HUTCHINSON WINS!
Aidan Hutchinson wins the 48th Rotary Lombardi Award
Dec 9, 2021, 11:13 am
Aidan Hutchinson takes home the award.
The Rotary Club of Houston announced Wednesday Michigan defensive end, Aidan Hutchinson, as the winner of the 48th Rotary Lombardi Award.
The Rotary Lombardi Award has been presented annually to the nation's top college football lineman (offense or defense) who, in addition to outstanding performance and ability, best exemplifies the discipline of Vince Lombardi. Hutchinson was joined by fellow finalists Tyler Linerbaum of Iowa, Mike Rose of Iowa State, and Kenyon Green of Texas A&M.
Hutchinson's season to this point has seen him amass 58 tackles and 14 sacks as a dominant force for the Wolverines. Hutchinson also helped Michigan end a nearly decade-long losing streak to Ohio State. He broke a school record for sacks held by his father Chris Hutchinson. Chris was in attendance at the event from Houston's Hilton Americas hotel to introduce his son and present him with his finalist plaque. The younger Hutchinson will attempt to put more space between him and his father in the record books as the Wolverines play the Georgia Bulldogs in the Orange Bowl.
Aidan joins former Michigan standout Lamar Woodley as the only Wolverines who have taken home the famous block of granite trophy presented to the Rotary Lombardi Award winner.
The eligible voters of the Rotary Lombardi Award include all head coaches of NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision teams, all former living winners, and finalists of the Rotary Lombardi Award, and selected members of the media.
The Rotary Club of Houston established the Rotary Lombardi Award in 1970 after Coach Vince Lombardi died from colon cancer. Lombardi's widow, Marie, blessed the award with the stipulation the net proceeds from the Award activities are contributed to cancer research to fight the disease that claimed the life of Coach Lombardi. Since the award’s inception in 1970, millions of dollars have been raised to help the American Cancer Society’s programs of cancer research and public education to cancer patients.
The Houston Rockets have been one of the NBA’s more surprising teams this season. After their past three games, they shouldn’t shock anyone.
The Rockets beat the Eastern Conference-leading Cleveland Cavaliers twice last week before traveling to Boston and pulling out a 114-112 victory over the defending champion Celtics on Monday night.
“We’re over halfway through now and our record is what it is, so it’s not just a fluke or anything,” Houston coach Ime Udoka said. “People watch film and see the physicality and the way that we play, it’s a little different than the rest of the league, maybe that catches people off guard initially, but I wouldn’t say we’re sneaking up on anybody anymore at this point in the season.”
Houston (31-14), which is second in the Western Conference, posted its ninth win in 11 games on Monday. Its record is a few percentage points better than that of the defending NBA champion Celtics (32-15).
The Cavs and Celtics were a combined 104-28 (.788) entering their games against Houston. The Rockets became the first team in NBA history to win three straight games against teams with that high of a winning percentage, with a minimum of 40 games for each opponent, according to OptaSTATS.
Amen Thompson hit a floater over Jaylen Brown with 0.7 seconds left to give the Rockets the victory at Boston.
“We feel like we can beat anybody, and this road trip is really proving that,” Thompson said.
Led by a balanced lineup featuring Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun, veteran Fred VanVleet, Thompson and Dillon Brooks, the Rockets have been rolling since their 23-point home loss to the Celtics on Jan. 3.
“We don’t like to lose at home, especially to the Celtics,” Thompson said. “We just come in here every day and we just try to win.”
Teams around the league are taking notice of what Houston is doing. After the Cavaliers finished off their 19-point home win over Detroit on Monday, they spent time in the postgame locker room watching the Rockets’ victory.
“We’re just playing hard, playing together,” said Brooks, who finished with a 36 points against Boston, including a 10-of-15 performance from 3-point range.
“We have trust in one another,” Brooks said.
The Rockets are plenty confident, but they understand big wins mean nothing if they can't follow them up. They’ll get that chance Tuesday night when they play at Atlanta.
“Playing some of the top teams obviously gives us some confidence,” Udoka said.