Colorado State University Athletics
CSU's Whittier up for Rudy Award
12/10/2008 12:00:00 AM | Football
Dec. 10, 2008
LAS VEGAS, Nev. - Colorado State University nominated Rams defensive lineman Ty Whittier, a redshirt sophomore, for the second annual college football Rudy Award, it was announced Tuesday by The Rudy Foundation charitable organization. The award honors student-athletes who demonstrate exemplary character, courage, contribution and commitment as members of their collegiate football teams. These same traits were immortalized in the blockbuster film "Rudy" in 27 seconds and against all odds on a gridiron in South Bend, Indiana, enabling Daniel "Rudy" Ruettiger to carve his name into college football lore.
Every Division I conference and 53 of its 120 football programs submitted nominations for the 2008 Award, nearly double the number of applications from the inaugural year in 2007.
Ty Whittier joined the Rams football program as a walk-on in 2006 and worked his way to a starting role at defensive tackle and a scholarship this past season. Although undersized for his position, Whittier's quiet, yet relentless, attitude inspired his teammates and earned the attention of his coaches. Despite tending to football obligations nearly every day of the week, Whittier still finds time to help his family. His father has been battling cancer and Ty has been helping him every step of the way, including making it home throughout the week to help on the family farm.
Three Rudy Award finalists will be chosen by the selection committee and honored at a breakfast to be held in conjunction with the American Football Coaches Association Convention on Jan. 12 at the Opryland Hotel in Nashville, Tenn. Rudy Ruettiger will personally present the awards.
Each finalist will be presented with a beautiful award and an academic scholarship, as well as have travel expenses paid to the event. An overall winner will be chosen and presented with the top scholarship and trophy.
"We established this award as a special way to honor and recognize college football players for the size of their hearts instead of the enormity of their stats," said Rudy Ruettiger. "It is great to see such a huge increase in the number of nominations, as we continue to build the Rudy Award into one of the top collegiate honors. Our society looks to athletes as role models... and I cannot think of a better role model than one who demonstrates great character, courage, contribution and commitment."
The recipient of the 2007 Inaugural College Football Rudy Award was Terry Clayton, then a senior linebacker at the University of Kentucky, who, despite losing his hearing at the age of five, persevered as a walk-on for the Kentucky football team for five seasons and twice was named to the Southeast Conference academic honor roll.
The 2008 Award Selection Committee includes football coaches David Bailiff, Gary Barnett, Fisher DeBerry, Dennis Franchione, June Jones, Chuck Knox, Gary Patterson, Buddy Pough and Dick Tomey. Former Washington Redskins quarterback and Super Bowl XXII MVP Doug Williams and former Los Angeles Rams running back and pro football Hall of Fame Inductee Eric Dickerson also join the committee for 2008. Prominent businessman Peter Murphy, Jr., will again serve as chairman and Charlie Laverty of Oppenheimer & Co. is the presenting sponsor.
A full list of nominees is available at www.RudyAwards.com. Finalists will be announced on Dec. 16. If a finalist presently is receiving a full scholarship, or graduates prior to the award presentation, the award will be made in the player's name to the general scholarship fund of the college or university.
"You're five foot nothin', a hundred and nothin', and you have nearly a speck of athletic ability. And you hung in there with the best college football team in the land for two years. And you're getting a degree from the University of Notre Dame. In this life, you don't have to prove nothin' to nobody but yourself." -- Fortune (as played by Charles S. Dutton) in the film "RUDY."
