USF wide receiver Lindsey Lamar was chosen as the BIG EAST Special Teams Player of the Year, while Louisville safety Hakeem Smith was named BIG EAST Rookie of the Year.

 

Connecticut head coach Randy Edsall, who led the Huskies to their first Bowl Championship Series appearance, and Louisville head coach Charlie Strong, who brought the Cardinals to the postseason for the first time in four years, shared BIG EAST Coach of the Year honors.

 

The conference also announced the selections to the All-BIG EAST First and Second Teams, highlighted by five unanimous selections to the first team.

 

Todman was unanimously chosen as BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year, becoming the second Connecticut running back in the last three years to earn the conference’s top offensive honor. Todman joins 2008 winner Donald Brown as the only Connecticut players to be named BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year.

 

Todman finished the regular season ranked second nationally in rushing, averaging 143.1 yards per game. He ran for 1,574 yards and 14 touchdowns, leading the BIG EAST in both categories, and went for at least 100 yards nine times in 11 games. He had at least one rushing touchdown in eight games and had two games with three rushing touchdowns. He ran for a season-high 222 yards on 37 carries in a 30-28 win against Pittsburgh, went for 190 yards and two touchdowns in a 40-21 win against Vanderbilt and had 175 yards and three TDs in a 38-17 win against Cincinnati.

 

Sheard’s selection as BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year marks the third consecutive season, and the fourth time in the last five years, that a Pittsburgh player earned top defensive honors from the conference. He is the Panthers’ fifth BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year selection, joining 2006 winner H.B. Blades, 2008 winner Scott McKillop and 2009 winners Greg Romeus and Mick Williams.

 

With Romeus sidelined by injury for all but two games of the 2010 season, Sheard was the focal point of opposing offensive lines, yet still finished the regular season with nine sacks and 14.5 tackles for loss, ranking second in the BIG EAST in both categories. He had four forced fumbles, 15 quarterback hurries, a fumble recovery and four pass breakups to go with 52 tackles.

 

Lamar becomes USF’s first BIG EAST Special Teams Player of the Year honoree and joins 2007 Defensive Player of the Year George Selvie as the only USF players to earn a major individual honor from the conference. 

 

Lamar averaged 28.1 yards on 30 kickoff returns in the regular season, leading the BIG EAST with 842 yards and two touchdowns. He sprung a 94-yard kickoff return for a touchdown against Syracuse and had a 100-yard return for a score against Louisville, becoming the 10th player in BIG EAST history to register two kickoff returns for touchdowns in a season. Lamar finished the regular season with 1,004 all-purpose yards and had six games with at least 100 all-purpose yards.

 

Smith is the second Louisville player in the last three years to be named BIG EAST Rookie of the Year, joining running back Victor Anderson, who was selected in 2008. He is just the fifth defensive player to win the award.

 

Smith, who made 11 starts at strong safety as a freshman, was the leading tackler on a resurgent Louisville defense in 2010. He led the Cardinals with 80 tackles, anchoring a defense that ranked third in the BIG EAST in points allowed (18.7 ppg) and yards allowed (302.4 ypg). Louisville was next-to-last in the BIG EAST in both categories last year. 

 

Edsall and Strong tied in the voting for BIG EAST Coach of the Year, marking the first tie since the award was first presented in 1991. Both coaches are first-time winners of the award.

 

Edsall, whose team started the year with three wins in its first seven games, turned the Huskies around to win the last five games of the regular season and claim a share of the BIG EAST championship. Connecticut earned its second BIG EAST title in four years and was awarded the conference’s BCS bid, sending the Huskies to the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl for the first time. Connecticut, which will make its fourth consecutive postseason appearance, will face Big 12 champion Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl Jan. 1 in Glendale, Ariz.

 

Strong took over a team that had finished last in the BIG EAST in each of the past two seasons, and was picked last in the 2010 preseason media poll, and brought the Cardinals back to the postseason for the first time since 2006. Louisville finished the regular season 6-6 overall and 3-4 in the BIG EAST, including road wins at Syracuse and Rutgers.

 

The BIG EAST also has recognized the members of its All-BIG EAST First and Second Teams. Todman and Sheard highlight a group of five unanimous selections to the first team. Cincinnati quarterback Zach Collaros, Connecticut offensive guard Zach Hurd and Louisville offensive guard Mark Wetterer joined Todman and Sheard as unanimous picks of the league’s head coaches.

 

Hurd joins Pittsburgh wide receiver Jon Baldwin, Pittsburgh offensive tackle Jason Pinkston and West Virginia safety Robert Sands as back-to-back selections to the All-BIG EAST First Team.

2010 BIG EAST CONFERENCE FOOTBALL AWARDS

BIG EAST CONFERENCE OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

BIG EAST CONFERENCE DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

BIG EAST CONFERENCE SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE YEAR

BIG EAST CONFERENCE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

BIG EAST CONFERENCE COACHES OF THE YEAR

ALL-BIG EAST CONFERENCE FIRST TEAM
OFFENSE
Pos.	Player	School	Cl.	Ht.	Wt.	Hometown/High School
WR	Armon Binns	Cincinnati	Sr.	6-3	210	Pasadena, Calif./Pasadena
WR	Jon Baldwin	Pittsburgh	Jr.	6-5	230	Aliquippa, Pa./Aliquippa
OT	Mike Ryan	Connecticut	Jr.	6-5	332	Tamaqua, Pa./Marian Catholic
OT	Jason Pinkston	Pittsburgh	Sr.	6-4	305	Pittsburgh, Pa./Baldwin
OG	Zach Hurd *	Connecticut	Sr.	6-7	323	Waterford, Conn./Waterford
OG	Mark Wetterer *	Louisville	Sr.	6-5	306	Cincinnati, Ohio/Anderson
C	Sampson Genus	USF	Sr.	6-1	314	Lake City, Fla./Columbia
TE	Cameron Graham	Louisville	Sr.	6-4	242	Inglewood, Calif./Inglewood
QB	Zach Collaros *	Cincinnati	Jr.	6-0	216	Steubenville, Ohio/Steubenville
RB	Jordan Todman *	Connecticut	Jr.	5-9	190	North Dartmouth, Mass./Dartmouth
RB	Bilal Powell	Louisville	Sr.	6-0	204	Lakeland, Fla./Lake Gibson
K	Dave Teggart	Connecticut	Jr.	6-0	209	Northborough, Mass./Algonqun
RS	Lindsey Lamar	USF	So.	5-9	160	Tampa, Fla./Hillsborough
DEFENSE
Pos.	Player	School	Cl.	Ht.	Wt.	Hometown/High School
DL	Kendall Reyes	Connecticut	Jr.	6-4	287	Nashua, N.H./Nashua North
DL	Jabaal Sheard *	Pittsburgh	Sr.	6-4	260	Hollywood Hills, Fla./Hollywood Hills
DL	Terrell McClain	USF	Sr.	6-3	302	Pensacola, Fla./Pensacola
DL	Chris Neild	West Virginia	Sr.	6-2	301	Stroudsburg, Pa./Stroudsburg
LB	Lawrence Wilson	Connecticut	Sr.	6-1	217	Tuscaloosa, Ala./Paul W. Bryant
LB	Doug Hogue	Syracuse	Sr.	6-2	226	Yonkers, N.Y./Roosevelt
LB	J.T. Thomas	West Virginia	Sr.	6-2	225	Fort Lauderdale, Fla./Ely
CB	Johnny Patrick	Louisville	Sr.	6-0	186	Deland, Fla./Deland
CB	Keith Tandy	West Virginia	Jr.	5-10	198	Hopkinsville, Ky./Christian County
S	Dom DeCicco	Pittsburgh	Sr.	6-4	230	Jefferson Hills, Pa./Thomas Jefferson
S	Robert Sands	West Virginia	Jr.	6-5	221	Carol City, Fla./Miami-Carol City
P	Dan Hutchins	Pittsburgh	Sr.	5-11	195	Williamsport, Pa./Loyalsock Township
* unanimous selection
ALL-BIG EAST CONFERENCE SECOND TEAM
OFFENSE
Pos.	Player	School	Cl.	Ht.	Wt.	Hometown/High School
WR	D.J. Woods	Cincinnati	Jr.	6-0	172	Strongsville, Ohio/Strongsville
WR	Dontavia Bogan	USF	Sr.	6-1	188	Thomasville, Ga./Central County
WR	Tavon Austin	West Virginia	So.	5-9	173	Baltimore, Md./Dunbar
WR	Jock Sanders	West Virginia	Sr.	5-7	179	St. Petersburg, Fla./St. Petersburg Catholic
OT	Justin Pugh	Syracuse	So.	6-5	287	Holland, Pa./Council Rock South
OT	Don Barclay	West Virginia	Jr.	6-4	304	Cranberry Township, Pa./Seneca Valley
OL	Jason Kelce	Cincinnati	Sr.	6-4	283	Cleveland Heights, Ohio/Cleveland Heights
OL	Byron Stingily	Louisville	Sr.	6-5	300	Country Club Hills, Ill./Joliet CC
OL	Jacob Sims	USF	Sr.	6-5	290	Winter Park, Fla./Winter Park
C	Moe Petrus	Connecticut	Jr.	6-2	292	St. Laurent, Que./Vanier Prep
TE	Ben Guidugli	Cincinnati	Sr.	6-1	240	Fort Thomas, Ky./Highlands
QB	Geno Smith	West Virginia	So.	6-3	210	Miami, Fla./Miramar
RB	Isaiah Pead	Cincinnati	Jr.	5-11	194	Columbus, Ohio/Eastmoor Academy
RB	Delone Carter	Syracuse	Sr.	5-10	215	Copley, Ohio/Copley Senior
K	Ross Krautman	Syracuse	Fr.	5-7	154	Franklin Lakes, N.J./Ramapo
RS	Nick Williams	Connecticut	So.	5-9	182	East Windsor, N.J./The Hun School
DEFENSE
Pos.	Player	School	Cl.	Ht.	Wt.	Hometown/High School
DL	Brandon Lindsey	Pittsburgh	Jr.	6-2	250	Aliquippa, Pa./Aliquippa
DL	Chandler Jones	Syracuse	Jr.	6-5	251	Endicott, N.Y./Union-Endicott
DL	Scooter Berry	West Virginia	Sr.	6-1	287	North Babylon, N.Y./North Babylon
DL	Bruce Irvin	West Virginia	Jr.	6-3	235	Walnut, Calif./Mt. San Antonio CC
LB	JK Schaffer	Cincinnati	Jr.	6-1	228	Cincinnati, Ohio/LaSalle
LB	Jacquain Williams	USF	Sr.	6-3	216	Tampa, Fla./Riverview
LB	Derrell Smith	Syracuse	Sr.	6-1	232	New Castle, Del./Paul Hodgson
CB	Mistral Raymond	USF	Sr.	6-2	192	Palmetto, Fla./Palmetto
CB	Brandon Hogan	West Virginia	Sr.	5-10	189	Manassas, Va./Osbourn
S	Hakeem Smith	Louisville	RFr.	6-1	174	Jonesboro, Ga./Riverdale
S	Jared Holley	Pittsburgh	So.	5-10	180	Easton, Pa./Easton Area
S	Joe Lefeged	Rutgers	Sr.	6-1	205	Germantown, Md./Northwest
P	Rob Long	Syracuse	Sr.	6-3	190	Downingtown, Pa./Downingtown West

BIG EAST OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
1991	Gino Torretta, QB, Miami, Jr.
1992	Gino Torretta, QB, Miami, Sr. *
1993	Glenn Foley, QB, Boston College, Sr.
1994	Billy West, RB, Pittsburgh, So.
1995	Marco Battaglia, TE, Rutgers, Sr.
1996	Jim Druckenmiller, QB, Virginia Tech, Sr.
	Donovan McNabb, QB, Syracuse, So.
1997	Donovan McNabb, QB, Syracuse, Jr.
1998	Donovan McNabb, QB, Syracuse, Sr.
1999	Michael Vick, QB, Virginia Tech, Fr.
2000	Antonio Bryant, WR, Pittsburgh, So.
	Lee Suggs, RB, Virginia Tech, So.
	Santana Moss, WR, Miami, Sr.
2001	William Green, RB, Boston College, Jr.
	Ken Dorsey, QB, Miami, Jr.
2002	Ken Dorsey, QB, Miami, Sr.
	Willis McGahee, RB, Miami, So.
2003	Larry Fitzgerald, WR, Pittsburgh, So.
2004	Rasheed Marshall, QB, West Virginia, Sr.
2005	Brian Brohm, QB, Louisville, So.
2006	Pat White, QB, West Virginia, So.
2007	Pat White, QB, West Virginia, Jr.
2008	Donald Brown, RB, Connecticut, Jr.
2009	Dion Lewis, RB, Pittsburgh, Fr.
2010	Jordan Todman, RB, Connecticut, Jr. *
BIG EAST DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
1991	Darrin Smith, LB, Miami, Jr.
	George Rooks, DT, Syracuse, Sr.
1992	Micheal Barrow, LB, Miami, Sr.
1993	Kevin Patrick, DE, Miami, Sr.
1994	Warren Sapp, DL, Miami, Jr.
1995	Cornell Brown, DE, Virginia Tech, Jr.
1996	Canute Curtis, DL, West Virginia, Sr.
1997	Donovin Darius, S, Syracuse, Sr.
1998	Corey Moore, DE, Virginia Tech, Jr.
1999	Corey Moore, DE, Virginia Tech, Sr.*
2000	Dan Morgan, LB, Miami, Sr.*
2001	Edward Reed, SS, Miami, Sr.
	Dwight Freeney, DE, Syracuse, Sr.
2002	Dan Klecko, DL, Temple, Sr.
2003	Sean Taylor, FS, Miami, Jr.
2004	Mathias Kiwanuka, DE, Boston College, Jr.
2005	Elvis Dumervil, DE, Louisville, Sr.
2006	H.B. Blades, LB, Pittsburgh, Sr.
2007	George Selvie, DE, USF, So.
2008	Scott McKillop, LB, Pittsburgh, Sr.
2009	Greg Romeus, DE, Pittsburgh, Jr.
	Mick Williams, DT, Pittsburgh, Sr.
2010	Jabaal Sheard, DE, Pittsburgh, Sr.
BIG EAST SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE YEAR
1991	Kevin Williams, RS, Miami, So.
1992	John Biskup, PK, Syracuse, Sr.
1993	Pat O’Neill, P/PK, Syracuse, Sr.
1994	Todd Sauerbrun, P, West Virginia, Sr. *
1995	Marvin Harrison, RS, Syracuse, Sr.
1996	Tremain Mack, RS, Miami, Sr.*
1997	Quinton Spotwood, KR, Syracuse, So. *
1998	Kevin Johnson, KR, Syracuse, Sr. *
1999	Shayne Graham, PK, Virginia Tech, Sr.
2000	Santana Moss, PR, Miami, Sr.*
2001	Phillip Buchanon, PR/KR, Miami, Jr.
2002	Andy Lee, P, Pittsburgh, Jr.
	Nate Jones, KR, Rutgers, Jr.
2003	Andy Lee, P, Pittsburgh, Sr.
	DeAngelo Hall, PR, Virginia Tech, Jr.
2004	Adam Jones, West Virginia, RS/DB, Jr.
2005	Willie Foster, Rutgers, RS/WR, Jr.
2006	Ean Randolph, USF, RS, Sr.
2007	Kevin Huber, P, Cincinnati, Jr.
2008	Mardy Gilyard, WR, Cincinnati, Jr.
2009	Mardy Gilyard, WR, Cincinnati, Sr.
2010	Lindsey Lamar, WR, USF, So.
BIG EAST ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
1991	Tom Tumulty, LB, Pittsburgh
1992	Bruce Presley, RB, Rutgers
1993	Terrell Willis, RB, Rutgers
1994	Kenard Lang, DE, Miami
1995	Donovan McNabb, QB, Syracuse *
1996	Amos Zereoue, RB, West Virginia *
1997	Reggie Wayne, WR, Miami
1998	Joaquin Gonzalez, OT, Miami
1999	Michael Vick, QB, Virginia Tech
2000	Grant Wiley, LB, West Virginia
2001	Kevin Jones, RB, Virginia Tech
2002	Larry Fitzgerald, WR, Pittsburgh
2003	Chris Henry, WR, West Virginia
2004	Brian Toal, LB, Boston College
2005	Steve Slaton, RB, West Virginia
2006	Matt Grothe, QB, USF
2007	LeSean McCoy, RB, Pittsburgh *
2008	Victor Anderson, RB, Louisville
2009	Dion Lewis, RB, Pittsburgh *
2010	Hakeem Smith, S, Louisville
BIG EAST COACH OF THE YEAR
1991	Dennis Erickson, Miami*
1992	Dennis Erickson, Miami
1993	Don Nehlen, West Virginia*
1994	Dennis Erickson, Miami
1995	Frank Beamer, Virginia Tech*
1996	Frank Beamer, Virginia Tech
1997	Walt Harris, Pittsburgh
1998	Terry Shea, Rutgers
1999	Frank Beamer, Virginia Tech
2000	Butch Davis, Miami
2001	Larry Coker, Miami
2002	Larry Coker, Miami
2003	Rich Rodriguez, West Virginia*
2004	Walt Harris, Pittsburgh
2005	Rich Rodriguez, West Virginia
2006	Greg Schiano, Rutgers
2007	Brian Kelly, Cincinnati
2008	Brian Kelly, Cincinnati
2009	Brian Kelly, Cincinnati
2010	Randy Edsall, Connecticut
	Charlie Strong, Louisville
* - unanimous selection