MICHIGAN WOLVERINES FIRST TO WIN BACK-TO-BACK JOE MOORE AWARDS AS NATION’S BEST OFFENSIVE LINE UNIT
Teamwork, Effort, Consistency, and Late-Season Poise Impressed Voters
ANN ARBOR, MI - December 17, 2022 - In a presentation on the campus of the University of Michigan in Schembechler Hall, the Foundation for Teamwork announced this evening that the Wolverine offensive line is the winner of the 2022 Joe Moore Award (JMA) for the most Outstanding Offensive Line Unit in College Football. This is the second year in a row that the Wolverines have won this coveted award, making them the first ever unit to do so. Michigan is the second unit from the BIG-TEN (Iowa, 2015) to accomplish this noteworthy achievement.
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 group or unit. The award annually recognizes the nation’s Most Outstanding Offensive Line Unit that best display the fundamental and historical aspects of great offensive line play: Toughness, Effort, Teamwork, Consistency, Technique, and Finishing.
Michigan's starting O-line featured tackle Karsen Barnhart (8 starts), guard Gio El-Hadi (3 starts), tackle Ryan Hayes (11 starts), guard Trevor Keegan (10 starts), center Olusegun Oluwatimi (13 starts), tackle Jeffrey Persi (1 start), tackle Trente Jones (6 starts), and guard Zak Zinter (13 starts). In addition, tight ends Max Bredeson (1 start), Joel Honigford, converted O-lineman (1 start), Colston Loveland (5 starts) and Luke Schoonmaker (10 starts) warrant mention as key contributors to Michigan’s success. The O-line was coached by Donald C. Graham Football Offensive Line Coach and Sanford Robertson Co-Offensive Coordinator, Sherrone Moore.
“This was a year of firsts, and never before have we had a back to back winner, and never before have we had just two units as finalists,” said Geoff Schwartz, eight year NFL veteran, lead analyst for Sirius XM - Pac 12 channel, and voting committee member since 2017. “The difference was just five votes. Five. And that is an incredible testament to both Georgia and Michigan, and their incredible efforts throughout the season. This was also clearly a year of contrasting styles, which made for some interesting conversations leading up to the voting process, which is likely why it was so close at the end.”
Pro Football and College Football Hall of Famer, Jimbo Covert, who was coached by Joe Moore at the University of Pittsburgh, spoke directly to the winning unit via a private and personal video message shown in the weight room in front of their teammates and coaches shortly after the on field presentation. “Congratulations on being the first ever back-to-back winner of the Joe Moore Award,” said Covert, also a former teammate with Wolverine head coach, Jim Harbaugh, at the Chicago Bears. “The reason I voted for you is that you dominated the line of scrimmage all year long, but what really impressed me was the Ohio State game. Great offensive lines take control of the football game when they have to – their teammates depend on them to do it – and you did it. You ran the football down their throat and won the football game, which put you in the position [contending for a national championship] that you are today.”
The voting body that determines each year’s winner includes all 131 current OL coaches at the FBS/Div 1 level, a legacy committee of former coaches, players, & colleagues of coach Joe Moore, and select media with vast experience and strong ties to college football or scouting.
“When determining who has earned the right to win this award, it starts with evaluating the six key criteria, which is largely a subjective process” said Duke Manyweather, founder of OL Masterminds, the largest aggregation of NFL and CFB O-line talent in the world, voting committee member, and Trophy Guardian since 2015. “From there, the difficult question becomes which of the criteria mattered most? As a voter, do I appreciate toughness and finishing more than consistency and technique? Does this team win because of this unit, or despite them? Did they step up in what we call the “Gotta Have It” moments (3rd/4th Down and Goal to Go situations) when their teams needed them the most? Does their team win because of their unit or their scheme? In the end, the voting body is just a bunch of fat kids picking their favorite flavor of ice cream, and I’m not surprised by how close the vote was this year because both finalists were outstanding…but ultimately Michigan proved to be the Flavor of the Year in 2022.”
“Michigan set themselves apart by their steady improvement through effort, consistency, and playing the game through ‘one set of eyes’- which in our world is synonymous for playing extremely together - as one.” said Cole Cubelic, lead sideline analyst for the SEC Network and Chairman of the Joe Moore Award voting committee. “As punishing and physically impressive as Georgia was, the collective voting body felt strongly that Michigan, above all others, was at their best when their best was needed, and that really seemed to be the differentiator. The committee also recognizes that there is still more football to be played, and we’re excited to watch all of our milestone recipients finish their seasons strongly. ”
“The O-line position is extremely difficult to evaluate, especially when doing so for entire units with differing styles of play,” said Aaron Taylor, CBS college football analyst and co-founder of the Joe Moore Award. Taylor played guard and tackle at the University of Notre Dame for the Award’s namesake, the legendary offensive line coach Joe Moore. “That is the reason we go to the trouble of watching each of the Finalists’ team provided season-long highlight reels and the multiple back-to-back quarters of game film we have them send in. The focus on the film study is about the only way the 200+ voting body can properly and credibly evaluate the nuances of the award criteria that would otherwise be difficult to see. And the debates got heated this year.”
2022 Joe Moore Award Winner at a Glance:
Michigan (13-0)
All five offensive linemen earned all-conference honors, with three first-team and one second-team selection.
Center Olu Oluwatimi won both the Outland Trophy and Rimington Trophy for outstanding play at the center position. He is the first player in Michigan history to win the Outland Trophy.
Michigan led the Big Ten and is sixth nationally in rushing offense at 243 yards per contest.
The offensive line is 11th nationally in sacks allowed (1.0 per game) and ranks 22nd in tackles for loss allowed (4.31 avg.).
The line has anchored an offense that is averaging 40 points per contest, which ranks seventh-best in college football.
U-M's offensive line has permitted just 56 negative plays on 895 offensive snaps (4.3 per game on 68.8 offensive snaps).
Michigan has 38 total rushing scores (No. 2, NCAA).
Opponents have pressured a U-M passer 29 times (13 sacks, 16 hurries) in 13 games; when the line does allow a sack against starter J.J. McCarthy, it comes on an average of 4.60 seconds to throw, the tied-eighth-most time when considering passers with at least 100 dropbacks
The unit has paved the way for 5.96 yards per sack-adjusted carry; Michigan rushers have lost 99 yards on 547 non-sack rush attempts.
Offensive line coach: Sherrone Moore
What The Voting Committee Is Saying:
“This group plays old school football with a physical edge. They faced stacked boxes as much as any group in the country, but still run with solid efficiency. They’re more athletic and brought more physicality to the trenches compared to last year’s group, which spoke loudly about both the coaches and players.
“Michigan is a group that engulfs and prevents penetration. Initial aiming points are consistent. TFLs are rare and they adjust to blitz and movement extremely well. One of their best attributes, honestly. They also, for two years in a row, seem to play their best ball in the fourth quarter when it matters most. We learned all we needed to know at the end of Ohio State and in the Big Ten Championship Game a year ago, and the same was true this year as well. This group beautifully illustrates what we’ve always known in our sport: linemen win games.”
“To me, this unit embodies the ‘teamwork’ criteria as well as I’ve seen. They communicate looks and play through one set of eyes. Their center did a great job of making stuff right inside. They routinely switched games (stunts) well, and repeatedly sorted the trash on complex blitz schemes. Rare missed men and their consistency gave each play a chance.”
“Their C 55 has been a nice upgrade for this group. He makes everything right inside. Almost an eraser for them. LT has great strain. RT is a bit limited athletically in PP (pass protection) but brings it on playside double teams. As a group they strain to finish and compete to the whistle. Their technique and consistency is what really stands out.”
“I noticed their hands right away. That’s usually a tell of a well coached unit because it’s so unnatural. In the football world, you either coach it or allow it, and it's clear what the expectation is in Ann Arbor.”
“Michigan gets it done in a slightly different way than Georgia, but they have the ability to impose their will on their opponents in the biggest games and in the biggest moments.”
Unprecedented NIL Award Program:
In 2021, the Joe Moore Award became the first post-season college award platform to launch an NIL program for its 2021 winner, the University of Michigan. We are honored and committed to continue that tradition in 2022.
The Joe Moore Award firmly believes in the notion that when the O-line wins, everyone in the community should win as well. In this spirit of mutual and collaborative support, the 2022 Joe Moore Award winning unit will once again receive 100% of the net proceeds from a soon to be released, limited edition t-shirt and merchandise sale.
In addition, to help further the reach of the winning unit’s impact on their communities, the Foundation for Teamwork and the Joe Moore Award will also match and donate, up to $10,000 of the net NIL proceeds earned by the winning unit to the AthLife Foundation*, a national educational platform that works to ensure that deserving kids from our nation's most challenged and promising communities, can achieve in their future careers beyond sport.
Designed by Make Your Move, the Student Athletes NIL ally, proceeds from all Limited Edition merchandise purchases directly support the Joe Moore Award Winners. View and purchase at gomym.com/collections/joe-moore-award.
The Trophy
The Joe Moore Award trophy, crafted by legendary sports sculptor Jerry McKenna, is the largest trophy in college football that weighs more than 500 pounds and is more than five feet wide and nearly seven feet tall. The trophy has been made available to Michigan to display on their campus until the 2022 winner is announced.
Voting Committee
The Joe Moore Award voting committee is composed of nine individuals who are highly knowledgeable about offensive line play, including former linemen, coaches, talent evaluators and media analysts. This group conducts in-depth analysis by reviewing game tape every week of the season to assess both the fundamentals and subtleties of overall O-line performance.
The 2022 voting committee includes Chairman Cole Cubelic (Auburn, SEC Network); Charles Arbuckle (UCLA, Indianapolis Colts); Randy Cross (UCLA, San Francisco 49ers); Mike Golic, Jr. (Notre Dame, Draft Kings); Duke Manyweather (Humboldt State, player and coach; founder of OL Masterminds); Geoff Schwartz (Oregon, Carolina Panthers); Phil Steele (publisher of Phil Steele’s College Football Preview, ESPN); Aaron Taylor (Notre Dame, Green Bay Packers); and Lance Zierlein (NFL draft analyst, NFL.com)
Looking Ahead
No. 2 Michigan will be making the program’s second appearance in the College Football Playoff Semifinal in the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl when they take on the No. 3 ranked TCU Horned Frogs on December 31st at 4pm ET on ESPN and the ESPN App.
Past Award Recipients
Past recipients of the Joe Moore Award include the offensive lines of the University of Alabama (2015), the University of Iowa (2016), the University of Notre Dame (2017), Oklahoma University (2018), LSU (2019), the University of Alabama (2020 - first repeat winner), and the University of Michigan (2021).
Joe Moore Award Credo
Teamwork. It’s what defines football as a sport and it is displayed in its greatest glory – in its most profound necessity – in the play of the offensive line. For it is there that individual achievement only matters if the entire unit is performing. When we execute together, great things happen. But if one player missteps, the rest of the team pays the price. That idea – along with hard work and the willingness to strive to be your best – embodies what Coach Joe Moore instilled in his players.
But it’s about more than football. It’s about how we live our lives, how we contribute to society, how we participate in the realization of great things. Teamwork is a bond. It’s a promise. And it’s a commitment to put the greater good above ourselves. It’s the greatest form of individual achievement because it requires total sacrifice – of focus, of effort, of ego. The road to success requires an unwavering commitment to purpose that creates an unbreakable bond between each of us. And it makes that success one of the greatest achievements on the planet.
“I AM BECAUSE OF US.”
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, most notably for his work at Notre Dame and the University of Pittsburgh. Coach Moore sent 52 players on to the NFL, including Bill Fralic, Mark May, Russ Grimm, Jimbo Covert and others.
The Joe Moore Award trophy, crafted by legendary sports sculptor Jerry McKenna, is the largest trophy in college football, standing at a height of 7 feet and weighing in at over 800 pounds. The perpetual trophy is made available for display by the winning university until the conclusion of the following college football season.
About The Foundation for Teamwork
The Foundation for Teamwork is a 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to fostering teamwork in all societal endeavors and bringing that spirit of collective achievement to athletics, education, and organizations.
Learn More or Follow Us
Find out more at joemooreaward.com and follow the Joe Moore Award on Twitter (@joemooreaward), Instagram (@joemooreaward), and Facebook (facebook.com/JoeMooreAward).
*About The AthLife Foundation (NIL Program Beneficiary):
Founded in 2010, The AthLife Foundation is a 501(c)3 national nonprofit organization with a mission to ensure that deserving kids from our nation's most challenged, yet promising communities, can achieve in their future careers beyond sport.
Through grant funding, training and industry leading resources, we help schools create a critical professional mentoring position in secondary education, called an Academic Athletic Coach. That Academic Athletic Coach works year round to create high impact programming, taps into a student’s passion for their sport and athletics, drives academic achievement, and prepares kids for post high school success.
Our work is being supported by the Alliance for Academic Athletic Coaches & Educators (3ACE Connected Community), Connecticut Office of Higher Education, CNX Foundation, Heisman Trophy Trust, Jason Garrett Starfish Charities, Joe Moore Award & Foundation for Teamwork, New York Community Trust, NFL Foundation, St. Luke’s University Health Network, Tulane Center for Sport, and Under Armour.
Please visit athlifefoundation.org to learn more about our platform and 3ace.connectedcommunity.org to join the national movement.
The AthLife Foundation & 3ACE Connected Community, fueled by an unwavering belief in human potential.
$1M+ Awarded to Schools - 10,000+ Deserving Kids
265 Industry Professionals - 120 High Schools
50 Community Organizations - 30 Colleges/Universities
28 States & The District of Columbia
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