Oct. 1, 2006
Georgia Tech fans have two opportunties this week to vote for Calvin Johnson. Tech’s all-America wide receiver is nominated for the Pontiac Game-Changing Performance of the Week and the Cingular All-America Player of the Week, and both are determined by fan voting.
PONTIAC GAME-CHANGING PERFORMANCE OF THE WEEK
Vote for Georgia Tech’s “Pontiac Game Changing Performance” and the Yellow Jackets Could Win $5,000
Georgia Tech wide receiver Calvin Johnson hauled in six catches for 115 yards and two scores, including a 53-yard touchdown that gave the Yellow Jackets a 14-0 lead over Virginia Tech just seven minutes into the first quarter. Georgia Tech’s “Pontiac Game Changing Performance” set the tone early, and they never looked back, notching a 38-27 upset victory over the 10th-ranked Hokies. With this road win, the Yellow Jackets gain sole possession of first place in the ACC?s Coastal Division.
Now it’s up to Georgia Tech fans to determine if the Yellow Jackets earned the “Pontiac Game Changing Performance? for the fifth week of the 2006 NCAA Football Season. Georgia Tech can go to www.pontiac.com/ncaa, where they can view video clips of the four finalists and vote for their favorite play. Voting begins on Sunday morning and ends at midnight on Wednesday. ESPN will announce this week’s “Pontiac Game Changing Performance” winner, on Thursday night, during the Pontiac Performance Halftime Report.
The winning university earns a $5,000 contribution from Pontiac to their general scholarship fund. Additionally, the winning play will be nominated for the “Pontiac Game Changing Performance of the Year” in December. Pontiac will provide a $100,000 scholarship to the school selected by the fans as the “Pontiac Game Changing Performance of the Year.”
New to this year’s program is that, each week one lucky individual who visits www.pontiac.com/ncaa, will also win a $5,000 scholarship for them self or their family. In total, Pontiac will provide over $200,000 worth of scholarships to universities and individuals throughout the season.
CINGULAR ALL-AMERICA PLAYER OF THE WEEK
For the second straight week, Georgia Tech wide receiver Calvin Johnson is up for the Cingular All-America Player of the Week award. The winner will be determined by fan voting.
Fans can determine the winner by text messaging “VOTE” to “87654” on their wireless phone. You will receive a response with the four candidates – reply with “B” to vote for Calvin Johnson.
Johnson led the Yellow Jackets to a 38-27 victory at 10th-ranked Virginia Tech. The junior all-American from Tyrone, Ga., had six catches for 115 yards and two touchdowns. He was also nominated last week, when had a career-best 165 yards receiving on six catches with two touchdowns to lead Georgia Tech over Virginia.
Johnson now has seven touchdown catches on the season, including four in his last two games.
In addition to Johnson, this week’s nominees include Navy quarterback Brian Hampton, Purdue wide receiver Selwyn Lymon, and Northern Illinois running back Garrett Wolfe. The quartet was selected by a panel of ESPN college football analysts as this week’s top candidates based on their outstanding performances this weekend.
Hampton accounted for 324 yards of total offense and four touchdowns in Navy’s 41-17 win over Connecticut. He passed for 142 yards and one touchdown and added 182 yards and three touchdowns on the ground. Lymon caught eight passes for 238 yards and two touchdowns in the Boilermakers’ 35-21 loss to 12th-ranked Notre Dame. Lymon had the second-highest receiving day in Purdue history. Wolfe rushed for 353 yards and three touchdowns in the Huskies’ 40-28 win over Ball State. Wolfe, the nation’s leading rusher, has 1,181 rushing yards in five games this season.
Fans have until 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on Wednesday to submit their votes. The winner will be announced October 5 during ESPN’s Thursday night college football game between Auburn and South Carolina. Fans can vote as many times as they like, with each vote counting as one entry into a sweepstakes to win a trip to the 2007 BCS National Championship game. The Cingular All-America Player of the Week program will continue throughout the season, with the nominees being revealed each Sunday on the 9 a.m. ESPN SportsCenter and on the Web at www.espnallamerica.com.
Cingular customers can visit Cingular’s NCAA® Football Portal on their wireless handset to view video highlights of each week’s candidates, retrieve photos, check scoreboards, track their favorite teams and download school ringtones.
In December, four finalists for the Cingular All-America Player of the Year award will be announced during a one-hour special on ABC Sports. Fans will then get a chance to say who the best player in the nation is by voting for the Cingular All-America Player of the Year up until the Bowl Championship Series. The selection process will culminate during the BCS National Championship game on FOX when the Cingular All-America Player of the Year will be presented.
