May 19, 2006

Conference USA had seven players named to The Dave Rimington Trophy spring watch list released today by the organization. The award, given annually to the nation's most outstanding center, is in its seventh year of existence and first as a regular member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA).

The spring watch list consists of 39 of the nation's top-returning centers and only the Big 12 Conference, with eight, had more names on the watch list than C-USA. The list will be updated once before the start of the 2006 season. Five sophomores, 11 juniors and 23 seniors make up this year's watch list.

Two of the seven C-USA players on the list earned all-league honors in 2005. UCF's Cedric Gagne-Marcoux was a first-team selection as a junior, while Marshall's Doug Legursky was an All-C-USA second-team performer as a sophomore. Joining the all-league duo are Houston senior Sterling Doty, Southern Miss junior Robby D'Angelo, UTEP sophomore Robby Felix, Tulsa senior Aaron Danenhauer and Memphis senior Stephen Schuh.

The seven-year-old trophy is presented by Canon, MidAmerican Energy Holdings, USA and Black & Decker. The award is hosted by the Boomer Esiason Foundation and past winners include Minnesota's Greg Eslinger (2005), Michigan's David Bass (2004 co-winner), LSU's Ben Wilkerson (2004 co-winner), Virginia Tech's Jake Grove (2003), Miami of Florida's Brett Romberg (2002), Ohio State's LeCharles Bentley (2001) and Nebraska's Dominic Raiola (2000).