Mallett Named to O?Brien Watch List

University of Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett was one of 33 quarterbacks nationally who was named by The Davey O’Brien Foundation and its National Selection Committee to the 2009 Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award® (The O’Brien) Watch List. The award is presented nationally to the nation’s top quarterback. Mallett was one of seven underclassmen nationally and one of four SEC quarterbacks who were named to the list. He is the third quarterback named to the watch list on a Bobby Petrino coached team (Louisville, Stefon Lefors, 2004; Brian Brohm, 2005, 2006). Mallett is the first Razorback quarterback named to the watch list since 2004 (Matt Jones). Watch List candidates were selected by a subset of The O’Brien Selection Committee. The list focuses on a select group of quarterbacks who have demonstrated what members of the Selection Committee have recognized as tremendous preseason talent. The award focuses on accomplishments both on and off the field. The O’Brien will follow performances of all FBS quarterbacks until Semifinalists are selected in late October. Semifinalists will be announced October 26; Finalists November 23; and the Winner December 10. During all rounds of voting, The O’Brien Selection Committee is asked to evaluate each candidate on the criteria of quarterback skills and athletic ability, academics, reputation as a team player, character, leadership and sportsmanship. Today marked the first time in the award’s history the Watch List was announced on ESPN’s College Football Live. The 2009 O’Brien Winner will be announced during The Home Depot College Football Awards Show airing on ESPN December 10. The recipient will be honored February 15, 2010 at the 33rd Annual O’Brien Awards Dinner at The Fort Worth Club in Fort Worth, Texas.

2009 O’Brien Watch List: Sam Bradford Oklahoma JR Big 12 Jarrett Brown West Virginia SR Big East Daryll Clark Penn State SR Big Ten Jimmy Clausen Notre Dame JR IND Aaron Corp USC SO Pac-10 Robert Griffin Baylor SO Big 12 Matt Grothe South Florida SR Big East Max Hall BYU SR MWC Tim Hiller Western Michigan SR MAC Jordan Jefferson LSU SO SEC Colin Kaepernick Nevada JR WAC Case Keenum Houston JR C-USA Dan LeFevour Central Michigan SR MAC Jake Locker Washington JR Pac-10 Ryan Mallett Arkansas SO SEC Jeremiah Masoli Oregon JR Pac-10 Colt McCoy Texas SR Big 12 Kellen Moore Boise State SO WAC Josh Nesbitt Georgia Tech JR ACC Tony Pike Cincinnati SR Big East Taylor Potts Texas Tech JR Big 12 Terrelle Pryor Ohio State SO Big Ten Todd Reesing Kansas SR Big 12 Kevin Riley California JR Pac-10 Zac Robinson Oklahoma State SR Big 12 Riley Skinner Wake Forest SR ACC Rusty Smith Florida Atlantic SR Sun Belt Jevan Snead Ole Miss JR SEC Tyrod Taylor Virginia Tech JR ACC Tim Tebow Florida SR SEC Adam Weber Minnesota JR Big Ten Juice Williams Illinois SR Big Ten Russell Wilson North Carolina State SO ACC

About the Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award® The Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award® (The O’Brien) honors the nation’s best college quarterback of the year and inspires student-athletes to triumph both on and off the field. Founded in 1981, The O’Brien seeks to honor candidates who exemplify Davey O’Brien’s enduring character while exhibiting teamwork, sportsmanship, leadership and character in both the athletic and academic arenas. Honorees are voted on by a national selection committee comprised of journalists, broadcasters, commentators and former winners. The O’Brien is overseen by the Davey O’Brien Foundation, which was founded in 1977 and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. The Foundation has given away more than $790,000 in scholarships and university grants to help high school and college athletes transform leadership on the field into leadership in life. For more information, visit www.DaveyOBrien.org.

National College Football Awards Association The O’Brien is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA). The NCFAA was founded in 1997 as a coalition of the major collegiate football awards to protect, preserve and enhance the integrity, influence and prestige of the game’s predominant awards. The NCFAA encourages professionalism and the highest standards for the administration of its member awards and the selection of their candidates and recipients. For more information, visit the association’s official Web site, www.NCFAA.org.