RELEASED:  Friday, April 11, 2008

UW-Whitewater’s Allen Named Rimington Winner

Madison, Wis.--University of Wisconsin-Whitewater senior center Brent Allen received the 2007 Rimington Trophy for the top center in NCAA Division III football.

Allen, a native of Mukwonago, Wis., helped the Warhawks win the 2007 NCAA Division III championship and their third straight Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) title.  With Allen at center the Warhawks went 42-3 over the last three years, adding two NCAA III runnerup finishes to the 2007 title.  UW-Whitewater has compiled a 21-game win streak in the WIAC and has not lost a home contest over a string of 25 games.

Allen also played a key role in helping Warhawk running back Justin Beaver lead the country (all Divisions) in rushing in 2005.  He also helped Beaver establish the NCAA Division III single-season rushing record and top the WIAC career chart, while placing second on the NCAA Division III all-time list.

D3football.com selected Allen as a second team All-American this season.  A three-year starter, Allen was named All-WIAC first team in 2006 and 2007, and was named to the 2006 Football Gazette West Region Team. 

Allen is the fifth player to earn the Division III Rimington Trophy, which has been awarded in Division I since 2000.  The award was the idea of former San Francisco Examiner sportswriter Syd Russell, who worked with former Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Boomer Esiason and the Boomer Esiason Foundation to sponsor the award.

Allen is the first player from a Wisconsin college to earn the honor.  UW-Madison center Al Johnson was a finalist for the Division I competition in 2002. 

Other 2007 Rimington Award winners included Jonathan Luigs of Arkansas for Division I,  Brennan Carvalho of Portland State for Division I-AA, Ryan Pope of Shepherd University for Division II and Truman Ashby of Benedictine College for the NAIA.