The College Football All-America Team is an honor given annually to the best
college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States.
Unlike most ...
players in the United States at their respective positions. The original use of the term ''
All-America
The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...
'' seems to have been to the
1889 College Football All-America Team
The 1889 College Football All-America team was the first College Football All-America Team. The team was selected by Caspar Whitney and published in ''This Week's Sports''.
The team selected by Whitney in 1889 marked the origin of the "All-Amer ...
selected by
Caspar Whitney
Caspar William Whitney (September 2, 1864 – January 18, 1929) was an American author, editor, explorer, outdoorsman and war correspondent. He originated the concept of the All-American team in college football in 1889 when he worked for '' Harp ...
and published in ''This Week's Sports''. Football pioneer
Walter Camp
Walter Chauncey Camp (April 7, 1859 – March 14, 1925) was an American football player, coach, and sports writer known as the "Father of American Football". Among a long list of inventions, he created the sport's line of scrimmage and the system ...
also began selecting All-America teams in the 1890s and was recognized as the official selector in the early years of the 20th century.
NCAA recognition
As of 2009, the College Football All-America Team is composed of the following College Football All-American first teams:
Associated Press
The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...
(AP),
Football Writers Association of America
The Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) is an organization of college football media members in the United States founded in 1941. It is composed of approximately 1,200 professional sports writers from both print and Internet media out ...
(FWAA),
American Football Coaches Association
The American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) is an association of over 11,000 American football coaches and staff on all levels. According to its constitution, some of the main goals of the American Football Coaches Association are to "mainta ...
(AFCA),
Walter Camp Foundation
The Walter Camp Football Foundation (WCFF) is one of the organizations whose College Football All-America Team is recognized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association. The organization also presents various awards. It is named in honor of foo ...
(WCFF), ''
The Sporting News
The ''Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a pr ...
'' (''TSN''), ''
Sports Illustrated
''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twic ...
'' (''SI''), ''
Pro Football Weekly
''Pro Football Weekly'' (sometimes shortened to ''PFW'') is an American sports magazine, founded in 1967, and website that covers the National Football League (NFL). It was owned by Pro Football Weekly LLC and headquartered in Riverwoods, Illinoi ...
'' (''PFW''),
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
,
CBS Sports
CBS Sports is the sports division of the American television network CBS. Its headquarters are in the CBS Building on W 52nd Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, with programs produced out of Studio 43 at the CBS Broadcast Center on W 5 ...
(CBS), ''
College Football News
''College Football News'' (''CFN'') is a magazine and website published by College Football News, Inc., headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. News coverage includes scores, statistics, rankings, and reports on college football games. Analysis include ...
'' (''CFN''),
ProFootballFocus
Pro Football Focus (also written as ProFootballFocus, and often referred to by its initials, PFF) is a sports analytics company that focuses on thorough analysis of the National Football League (NFL) and NCAA Division-I football in the United Sta ...
(PFF),
Rivals.com
Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting in the United States. The network was started in 1998 and employs more than 300 personnel.
History
Rivals.com was founded in 1998 by Jim Heckma ...
, and
Scout.com
Scout Media is an integrated sports publishing company that produces Internet content covering hundreds of professional and college teams across America. The company was founded in 2001 and was acquired by Fox Sports in 2005. In 2013, Fox Sports ...
.
Consensus
Starting in 2009, the
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...
(NCAA) recognizes the All-America teams selected by the
AP,
AFCA,
FWAA
The Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) is an organization of college football media members in the United States founded in 1941. It is composed of approximately 1,200 professional sports writers from both print and Internet media ou ...
, ''
Sporting News
The ''Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a pr ...
'', and the
WCFF to determine consensus All-Americans. If more than half of the organizations select a player to their first team, he receives the "consensus" honor. If no player qualifies under that criterion, a player named to two first teams can be chosen. Second- and third-team selections can be used as tie-breakers. If still tied, each player is listed. If a player is named an All-American by all five organizations, he receives "
unanimous All-American
The College Football All-America Team is an honorific college football all-star team compiled after each NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) season to recognize that season's most outstanding performers at their respective positions. ...
" recognition. Depending upon the distribution of first team honors at any given position, it is possible to be consensus with fewer than three first-team selections. As of 2021, the
University of Alabama
The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and la ...
had produced the most unanimous All-Americans of any program with 40.
Individual
There have been 2,868 players from 156 colleges and universities since 1889 who were selected to at least one All-American first team. Four players have earned that honor four times: They are:
*
Marshall Newell
Marshall "Ma" Newell (April 2, 1871 – December 24, 1897) was an American football player and coach, "beloved by all those who knew him" and nicknamed "Ma" for the guidance he gave younger athletes.
After his sudden and early death, Harvard Unive ...
, Tackle, 1890, 1891, 1892, 1893 Harvard
*
Frank Hinkey
Frank Augustus Hinkey (December 23, 1870 – December 30, 1925) was an American college football player and coach. He was notable for being one of only three college football players in history to be named a four-time consensus All-American. He ...
, End, 1891, 1892, 1893, 1894 Yale
*
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. He previously served as Chance ...
, Guard, 1897, 1898, 1899, 1900 Yale
*
T. Truxtun Hare, Guard, 1897, 1898, 1899, 1900 Pennsylvania
Selectors
Associated Press
The
Associated Press
The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...
has a panel of sportswriters who vote to determine the AP All-America Team. It has selected an All-America team since 1925.
AFCA
![Kodak All American Football (1987](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/20/Kodak_All_American_Football_%281987.571%29.jpg)
The
American Football Coaches Association
The American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) is an association of over 11,000 American football coaches and staff on all levels. According to its constitution, some of the main goals of the American Football Coaches Association are to "mainta ...
(AFCA) has selected an All-America team every year since 1945. It is often referred to as the "Coaches' All-America Team". The Selection Process is an All-America Selection Committee is made up of three head coaches from each of the AFCA's nine I-A (Bowl Division) districts, one of whom serves as a district chairman, along with another head coach who serves as the chairman of the selection committee. The coaches in each district are responsible for ranking the top players in their respective districts; that information, along with ballots submitted by FBS head coaches, are used to select the AFCA FBS Coaches’ All-America Team.
The Coaches’ All-America Team has been sponsored by various entities throughout the years but it is now under its own banner, the AFCA. These are the sponsors/publishers of the team throughout the years.
1945–1947: Published in ''
Saturday Evening Post
''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine, currently published six times a year. It was issued weekly under this title from 1897 until 1963, then every two weeks until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely c ...
''
1948–1956: Published in ''
Collier's
''Collier's'' was an American general interest magazine founded in 1888 by Peter Fenelon Collier. It was launched as ''Collier's Once a Week'', then renamed in 1895 as ''Collier's Weekly: An Illustrated Journal'', shortened in 1905 to ''Collie ...
''
1957–1959:
General Mills
General Mills, Inc., is an American multinational manufacturer and marketer of branded processed consumer foods sold through retail stores. Founded on the banks of the Mississippi River at Saint Anthony Falls in Minneapolis, the company orig ...
1960–1993: Eastman
Kodak
The Eastman Kodak Company (referred to simply as Kodak ) is an American public company that produces various products related to its historic basis in analogue photography. The company is headquartered in Rochester, New York, and is incorpor ...
1994: Schooner's International
1995–1996: AFCA
1997–1999:
Burger King
Burger King (BK) is an American-based multinational chain store, chain of hamburger fast food restaurants. Headquartered in Miami-Dade County, Florida, the company was founded in 1953 as Insta-Burger King, a Jacksonville, Florida–based res ...
2000–present: AFCA
FWAA
The
Football Writers Association of America
The Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) is an organization of college football media members in the United States founded in 1941. It is composed of approximately 1,200 professional sports writers from both print and Internet media out ...
(FWAA) Team, the second longest continuously published team in college football, has been a staple of the college football scene since 1944. It is sometimes referred to as the "Writers' All-America Team". The FWAA has selected an All-America team with the help of its members and an All-America Committee which represents all the regions in the country. Some who have helped to select this team over the years: Mark Blaudschun, Grantland Rice, Bert McGrane, Blackie Sherrod, Furman Bisher, Pat Harmon, Fred Russell, Edwin Pope,
Murray Olderman
Murray Olderman (March 27, 1922 – June 10, 2020) was an American sports cartoonist and writer. His artwork often accompanied the sports stories he authored. His art also has been used by the Pro Football Hall of Fame and hung above the Hall of F ...
,
Paul Zimmerman. The All-America team is selected by a committee of writers representing all conferences and regions of the
NCAA
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...
.
The Writers' Team has been highlighted in various media forums. From 1946-70, ''
Look'' published the FWAA team and brought players and selected writers to New York City for a celebration. During that 25-year period, the FWAA team was introduced on national television shows by Bob Hope, Steve Allen, Perry Como and others. After ''Look'' folded, the FWAA started a long association with NCAA Films (later known as NCAA Productions), which produced a 30-minute television show and sold it to sponsors. The team was part of
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
Television's 1981 College Football Series. From 1983-90, the team was either on ABC or ESPN, and since 1991 has returned to the national spotlight on ABC. The corporate sponsor for the Writers' team is
AT&T
AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered at Whitacre Tower in Downtown Dallas, Texas. It is the world's largest telecommunications company by revenue and the third largest provider of mobile tel ...
, after several years of
Cingular
AT&T Mobility LLC, also known as AT&T Wireless and marketed as simply AT&T, is an American telecommunications company. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of AT&T Inc. and provides wireless services in the United States. AT&T Mobility is the th ...
being the sponsor.
WCFF
The
Walter Camp Football Foundation
The Walter Camp Football Foundation (WCFF) is one of the organizations whose College Football All-America Team is recognized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association. The organization also presents various awards. It is named in honor of foo ...
(WCFF) All-America team is selected by the head coaches and sports information directors of the 120 Football Bowl Subdivision schools and certified by UHY Advisors, a New Haven-based accounting firm. Walter Camp, "The Father of American Football," first selected an All-America team in 1889. The WCF claims an 80% participation rate in the voting for its All-America team.
''Sporting News''
''
Sporting News
The ''Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a pr ...
'', formerly known as ''The Sporting News'' and known colloquially as ''TSN'', have teams college football editors and staff select teams, which they have been doing since 1934. From that year through the 1962 season TSN's All-America team was picked by a poll of sportswriters. Beginning in 1964 the team was selected by "professional scouts and observers". ''The Sporting News'' cited the advent of two-platoon football as the need to go to that system.
UPI
United Press International
United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th ...
(UPI) is a defunct organization that selected players in a national poll of sportswriters and began selecting teams in 1925 as "United Press". In 1958, after it merged with the
International News Service
The International News Service (INS) was a U.S.-based news agency (newswire) founded by newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst in 1909. (INS), it became
United Press International
United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th ...
. The INS had chosen teams since 1913. UPI continued to choose an All-America team, based on a poll of sportswriters, through the 1996 season.
Central Press
The
Central Press Association
The Central Press Association was American newspaper syndication company based in Cleveland, Ohio. It was in business from 1910 to 1971. Originally independent, it was a subsidiary of King Features Syndicate from 1930 onwards. At its peak, the ...
, a newspaper syndicate based in Cleveland, polled team school captains for its "Captain's All-America Team"
Newspaper Enterprise Association
:''See:
Newspaper Enterprise Association#College football awards''
Another media group who polled writers and players to compose its team. It ran from 1924 through 1996.
Others
ABC Sports
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
,
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
,
CNN Sports Illustrated
CNN/Sports Illustrated (CNN/SI) was a 24-hour sports news network. It was created by Time Warner, merging together its CNN and ''Sports Illustrated'' brands and related resources. It was launched on December 12, 1996.
Other news networks like ...
, ''
College Football News
''College Football News'' (''CFN'') is a magazine and website published by College Football News, Inc., headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. News coverage includes scores, statistics, rankings, and reports on college football games. Analysis include ...
'',
CBSSports.com,
PFF, ''
Time
Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...
'' magazine,
Bleacher Report
Bleacher Report (often abbreviated as B/R) is a website that focuses on sport and sports culture. Its headquarters are in San Francisco, with offices in New York City and London.
Bleacher Report was acquired by Turner Broadcasting System in Aug ...
and many others also select All-America teams.
''Time'' magazine selected All-America teams from 1956 through 1976. ESPN's selections are made by veteran college football writer Ivan Maisel. Maisel's began selecting an All-America team for ESPN.com in 2002. CBS Sports.com is voted on by writers, producers and staff of CBS Sports. Two of the newest, seemingly driven by the internet, are Scout.com and
Rivals.com
Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting in the United States. The network was started in 1998 and employs more than 300 personnel.
History
Rivals.com was founded in 1998 by Jim Heckma ...
.
Division III
In 1999, D3football.com began selecting an All-America team for
Division III
In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below.
Association football
*Belgian Thir ...
.
D3football.com All-Americans
. D3football.com. Retrieved 2010-12-31.
See also
*List of unanimous All-Americans in college football
The College Football All-America Team is an honorific college football all-star team compiled after each NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) season to recognize that season's most outstanding performers at their respective positions. ...
References
External links
Football Writers Association of America All-American Team
Walter Camp Foundation All-American Teams
{{College football award navbox
*
Awards established in 1889
1889 establishments in the United States