Colorado State University Athletics
Friend named Broyles Award nominee for 2nd year in a row
11/23/2016 12:00:00 AM | Football
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – For the second consecutive season, Colorado State offensive coordinator Will Friend is a nominee for the Broyles Award. The Broyles Award honors college football’s top assistant coach. The award was established in 1996 to recognize legendary head football coach Frank Broyles, who had a track record of producing some of the most successful assistant coaches in college football history. Friend is one of 40 nominees, announced Wednesday by the Frank & Barbara Broyles Foundation.
Now in his second season with the Rams, Friend has directed an offense that has averaged 43.5 points and 524.0 yards per game over the past four contests. Primarily working with the offensive line, Friend has mentored a unit that ranks 16th nationally, allowing just 1.18 sacks per game. CSU ranks 30th nationally for rushing, with an average of 217.1 rushing yards per game, including 412 in a win over the Lobos (Nov. 19) – the Rams’ best performance in 15 seasons.
In the win over the Lobos, CSU had three 100-yard rushers for just the second time in school history. A week earlier, at Air Force (Nov. 12), the Rams had a 300-yard passer, 200-yard receiver and 100-yard rusher for the first time ever. CSU has won six games this season despite starting three different quarterbacks.
The legendary 18-member selection committee will select five finalists from the list of nominees and an overall winner. Those finalists will be invited to travel to Little Rock, Ark., where the 2016 Broyles Award winner will be announced on Tuesday, Dec. 6 at 1 p.m. at the Marriott Hotel.
This year marks the first time the Frank & Barbara Broyles Foundation has presented the award. Proceeds from the 2016 Broyles Award will go to support the mission of the Broyles Foundation: to educate, support, and connect with Alzheimer's caregivers.
"Every year the job of our selection committee is extremely difficult as they work to select the top five assistant coaches in America and an overall winner," said Betsy Broyles Arnold, Frank & Barbara Broyles Foundation President. "We are very proud of the outstanding job assistant coaches continue to do across the country."
The winner of the 2015 Broyles Award was Lincoln Riley, University of Oklahoma. The Broyles Award is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA) which encompasses the most prestigious awards in college football. The 21 awards boast 699 years of tradition-selection excellence. Visit NCFAA.org to learn more about our story.
Friend came to Colorado State in December 2014 after spending the previous four seasons at Georgia with Bobo, serving as offensive line coach and for the final two years with the additional responsibility of running game coordinator. Prior to that he spent four years at UAB (2007-10), where the Blazers recorded two of the top three offensive seasons in school history. Friend’s previous experience came at Gardner-Webb, West Alabama and as a graduate assistant at Georgia.
A graduate of Neshoba Central High in Philadelphia, Miss., where he was a Parade Magazine All-American, Friend was a two-time All-SEC starting guard at Alabama and played in three bowl games. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Alabama in 1998.
Colorado State brings a record of 6-5 (4-3 MW) into Saturday’s regular-season finale at San Diego State. Already bowl-eligible for a fourth consecutive season, the Rams will learn their bowl destination on Sunday, Dec. 4.
