Wake Forest Athletics
Justice Tabbed For Lombardi Trophy Watch List
3/26/2007 12:00:00 AM | Football
March 26, 2007
HOUSTON - Wake Forest rising senior center Steve Justice was named to the 2007 Lombardi Trophy watch list, an award presented by Wachovia Bank to college football's best offensive or defensive lineman. The preliminary list includes 43 candidates selected by the Rotary Lombardi Trophy committee.
Justice, a first team All-ACC selection as a junior, posted a team-best 92 percent grade for the 2006 season. He played 843 snaps and missed just two assignments. Two of his best games of the season came on the biggest stages. Justice, a native of Port Orange, Fla., recorded a 99 percent in the ACC Championship Game and a 94 percent in the 2007 FedEx Orange Bowl.
Justice is one of just three centers in country to appear on the list and one of just two ACC offensive linemen.
This year's event, marking the 38th year of raising funds for the American Cancer Society while honoring college football's best lineman, will be held at the Hilton Americas Hotel in Houston on December 5, 2007.
The 43 preliminary candidates earned a place on the initial watch list by earning All-American honors or by being named to their respective all-conference team as selected by the conference's head coaches. The Rotary Lombardi Award Watch List will be updated prior to the start of the 2007 season in order to identify those players who have been selected as pre-season honors candidates.
Eligibility for the Rotary Lombardi Award is limited to down linemen and those defensive players who line up within five yards of the football. While the Watch List highlights players who have already received national recognition, any Division I player who meets the position requirements is eligible for consideration from the Rotary Lombardi Selection Committee. This committee is comprised of more than 500 members, including all past finalists, all Division 1 head coaches and a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters. The Rotary Lombardi Watch List, intended as a reference tool for the Selection Committee, will be periodically updated and revised through the conclusion of the voting to determine the 12 Semifinalists for 2007.
The complete Rotary Lombardi Award Preliminary Watch List for 2007 follows:
* Sam Baker, OT, USC * Tommy Blake, DE, TCU * George Bussey, OT, Louisville * Ezra Butler, LB, Nevada * Terrill Byrd, DT, Cincinnati * Calais Campbell, DE, Miami * Ian Campbell, DE, Kansas State * Ryan Clady, OT, Boise State * Bruce Davis, DE, UCLA * Glenn Dorsey, DT, LSU * Keilen Dykes, DT, West Virginia * Sedrick Ellis, DT, USC * Larry English, DE, Northern Illinois * Eric Foster, DT, Rutgers * Drew Fowler, LB, Air Force * John Greco, OT, Toledo * Quentin Groves, DE, Auburn * Vince Hall, LB, Virginia Tech * Tavares Jones, DE, Middle Tennessee State * Steve Justice, C, Wake Forest * James Laurinaitis, LB, Ohio State * Doug Legursky, OL, Marshall * Kory Lichtensteiger, OL, Bowling Green * Jake Long, OT, Michigan * Jonathan Luigs, C, Arkansas * Alex Mack, C, California * Rey Maualuga, LB, USC * Albert McClellan, DE, Marshall * Shawn Nelson, TE, Southern Miss * Chase Ortiz, DE, TCU * Jeremy Perry, OG, Oregon State * Jason Phillips, LB, TCU * Josh Pinnick, DL, Florida Atlantic * Barry Richardson, OT, Clemson * Steve Rissler, C, Florida * Keith Rivers, LB, USC * Martin Rucker, TE, Missouri * Bo Ruud, LB, Nebraska * Jacob Tamme, TE, Kentucky * David Vobora, LB, Idaho * Erik Walden, DL, Middle Tennessee State * Wesley Woodyard, LB, Kentucky * Jeremy Zuttah, OL, Rutgers
