Dodd's Final Cut

STANFORD, Calif. - Bradford M. Freeman Director of Football David Shaw is among seven finalists for the Bobby Dodd Trophy, as announced Friday.
 
Shaw recently earned Pac-12 Coach of the Year honors for the fourth time (2011, 2012 and co-coach with Washington State's Mike Leach in 2015). In seven seasons at Stanford, Shaw's record is 73-21. His career wins are the most in Stanford history. Against Cal on Nov. 18, Shaw eclipsed the record set by Glenn "Pop" Warner (71 from 1924-32).
 
After opening the season 1-2, Stanford won eight of its final nine regular-season games, including victories over No. 9 Washington and No. 8 Notre Dame over the final three weeks of the season. Stanford clinched the Pac-12 North Division and made its fourth Pac-12 Championship Game appearance under Shaw. Stanford has posted eight or more wins in nine consecutive seasons.
 
Along with Shaw, finalists for the award include Paul Chryst (Wisconsin), Pat Fitzgerald (Northwestern), Scott Frost (UCF), Mark Richt (Miami), Kirby Smart (Georgia) and Dabo Swinney (Clemson).
 
Finalists were selected by a panel of previous winners, national media, a member of the Dodd family and a College Football Hall of Fame member.
 
The winner will be selected by the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation, and will be announced in Atlanta during Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl week.
 
The Dodd Trophy was established in 1976 to honor the FBS head coach whose program represents the highest ideals on and off the field. The award honors the coach of a team which enjoys a successful football season, while also stressing the importance of academic excellence and character, as did Dodd's teams during his 22 years as head coach at Georgia Tech.