archie, Peyton and Eli Manning. The winner is scheduled to be announced on Jan. 9. The complete list of finalists is below.

Matt Barkley, USC
Tajh Boyd, Clemson
Collin Klein, Kansas State
Jordan Lynch, Northern Illinois
Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M
Marcus Mariota, Oregon
AJ McCarron, Alabama
Braxton Miller, Ohio State
Aaron Murray, Georgia
Geno Smith, West Virginia

Tom Brady, QB, New England Patriots (Michigan) - Threw for 323 yards and three touchdowns on 18-of-28 passing in New England's 49-19 defeat of the N.Y. Jets.

Owen Daniels, TE, Houston Texans (Wisconsin) - Caught four passes and recorded a touchdown in the Texans' 34-31 overtime win over the Lions.

Lavonte David, LB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Nebraska) - Tied for the team-lead with eight tackles, including one for loss, in the Bucs' 24-23 loss to the Falcons.

Larry Foote, LB, Pittsburgh Steelers (Michigan) - Totaled seven tackles in the Steelers' 20-14 loss to the Browns.

Chad Greenway, LB, Minnesota Vikings (Iowa) - Tallied seven tackles, including six solo, in the Vikings' 28-10 loss to the Bears.

A.J. Hawk, LB, Green Bay Packers (Ohio State) - Racked up a team-high 14 tackles, including eight solo, in the Packers' 38-10 loss to the Giants.

Kelvin Hayden, CB, Chicago Bears (Illinois) - Notched four tackles and two pass deflections in the Bears' 28-10 defeat of the Vikings.

Alex Henery, K, Philadephia Eagles (Nebraska) - Nailed all three of his field goals, including a long of 45 yards, in the Eagles' 30-22 loss to the Panthers.

Malcolm Jenkins, S, New Orleans Saints (Ohio State) - Tallied seven tackles, a pass deflection and blocked a kick in the Saints' 31-21 loss to the 49ers.

Dustin Keller, TE, New York Jets (Purdue) - Caught five passes for 67 yards and a touchdown in the Jets' 49-19 loss to the Patriots.

James Laurinaitis, LB, St. Louis Rams (Ohio State) - Racked up a team-high 11 tackles, an interception and a pass deflection in the Rams' 31-17 defeat of the Cardinals.

Corey Liuget, DE, San Diego Chargers (Illinois) - Recorded six tackles, including five solo, and a sack in the Chargers' 16-13 overtime loss to the Ravens.

Bernard Pollard, S, Baltimore Ravens (Purdue) - Recorded a team-high eight tackles, including seven solo, in the Ravens' 16-13 overtime victory over the Chargers.

Paul Posluszny, LB, Jacksonville Jaguars (Penn State) - Notched seven solo tackles and a forced fumble in the Jaguars' 24-19 win over the Titans.

Bryan Scott, S, Buffalo Bills (Penn State) - Totaled six tackles and a pass deflection in Buffalo's 20-13 loss to Indianapolis.

Anthony Spencer, LB, Dallas Cowboys (Purdue) - Recorded a team-high 10 tackles and two sacks in the Cowboys' 38-31 loss to the Redskins.

J.J. Watt, DE, Houston Texans (Wisconsin) - Tallied five tackles, three sacks and two pass deflections in Houston's 34-31 overtime win over Detroit.

Donte Whitner, S, San Francisco 49ers (Ohio State) -Racked up eight tackles, returned an interception for a touchdown and recorded a pass deflection in San Francisco's 31-21 victory over New Orleans.

Russell Wilson, QB, Seattle Seahawks (Wisconsin) - Threw for 224 yards and two touchdowns on 21-of-27 passing in the Seahawks' 24-21 loss to the Dolphins.

Antoine Winfield, Minnesota Vikings (Ohio State) - Registered seven solo tackles, an interception and a pass deflection in the Vikings' 28-10 loss to the Bears.

The Penn State football team was named the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl's National Team of the Week as selected by the Football Writers Association of America, it was announced on Monday. The Nittany Lions grinded past Wisconsin in overtime for a 24-21 win on Saturday, following an emotional Senior Day ceremony. With the thrilling victory over the defending Big Ten champions, Penn State won for the eighth time in its last 10 games to finish with a 6-2 record in conference play and 8-4 mark overall.

FWAA Release

Penn State Release

Purdue quarterback Robert Marve was named among the eight "Stars of the Week" selected by the Manning Award, it was announced on Monday. Marve recorded a career-high 348 passing yards on 20-of-29 passing with four touchdowns to lead the Boilermakers to a 56-35 victory over Indiana to not only retain the Old Oaken Bucket, but also to become bowl eligible for the second straight year.

Fans can now go to the Allstate Sugar Bowl Facebook page to vote for what they think was the best performance from this past weekend. When voting closes on Thursday at 11 a.m. CT, the top vote-getter will be announced as the Manning Award Player of the Week. Click on this link to vote for the Manning Award Player of the Week.

For the seventh time since 1998, the Northwestern football team will receive the American Football Association Academic Achievement Award, the organization announced on Monday. Northwestern shares this year's award with Stanford, with both schools achieving a 100 percent graduation rate for football student-athletes that entered school in the 2005-06 academic year. The Wildcats will accept their award at the 90th annual AFCA concention on Monday, Jan. 7, 2013 in Nashville, Tenn.

Northwestern Release 

Four Big Ten teams are ranked among the top 25 in the latest Associated Press (AP), USA Today coaches or Harris Interactive polls. After wrapping up an unbeaten season, Ohio State held steady at No. 4 in the AP vote to lead all Big Ten schools. Nebraska, Northwestern and Michigan also appear among the top 25 in all three polls. The Cornhuskers are rated No. 14 by the media and No. 13 by the coaches and Harris voters after concluding a 10-2 regular season and earning a berth in the Big Ten Football Championship Game. The Wolverines are rated No. 21 in the AP, No. 23 in the Harris and No. 24 in the USA Today polls while the Wildcats are ranked No. 20 by the coaches, No. 21 by Harris voters and No. 22 by the media. Penn State also received votes in the AP poll.