O’Brien candidates go head-to-head in this week’s games

FORT WORTH, Texas (Sept. 30, 2009) – The 2009 Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award^® (The O’Brien) Marquee Match-up for week five features two O’Brien Watch List candidates. Throughout the season, The O’Brien will highlight weekly match-ups which spotlight O’Brien candidates as they vie for the prestigious award honoring the nation’s best quarterback in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS).

Marquee Match-up: Washington at Notre Dame
Saturday, Oct. 3 at 2:30 p.m. (CST) on NBC
Washington is on the road again this week with Jake Locker leading the Huskies (2-2) to South Bend as they square off against the Fighting Irish (3-1) and Jimmy Clausen. Notre Dame has defeated Washington in all seven previous meetings.

Last weekend, the Fighting Irish rallied in the final minute to beat Purdue (24-21) when Clausen threw the game-winning 2-yard touchdown pass to tight end Kyle Rudolph with 24 seconds left. Clausen, a junior, has thrown for 1,122 yards and 10 touchdowns this season and has a quarterback rating of 172.9, which ranks him fourth in the nation.

During a weekly press conference, Notre Dame head coach Charlie Weis commented on Locker, “He’s a frontline quarterback. He can make the tough throws. All you have to do is see the last drive of the USC game and you know that kid is a play maker.”

Locker, previously named O’Brien QB of the Week, leads the Pac-10 in passing with 1,002 yards this season. Despite the Huskies’ upset over the University of Southern California, signal-caller Locker looks to help the Huskies rebound from a 34-14 loss to Stanford last weekend.

 Other Notable Games (based on start times)

• LSU (Jordan Jefferson) at Georgia (Joe Cox)
  Saturday, Oct. 3 at 2:30 p.m. (CST) on CBS
• North Carolina State (Russell Wilson) at Wake Forest (Riley Skinner)
  Saturday, Oct. 3 at 2:30 p.m. (CST) on ESPNU
• Penn State (Daryll Clark) at Illinois (Juice Williams)
  Saturday, Oct. 3 at 2:30 p.m. (CST) on ABC
• Oklahoma (Landry Jones*) at Miami (Jacory Harris)
  Saturday, Oct. 3 at 7 p.m. (CST) on ABC
• USC (Matt Barkley) at California (Kevin Riley)
  Saturday, Oct. 3 at 7 p.m. (CST) on ABC

* Named starter at time of release

About The O’Brien Fan Vote
Fans can now register and vote for any of the 120 FBS quarterbacks online at www.VoteOBrien.org. The Fan Vote counts as 5% during each round of the voting process. The Fan Vote will be combined with the results from the Selection Committee, an elite group of journalists, commentators, broadcasters and former Winners. The 2009 O’Brien Winner will be announced on The Home Depot ESPNU College Football Awards Show airing Dec. 10 on ESPN and will be honored at the 33^rd Annual Davey O’Brien Awards Dinner held at The Fort Worth Club on Feb. 15, 2010 in Fort Worth, Texas.

About 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. By recognizing and honoring athletes who excel in both sports and academics while exhibiting strong character and leadership, The O’Brien aims to help instill a lifelong moral fiber in each candidate. 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 $770,000 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.

American Airlines is the official travel partner of The O’Brien.

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