DALLAS (FWAA) Wake Forest linebacker Jon Abbate
(Powder Springs, Ga.) was named the Bronko Nagurski National
Defensive Player of the Week for his performance in the Demon
Deacons' 31-27 win over Clemson this past Saturday.
Abbate, a 5-11, 245-pound sophomore, intercepted two passes and made
13 tackles. Both of his interceptions came in the first quarter as he
became the first Wake Forest player to pick off two passes in a quarter
since 2002. After the game, he needed four stitches to patch up a cut on
the bridge of his nose.
Abbate has been added to the Watch List for the 2005 Bronko Nagurski
Trophy, which will be presented to the best defensive player in college
football on Dec. 5 by the Football Writers Association of America and
the Charlotte Touchdown Club. The presentation will take place at the
Westin Hotel in Charlotte, N.C. Notre Dame football coach Charlie Weis
will be the keynote speaker at the event this year.
For the fifth straight season, the All-America committee of the FWAA
will select the winner of the weekly award on behalf of the Charlotte Touchdown
Club. The winner is announced each Tuesday throughout the season from nominations
made by the 11 Division I-A conferences and member schools.
Last season, Texas linebacker Derrick Johnson won the coveted Bronko
Nagurski Trophy, the 10th season the FWAA has named a national defensive
Player of the year.
The Football Writers Association of America, a non-profit organization
founded in 1941, consists of more than 900 men and women across North America
who cover college football for a living. The membership includes journalists,
broadcasters and publicists, as well as key executives in all the areas
that involve the game. The FWAA works to govern areas that include game
day operations, major awards, a national poll and its annual All-America
team.
The Charlotte Touchdown Club is a non-profit organization founded
in 1990 for the purpose of promoting high school, collegiate, and professional
football in the Charlotte, N.C. region. The club's activities and services
focus community attention on the outstanding citizenship, scholarship, sportsmanship,
and leadership of area athletes and coaches. For more information, contact
John Rocco (704-347-2918 or
jrocco@touchdownclub.com).
The official website of the Charlotte Touchdown Club is
www.touchdownclub.com.
For more information on the Bronko Nagurski Trophy, contact FWAA executive
director Steve Richardson (972-713-6198 or
tiger@fwaa.com).
2005 Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Players of the Week
• Sept. 10: Dion Byrum, Ohio
• Sept. 17: A.J. Nicholson, Florida State
• Sept. 24: Ben Moffitt, South Florida
• Oct. 1: Jon Abbate, Wake Forest
• Oct. 8: Tim McGarigle, Northwestern
• Oct. 15: Bobby Carpenter, Ohio State
• Oct. 22: Herschel Henderson, Northwestern
• Oct. 29: Michael Johnson, Arizona
• Nov. 5: A.J. Davis, North Carolina State