2010 Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Winners Honored for Sportsmanship, Integrity, Responsibility, and Excellence on and off the Field

PHOENIX, Jan. 10, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Liberty Mutual Insurance, in partnership with the College Football Hall of Fame, today announced its 2010 Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award winners, celebrating college football coaches from the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), Division II and Division III whose seasons were marked by success of their teams on the field, achievements by their student-athletes in the classroom, and selfless support of their communities and charities. The Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award is the leading college football honor recognizing coaches for their sportsmanship, integrity, responsibility and excellence, on and off field.

The 2010 Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year winners – Gene Chizik of Auburn University, K.C. Keeler of the University of Delaware, Bob Nielson of the University of Minnesota Duluth, and Glenn Caruso of the University of St. Thomas (Minn.) – were selected through fan votes cast December 13-28 at www.CoachoftheYear.com and ballots from elite selection committees of national media and College Football Hall of Fame players and coaches.  Fans votes contributed 20 percent to each coach's final score, and the media and College Football Hall of Fame accounted for 25 percent and 55 percent, respectively.

The four winning coaches each earn a $50,000 charitable donation from Liberty Mutual and a $20,000 scholarship award for their school's alumni association.  They also will be honored in the permanent Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year display at the College Football Hall of Fame.  With this year's awards, the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year winners have now donated more than $1.2 million to over 70 charities since 2006.

"These four coaches embody the spirit of college football by inspiring excellence and leadership in their players, whether in the stadium, the classroom, or in their communities," said Archie Manning, chair of the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame.  "Student-athletes and communities benefit from the leadership and commitment of these four men, selected by fans, national media and College Football Hall of Fame players and coaches for displaying the pillars of the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year:  sportsmanship, integrity, responsibility and excellence, on and off the field."

The 2010 Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award winners are:

Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) – Gene Chizik, Auburn

Auburn's return to national prominence began in December 2008, when it hired Gene Chizik shortly after completing a 5-7 campaign.  Over the next two years, Coach Chizik's teams have amassed a 21-5 record (the school's all-time second-best record for a coach after 26 games), won the Outback Bowl last January, won the school's seventh Southeastern Conference title this year, and is riding a 14-game winning streak heading into this evening's BCS Championship Game against Oregon.

Preaching team discipline and a never-say-quit attitude, Coach Chizik's Tigers had fewer penalties on average than the rest of the SEC, and were masters at pulling out close games with six wins this year by single digits.  Under his guidance, players on both sides of the ball have achieved national awards this season: quarterback Cam Newton (Heisman, Walter Camp and Davey O'Brien awards) and defensive lineman Nick Fairley (Lombardi Award), both of whom also were among four Tigers to earn All-American honors this year.

Coach Chizik and his staff emphasize classroom achievement as well, evidenced by 19 Tigers named to the 2009 SEC Academic Honor Roll.  In addition, center Ryan Pugh was named to the 2010 ESPN/CoSIDA academic all-district first team and the first team for Lowe's Senior CLASS Award for notable achievements in community, classroom, character and competition.

Off the field, Coach Chizik is an active supporter of the Boys and Girls Clubs wherever he has coached; works with aTeam Ministries, a non-profit organization providing emotional, spiritual and financial support to families with children fighting cancer; and a regular visitor to patients at Children's Hospital in Birmingham.

Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) – K.C. Keeler, Delaware

Delaware Coach K.C. Keeler this season led his alma mater Blue Hens to the FCS national title game for the third time in 2010.  Led by an FCS-leading defense (12.1 points allowed per game) and tremendous on-field discipline (total team penalties that were 23 percent fewer than the Colonial Athletic Association conference average), Coach Keeler's Blue Hens posted a 12-3 record giving him 74 victories in nine seasons in Newark, including one national title, ranking him third in all-time coaching wins at Delaware behind his own college coach, Tubby Raymond, for whom he played as a linebacker from 1978-1980 and won an NCAA Division II title in 1979.

Coach Keeler's Blue Hens excel in the classroom as well.  Three student-athletes – quarterback Pat Devlin, wide receiver Mark Mackey and tight end Zack Reed – were named to the 2010 ESPN/CoSIDA district all-academic team; and 12 Blue Hens achieved CAA all-conference academic honors in 2009.

Off the field, Coach Keeler and his team are renowned leaders in the Newark area and throughout the state.  His seemingly endless list of philanthropic activities include co-chairing with his wife Janice the Boys and Girls Clubs of Delaware's 2006 One Campaign; acting as an AFCA ambassador to the Jason Foundation, a non-profit dedicated to youth suicide prevention; supporting Autism Delaware, and leading statewide support of the National Marrow Donor program, doubling Delaware participants in 2010.  Coach Keeler, his staff, and the Blue Hen players regularly volunteer at local food banks and Special Olympics events, participate in the Turkey Roundup, which collects and delivers holiday turkeys for needy families, and twice a season visit patients at the A.I. duPont Children's Hospital in Wilmington, Del.

Division II – Bob Nielson, Minnesota Duluth

For the second time in three years, Coach Bob Nielson and the University of Minnesota Duluth sit atop NCAA Division II as national champions, having their perfect 15-0 season capped by a last-second field goal to help the Bulldogs defeat Delta State, 20-17, in the title game.  Through two head coaching stints totaling eight seasons at UMD, Coach Nielson has won four Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference titles en route to amassing a 79-21 career record, the best in the school's 78-year football history.  Coach Nielson has had his share of talented players to help produce this on-field success (14 All-Americans at UMD and several more in previous coaching tenures at Wisconsin-Eau Claire, Wartburg College and Ripon College), and he has helped nurture classroom champions as well (nine Bulldogs named to the 2010 NSIC all-academic team, including senior running back Isaac Odim who was named a National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete).  Coach Nielson also has served as UMD's director of intercollegiate athletics since 2004.

Coach Nielson is known throughout the Duluth area for his civic and philanthropic endeavors.  This year, he was the honorary chairman of the Udac "Walk a Mile in Our Shoes" campaign, helping to provide fitness services for individuals with severe physical, mental or developmental disabilities.  Coach Nielson also organizes and leads a Junior Football League clinic, and he and his players and staff participate in an annual fishing tournament to raise money for ALS research.

Division III – Glenn Caruso, St. Thomas

In just three years at the helm of the University of St. Thomas football program, Glenn Caruso's Tommies have become a national force.  Taking over a two-win team following the 2007 season, Coach Caruso has led St. Thomas to 30 victories in 36 games, including a school-record 12-1 mark this year and the school's first conference championship in 20 seasons.  UST reached the Division III quarterfinals for the second straight year, and earn a season-ending D3football.com ranking of #7 in the nation.  Under his leadership, four different Tommies earned academic All-American or on-field All-American honors this season.

Off the field, Coach Caruso and his program is making a great impact in the community as well.  He is a founder of a Reading Recess program, and the Tommie players and he regularly participate in the American Cancer Society Relay for Life and volunteer at the annual Vision Walk for the Foundation for Fighting Blindness.

"Once again, some of the most deserving coaches in the game are the recipients of the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award, and fans should be proud of the significant impact they made through their votes and support for their teams, alma maters and coaches," said Greg Gordon, Liberty Mutual senior vice president, Consumer Marketing.  "As a company that values 'doing the right thing' as its core responsibility, we introduced the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award in 2006 to celebrate responsibility in coaching because we believe it is one of the clearest examples of a positive influence one can have on young people, their families and their communities. Liberty Mutual is delighted to celebrate these coaches through this award and help them further support their communities and institutions through charitable contributions in their names."

2010 Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Selection Committee

College Football Hall of Fame Voters included:

Archie Griffin, Archie Manning, Billy Joe, Bob Anderson, Bob Griese, Bob Reade, Brian Kelley, Bruce Smith, Carmen Cozza, Chad Hennings, Chuck Cecil, Curt Warner, Dan Dierdorf, Darrell Mudra, Dick Farley, Don James, Don McPherson, Don Nehlen, Fred Martinelli, Frosty Westering, Gordie Lockbaum, Herschel Walker, James Saxton, Jeff Davis, Jeff Siemon, Jessie Tuggle, Jim Ballard, Jim Christopherson, Jim Dombrowski, Jim Donnan, Jim Houston, Jim Sochor, Joe Dudek, Joe Fusco, John Cooper, John Robinson, Johnnie Johnson, LaVell Edwards, Lou Holtz, Marino Casem, Mark May, Paul Wiggin, Randall McDaniel, Reggie Williams, Richard Wood, Roger Brown, Roger Harring, Ron Johnson, Ron Yary, Ronnie Lott, Roy Kidd, Rueben Mayes, Ted Kessinger, Teel Bruner, Terry Donahue, Tom Beck, Tom Brahaney, Tom Osborne, Tubby Raymond, Vince Dooley

National media voters included:

Bill King (Rivals Sports Radio Network), Bob Eblen (D2football.com), Brandon Misener (D2football.com), Bud Withers (Seattle Times), Chris Childers (Rivals Sports Radio Network), Christine Brennan (USA Today), Clyde Hughes (D3football.com), Colin Cowherd (ESPN Radio), Craig Bennett (USA Today), Dan Jenkins (Sportswriter/National Football Foundation historian), Gordie Mann (D3football.com), Greg Dewalt (D2 Hall of Fame), Ivan Maisel (ESPN.com), Jack Bogaczyk (Charleston Daily Mail), Keith McMillan (D3football.com), Kelly Whiteside (USA Today), Kirk Herbstreit (ESPN), Marcus Fitzsimmons (Maryville Daily Times), Patrick Stevens (College Football Columnist/Washington Post), Ryan Tipps (D3football.com), Steve Conroy (Boston Herald), Stewart Mandel (Sports Illustrated), Teddy Greenstein (Chicago Tribune), Tim Brando (CBS Sports, Sporting News Radio)

About Liberty Mutual Group

"Helping people live safer, more secure lives" since 1912, Boston-based Liberty Mutual Group (Libertymutualgroup.com) is a diversified global insurer and fifth-largest property and casualty insurer in the U.S. based on 2009 direct written premium.  Liberty Mutual Group ranks 71st on the Fortune 500 list of largest U.S. corporations, based on 2009 revenue.  The company has over 45,000 employees located in more than 900 offices throughout the world.

The eighth-largest auto and home insurer in the U.S., Liberty Mutual (libertymutual.com) sells full lines of coverage for automobile, homeowners, valuable possessions, personal liability, and individual life insurance.  The company is an industry leader in affinity partnerships, offering car and home insurance to employees and members of more than 12,000 companies, credit unions, professional associations and alumni groups.

About the National Football Foundation & the College Football Hall of Fame

Founded in 1947 with early leadership from General Douglas MacArthur, legendary Army coach Earl "Red" Blaik and immortal journalist Grantland Rice, The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame, a non-profit educational organization, runs programs designed to use the power of amateur football in developing scholarship, citizenship and athletic achievement in young people. With 121 chapters and 12,000 members nationwide, NFF programs include the College Football Hall of Fame, Play It Smart, the NFF Hampshire Honor Society, the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Alumni Association, the NFF Gridiron Clubs of New York City, Dallas, and Los Angeles, and annual scholarships of more than $1.3 million for college and high school scholar-athletes. The NFF presents the MacArthur Bowl, the Campbell Trophy, endowed by HealthSouth, and releases the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) Standings.

SOURCE Liberty Mutual Insurance