Raiola Named One of 12 Rotary Lombardi Semifinalists

Lincoln --Nebraska junior center Dominic Raiola is one of 12 semifinalists for the 2000 Rotary Lombardi Award as announced on Friday, Oct. 6. Raiola is one of three Big 12 players on the list, one of four offensive linemen and one of just three juniors. Raiola set a school record last season with 140 pancakes and 11.67 per game. He became the third Husker center to earn first-team all-conference honors in his sophomore season (first since Outland and Lombardi Trophy winner Dave Rimington in 1980). With the addition of Raiola to the Lombardi Semifinalist list, Nebraska now has seven athletes on nine official watch lists. The others include quarterback Eric Crouch (Davey O'Brien), I-back Dan Alexander (Doak Walker) and tight end Tracey Wistrom (John Mackey and Biletnikoff) on offense; two defensive standouts-linebacker Carlos Polk (Butkus and Bronko Nagurski) and cornerback Keyuo Craver (Jim Thorpe) and punter Dan Hadenfeldt (Ray Guy).

Nebraska's four Lombardis,an award which has been awarded since 1970, are tied with the four won by Notre Dame and second only to Ohio State's five. Rush end Grant Wistrom, the elder brother of current NU tight end Tracey Wistrom, was Nebraska's last winner in 1997.

The Rotary Lombardi Award is annually presented to the college lineman - on offense or defense - who, in addition to outstanding performance on the field, best exemplifies the characteristics and discipline of Vince Lombardi. Corey Moore of Virginia Tech was the 1999 recipient of the Trophy. The 2000 winner will be announced at a dinner in Houston on Dec. 6. Sponsored by the Rotary Club of Houston, the award dinner has raised more than $2.4 million for the American Cancer Society's cancer research programs since its inception in 1970.

The other 11 semifinalists for the 2000 Rotary Lombardi Award include two repeaters-defensive end Alex Brown of Florida, who made the list last year as a sophomore, and Michigan offensive guard Steve Hutchinson. Joining Hutchinson in representing the Big Ten are Wisconsin's defensive tackle Wendell Bryant and Minnesota center Ben Hamilton, the only other center on the list. The Big 12 also has three representatives on the list, with Nebraska's Raiola joining a pair of Longhorns-offensive tackle Leonard Davis and defensive tackle Casey Hampton. Florida State also has two semifinalists, including two Seminole defensive ends-Jamal Reynolds and Roland Seymour. The Pac-10 is represented by California defensive end Andre Carter and Stanford defensive tackle Willie Howard, while defensive end Aaron Schobel of TCU completes the list of 12 as the lone representative of the WAC.

The four finalists for the 2000 Rotary Lombardi Award will be announced on Saturday, Nov. 4 after a second round of voting among nearly 300 members of the selection committee made up of sportswriters, broadcasters and Division I head coaches from around the country. The four finalists and their head coaches will be flown to Houston on Dec. 5 for a myriad of activities in Houston, which includes visits to local hospitals and area youth clubs. The culmination of their time in Houston will be the black tie dinner at the J.W. Marriott Hotel on Dec. 6, where the 31st recipient of the Lombardi Award will be revealed.

Tickets for the 2000 Rotary Lombardi dinner are $200 and can be purchased by calling the Rotary Office (713) 973-9936. This year, interested individuals may also join in the dinner's fundraising efforts through the Lombardi Cancer Challenge, which allows friends and family the opportunity to purchase special pennants that will honor or memorialize individuals who had personal battles with cancer. The pennants, which feature an image of legendary football coach Vince Lombardi, will be inscribed with the name of the designated individual and be placed on display at the Rotary Lombardi Award Dinner on Dec. 6.

NAME	SCHOOL	POS.	HT.	WT.	YR.	HOMETOWN
Brown, Alex	Florida	DE	6-4	262	Jr.	White Springs, Fla.
Bryant, Wendell	Wisconsin	DT	6-4	295	Jr.	St. Louis, Mo.
Carter, Andre	California	DE	6-5	265	Sr.	San Jose, Calif.
Davis, Leonard	Texas	OT	6-6	365	Sr.	Wortham, Texas
Hamilton, Ben	Minnesota	C	6-5	283	Sr.	Plymouth, Minn.
Hampton, Casey	Texas	DT	6-1	310	Sr.	Galveston, Texas
Howard, Willie	Stanford	DT	6-4	298	Sr.	Mountain View, Calif.
Hutchinson, Steve	Michigan	*OG	6-5	299	Sr.	Coral Springs, Fla.
Raiola, Dominic	Nebraska	C	6-2	300	Jr.	Honolulu, Hawaii
Reynolds, Jamal	Florida State	DE	6-4	255	Sr.	Aiken, S.C.
Schobel, Aaron	Texas Christian	DE	6-4	260	Sr.	Columbus, Texas
Seymour, Roland	Florida State	DE	6-4	264	Sr.	New Orleans, La.