Swinney finalist for National Coach of the Year

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ATLANTA (December 15, 2017) – Officials from the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation and Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl have announced the finalists for the 2017 Dodd Trophy. Finalists include seven of the nation’s top coaches in college football who embody the award’s three pillars of scholarship, leadership and integrity, both on and off the field.

“We’re thrilled to have such a diverse group of coaches from across the country who have distinguished themselves as finalists for this prestigious award,” said Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl Chairman Percy Vaughn. “These seven coaches stood out above the rest, not only for having successful football seasons, but also for their efforts within their communities and commitment to empower their student athletes to succeed in the classroom as well.”

“We’re proud to award The Dodd Trophy each year to a coach who excels in all areas of the profession. It would be easy to choose a winner based on only the performance on the field, but Coach Dodd stood for more than that,” said Jim Terry, chairman of the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation. “All of these finalists truly exemplify the type of leadership that Bobby Dodd valued and are noteworthy candidates to join the esteemed group of former Dodd Trophy recipients.”

This year’s finalists represent five conferences (AAC, ACC, Big Ten, Pac-12, SEC) and have combined for a 2017 record of 76-12. Overall, the seven coaches have a combined 55 years of head coaching experience and 513 wins among them.

The 2017 Dodd Trophy Finalists:

Finalists were selected by a panel consisting of all previous winners, national media, a member of the Dodd family and a College Football Hall of Fame member. Of note, winners of the award from the previous two years and first-year coaches at an institution are not eligible to be finalists.

The winner of the 2017 Dodd Trophy will be selected from the list of finalists by the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation, and will be announced in Atlanta during Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl Week.

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