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Classic to Serve as Presenting Sponsor of FWAA All-America Team
Two of college football's most iconic brands – the Football Writers Association of America and the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic – are combining efforts to recognize, honor and promote the FWAA All-America Team, the nation's second-longest continuously published All-America team. Founded in 1944, this marks the team's 75th anniversary season.
As presenting sponsor, the Goodyear Cotton Bowl will work with FWAA committees to not only recognize each season's outstanding student-athletes but to also salute the great players of the past.
"The FWAA All-America Team is one of the most prestigious in all of college football," said Rick Baker, President of the Cotton Bowl Athletic Association. "I remember watching Bob Hope, Bing Crosby and other celebrities introduce the FWAA All-Americans on television each year. It's a special honor to link our bowl game with the FWAA team. We pledge to help make this a special moment in the lives of these deserving young men who are selected for All-America recognition at the end of every season."
The 2019 team will be announced on Thursday, December 19. As part of the campaign leading up to the team announcement, a series of digital postcards will be sent to the FWAA membership throughout the season that highlights the accomplishments of previous All-America honorees.
"The FWAA is extremely pleased that the Cotton Bowl Athletic Association is sponsoring the All- America team," said Steve Richardson, FWAA Executive Director. "The Cotton Bowl is one of the historic bowl games that dates to the 1930s and has one of the richest traditions in all of college football. Pairing an organization such as the CBAA with our team makes a lot of sense in terms of the history of the game."
For seven decades the FWAA has chosen an All-America team with the help of its members and a select committee representing all regions in the country. From that All-America team, the FWAA also selects the Outland Trophy winner (best interior lineman) and the Bronko Nagurski Trophy winner (best defensive player). The FWAA team is one of five that determines consensus All- America recognition.
"The number of FWAA All-Americans that have played or coached in the Cotton Bowl through the years is quite impressive," Baker noted. "Among them is former Arkansas head coach and athletic director Frank Broyles, who as a quarterback at Georgia Tech was a member of the FWAA's inaugural team in 1944. Coach Broyles became one of our game's greatest coaches and advocates. He is a prime example of how the FWAA All-America Team has impacted our game and thus makes this presenting sponsorship the perfect vehicle for us to become involved in such a meaningful way."
The FWAA's selection committee has featured some of the true greats in the writing profession over the years – Grantland Rice, Bert McGrane, Dave Campbell, Blackie Sherrod, Furman Bisher, Orville Henry, Volney Meece, Pat Harmon, Fred Russell, Mickey Herskowitz, Edwin Pope, Murray Olderman, Paul Zimmerman – and the list goes on and on. The FWAA All-America Team is steeped in tradition and history, and its selection committee possesses those same attributes. In its 75 years, the FWAA All-America Team has been promoted through many different media forums. From 1946-70, LOOK magazine published the FWAA team and brought players and selected writers to New York City for an annual celebration. During that 25-year period, the FWAA team was introduced on national television shows by such noted hosts as Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Steve Allen and Perry Como.
After LOOK ceased publication, the FWAA started a long association with NCAA Films (later known as NCAA Productions), which produced a 30-minute television program. In later years, the team has been highlighted during a one-hour special on ABC and ESPN.
"The Goodyear Cotton Bowl and the FWAA have been intrinsically associated with each other over the years," said Richardson. "Since the mid-1980s, members of the CBAA staff have played a key role in the production and distribution of the FWAA's annual membership directory. In addition, four representatives of the Cotton Bowl's leadership team have been presented the Bert McGrane Award, an honor that is given annually to members who have made notable contributions to the FWAA and the game of college football."
