Alabama, Arkansas, Northwestern and Notre Dame
Offensive Line Units Earn a Spot on the Inaugural Weekly List
NEW YORK, New York – September 8, 2015 – The Joe Moore Foundation for Teamwork has announced the Week 1 Joe Moore Award Honor Roll, which will identify the most notable weekly performances by offensive line units. The following universities earned a spot on this week’s Honor Roll (in alphabetical order): Alabama, Arkansas, Northwestern and Notre Dame.
After a review of actual game film, the weekly Joe Moore Award Honor Roll will include units that display a superior level of toughness, effort, teamwork, physicality, tone setting and finishing. Statistics, including those supplied by the universities (i.e. knockdowns), are used to support observations made about the technique and effort displayed in the game film. Semi-Finalists for the Joe Moore Award will be announced on November 16, with five (5) Finalists determined by November 30. The Joe Moore Award winning unit will be announced after the conclusion of the regular season.
The Week 1 Joe Moore Award Honor Roll (in alphabetical order):
Alabama: Against Wisconsin, Alabama rushed for 238 yards, averaging 6.4 yards per carry. They scored four rushing touchdowns and registered 27 knockdowns in the 35-17 win. Their nine rushes of 10+ yards are the most reigning Big 10 West champ Wisconsin has allowed in a game since 2012.
Arkansas: In a 48-13 win over UTEP, the Razorbacks paved the way to 182 yards rushing, gaining 5.4 yards per attempt. On 20 pass attempts (15 blitzed), the quarterback, who threw for 308 yards and 4 touchdowns, was never sacked and was only hit twice. The unit was 5-for-5 in Red Zone scoring, converted 2-of-2 4th down rushing attempts and tallied 19 knockdowns.
Northwestern: In their upset win over #21 Stanford, which ranked 3rd in the nation in total defense in 2014, the Wildcats ran for 225 yards and gave up no sacks, leading to a 16-6 victory at Ryan Field in Evanston, IL.
Notre Dame: The Irish offense racked up 527 total yards against Texas and dominated time of possession by a margin of almost 2:1 (39:10 to 20:50). In the 38-3 victory, the offensive line blocked for two touchdowns and was not responsible for any sacks, despite consistent blitzes by the Longhorns.
The Week 2 Joe Moore Honor Roll will be announced on Tuesday, September 15.
About the Joe Moore Award
The JOE MOORE AWARD is named after Joe Moore, widely regarded as one of the best offensive line coaches in college football history, and is the only major college football award to honor a unit. The award will annually recognize the nation’s Most Outstanding Offensive Line Unit that best displays toughness, effort, teamwork, physicality, tone setting and finishing. The voting committee is comprised solely of people who played or coached the position, including all of the current offensive line coaches at the Division I/FBS level as well as former players, coaches, colleagues of Coach Moore and select media.
About the Joe Moore Foundation for Teamwork
The Joe Moore Foundation for Teamwork is a 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to fostering the essential aspect of all great societal endeavors: teamwork. Our mission is to bring that spirit of collective achievement not only to sports, but also to schools, organizations, businesses and communities. Find out more at joemooreaward.com and follow the Joe Moore Award on Instagram (@joemooreaward), Twitter (@joemooreaward) and Facebook.