ATLANTA (Nov. 4) – Georgia Tech quarterback Joe Hamilton is one of 15 semifinalists announced Thursday by Football News for the magazine’s 1999 Offensive Player of the Year Award.
Hamilton, the nation’s leading passer with an efficiency rating of 182.1, and the seventh-ranked Yellow Jackets will be facing another semifinalist this Saturday in Virginia running back Thomas Jones. Tech and the Cavaliers kick off at 3:30 p.m. at David Harrison III Field/Scott Stadium in Charlottesville, Va., in a regionally televised contest on ABC.
A senior from Alvin, S.C., Hamilton needs just 101 yards to become the Atlantic Coast Conference’s all-time leader in total offense. He enters the game with 9,196 yards, trailing only former Tech quarterback Shawn Jones.
Other semifinalists for the Offensive Player of the Year award including Florida State’s Peter Warrick, Purdue quarterback Drew Brees and running backs Shaun Alexander of Alabama and Ron Dayne of Wisconsin.
Hamilton’s high school teammate, defensive end Courtney Brown of Penn State, is among the 15 semifinalists for the Football News Defensive Player of the Year award. The offensive and defensive lists will be trimed to five finalists on Nov. 22, with the winners announced Dec. 1.
