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Butkus Award(R) 25th Year Watchlist Announced
Award Honors Top Linebackers at Three Levels
CHICAGO, IL--(Marketwire - August 20, 2009) - The Butkus Award® Silver Anniversary season
begins today with announcement of linebackers who start the season on its
collegiate and high school Watchlist.
The list includes 35 collegiate linebackers from 27 colleges and
universities, and 50 high school linebackers from 24 states. All are
posted at www.thebutkusaward.com
"This Award is about honoring the country's best linebackers, and reminding
them that they have a responsibility to serve as role models and to give
back to society," said Dick Butkus, the award's namesake, who is considered
one of the greatest football players in history.
The Butkus Award supports the I Play Clean™ campaign formed by Dick and
Matt Butkus to encourage teen athletes to train hard, eat well and play
with attitude, instead of resorting to harmful steroids and related
substances. Recent research suggests that nearly a half-million teens have
experimented with steroids. In a show of support for playing clean, Butkus
asks athletes, families and fans to take the I Play Clean pledge at
www.iplayclean.org.
Official nominees for the Butkus Award collegiate and high school trophies
will be named October 15, at a Butkus Charity Fight Night at the Hilton
Hotel in downtown Chicago. Ticket information is available at
www.thebutkusaward.com. Finalists will be named November 19 and winners
will be named on or before December 8.
The Butkus Award includes high school, collegiate and professional
categories, all which are selected by a 51-person panel coordinated by Hub
Arkush of Pro Football Weekly. The panel includes the nation's most
respected coaches, general managers, talent evaluators, scouts and media.
Certain selectors are not allowed to have contact with certain candidates.
A complete list of the 2009 selection panel will be posted at
www.thebutkusaward.com.
The Butkus Award is presented by the Butkus Foundation, a 501c3 non-profit
organization. Dick Butkus was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
in 1979, following an illustrious career with the Chicago Bears, University
of Illinois and Chicago Vocational School. Meanwhile, his son Matt was a
defensive lineman for the University of Southern California and joins his
father in philanthropic efforts.
The Butkus Award is part of the National College Football Awards
Association, a coalition of the major collegiate awards. More information
is available at www.NCFAA.org.