University of North Carolina Athletics
Chacos Named To Lombardi Award Watch List
August 10, 2006 | Football
Aug. 10, 2006
University of North Carolina senior offensive tackle Brian Chacos has been named to the 2006 Rotary Lombardi Award Watch List. The Lombardi Award honors the top lineman in college football and in 2001, North Carolina's Julius Peppers was named the winner. A native of Darien, Conn., Chacos received a sixth year of eligibility from the NCAA last year and enters his third year as a starter at left tackle.
The 37th Rotary Lombardi Award, presented by Wachovia Bank, which raises funds for the American Cancer Society, will be presented in Houston on December 6 at the Hilton Americas Hotel.
Any player who meets the basic award criteria (a down lineman on either side of the ball-including tight ends, and linebackers who line up within five yards of the ball) is eligible to receive votes. In each of the past two years (Erasmus James in 2004 and Elvis Dumervil in 2005) an eventual finalist for the award was not included on the Watch List at the start of the season.
This year's list is almost evenly divided between offensive and defensive players, with 54 defenders and 47 offensive players currently listed.
Founded in the weeks following the death of legendary football coach Vince Lombardi from cancer in 1970, the Rotary Lombardi Award, presented by Wachovia Bank, has annually delivered upon the mission set forth by Marie Lombardi when she first granted the use of her late husband's name. Her only stipulation was that all net proceeds from the event be donated to the American Cancer Society and millions of dollars have been generated since that time. In addition to generating the annual donation to ACS, attendees to the 2005 combined to sponsor 31 pediatric cancer patients for a week at Camp Discovery, a camp near Kerrville, TX dedicated to bringing the joy and fun of summer camp to young cancer patients.
The 37th Rotary Lombardi Award dinner will be held on December 6, 2006 at the Hilton Americas Hotel in Houston. Tickets to the event, presented by Wachovia Bank, are currently on sale through the Rotary Club of Houston office or from members of the Rotary Lombardi Award Committee. Please call (713) 973-9936 for information on tickets or other opportunities to support the work of the dinner.
The Rotary Club of Houston, in operation since 1912, is an association of more than 350 successful business professionals, all prominent in their individual fields of endeavor, who volunteer their efforts through the work of some two dozen club committees. Assistance is provided to such diverse groups as troubled youngsters, former prison inmates, business oriented high school students, families of cancer patients, deserving college scholarship candidates and the nation's cancer research efforts. The club's most recent community project is the East End Healthy Children's Collaborative which provides much needed access to primary health care for residents on Houston's East side.
The Rotary Lombardi Award, presented by Wachovia Bank, and its annual donations to the American Cancer Society are also bolstered by the contributions of its corporate partners: Shell Chemicals, Continental Airlines, Ben Bridge Jewlers, Rolex and Humana , in addition to its media partners, the Houston Chronicle, KPRC TV and ESPN 790.
