POSTED: Friday January 9th 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

FLORIDA WINS 2008 GRANTLAND RICE TROPHY

Florida Gators dominated Oklahoma 24-14 in the FedEx BCS Championship Game

FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla. (FWAA) - Following their 24-14 win over Oklahoma in the FedEx BCS Championship Game, the Florida Gators (13-1) were presented the 2008 Grantland Rice Trophy for the second time in three years by the Football Writers Association of America. FWAA president George Schroeder of the Eugene Register-Guard made the presentation at a morning news conference.

With the score tied, 14-14, quarterback Tim Tebow led the Gators
on two fourth-quarter scoring drives culminating in a 27-yard field
goal by Jonathan Phillips and the game-sealing touchdown pass to David
Nelson with 3:07 remaining. Tebow, the championship game\‘s Most
Valuable Player, threw for 231 yards to go with 109 yards on the ground.

Percy Harvin chipped in 122 yards and a touchdown on the ground,
while the Florida defense limited Oklahoma to season-low 14 points and
stopped two first-half drives inside the 5-yard line.

The Grantland Rice Trophy has been presented by the Football
Writers Association of America to college football\‘s national champion
since 1954. Named for the legendary sportswriter, the Grantland Rice
Trophy was the first national championship award to be presented after
the college football postseason.

This is the third time Florida has been awarded the FWAA national
championship trophy and the third straight season a team from the
Southeastern Conference has earned the award. The SEC also claimed
three straight Grantland Rice trophies from 1978-80 (Alabama, 1978-79
and Georgia, 1980). In addition to their national title in 2006, the
Gators won the FWAA\‘s championship trophy in 1996.

A panel of veteran FWAA member writers selected the Gators as the
FWAA\‘s national champion. Although the FWAA does not conduct a final
poll at the end of the season, it will conduct a 2009 preseason poll
during this summer when the entire membership will vote. The poll will
be released in late August before the beginning of the upcoming season.

The Football Writers Association of America, a
non-profit organization founded in 1941, consists of nearly 1,000 men
and women across North America who cover college football for a living.
The membership includes journalists, broadcasters and publicists, as
well as key executives in all the areas that involve the game. The FWAA
works to govern areas that include game day operations, major awards, a
national poll and its annual All-America team.

For more information on the Grantland Rice Trophy, contact FWAA executive director Steve Richardson (972-713-6198 or tigerfwaa@aol.com).

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Keywords · Florida Gators · Football Writers Association of America

Name: Ted Gangi
Organization: FWAA/USBWA
Email:
Phone: +1.214-909-9314

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FLORIDA WINS 2008 GRANTLAND RICE TROPHY

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