Rimington Inducted into Academic All-America Hall of Fame

San Diego, Calif. ? After a collegiate career that saw many firsts, it was only appropriate that former Nebraska center Dave Rimington would become the first Husker inducted into the Academic All-America Hall of Fame Wednesday evening.

Rimington joins Gill Beck (Appalachian State), Dylann Duncan Ceriani (Brigham Young), Terrell Hoage (Georgia) and Rolf Benirschke (Cal Davis) as the 17th class of inductees. The private ceremony was held at the home of Bill Walton and emceed by Dick Enberg, who has been a longtime spokesman for the Academic All-America Hall of Fame.

"This ranks up with any award I received during my career," Rimington said prior to the formal induction ceremony Wednesday evening. "Considering all of the Academic All-Americans Nebraska has had over the years, it is special to be the first one inducted. This is quite a group of people who are here tonight. I don’t know if I belong in this group, but I’m real honored to be here."

Rimington enjoyed one of the finest careers in college football history, culminating with his induction into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1997. A true scholar-athlete, he excelled on the field and in the classroom, becoming one of Nebraska’s most decorated athletes. A two-time first-team All-American, he is the only two-time winner of the Outland Trophy, awarded annually to the nation’s best offensive lineman. Rimington, the 1982 Lombardi Award winner, was also a three-time All-Big Eight honoree and was selected as the Big Eight Offensive Player of the Year in 1981, the only offensive lineman to ever earn the award. He capped his career by being selected as the Big Eight Male Student-Athlete of the Year in 1983.

Off the field, he was a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-American and was named a National Football Foundation/College Hall of Fame Scholar Athlete as a senior. In 1983, he was the recipient of the NCAA Today’s Top Eight Award, the highest honor the National Collegiate Athletic Association can bestow on a student-athlete.

A first-round selection by the Cincinnati Bengals in the 1983 NFL Draft, Rimington spent seven years with the Bengals and the Philadelphia Eagles before retiring in 1990. Following his playing career, he joined the Boomer Esiason Foundation in 1993, and has been the organization’s president since 1995, helping to provide financial support to research aimed at finding a cure for cystic fibrosis. Since its inception, the Boomer Esiason Foundation has raised over $22 million.

"This award is a combination of athletic, academic and community involvement," Rimington said. "It’s for people who have been able to achieve a lot outside of the athletic arena. That’s really what makes it satisfying. It’s a special award."

Rimington’s impact on college football has been honored with the Rimington Award, which has been presented to the nation’s top center since 2000, and proceeds from the annual banquet raises money for the fight against cystic fibrosis.

While Rimington becomes the first Husker athlete into the CoSIDA Academic All-America Hall of Fame, he is the second person with Nebraska ties, as current women’s swimming coach Pablo Morales was inducted in 2000.

The Academic All-America Hall of Fame was established in 1988 by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) to honor former college scholar-athletes who have excelled in their professions and made substantial contributions to their communities. To be eligible, a candidate had to be an Academic team member who graduated at least ten years ago.

-- Huskers --