College Football Fans Select Texas Quarterback Colt McCoy as the Week Nine Cingular All-America Player of the Week

ATLANTA, Nov. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- College football fans nationwide have cast their votes and the Cingular All-America Player of the Week, the only major college football award chosen exclusively by the fans, has a familiar winner.

Texas quarterback Colt McCoy won the Cingular All-America Player of the Week for the second time in the three weeks after leading the Longhorns to a thrilling 35-31 comeback victory over in-state rival Texas Tech last Saturday.

McCoy, who also topped fan voting in week seven to win the award, passed for 256 yards and four touchdowns to help Texas erase a 21-0 deficit and rally for the victory. His 33-yard run on third down and five with 1:31 left in the game helped seal the win for the Longhorns.

McCoy received 50% of the votes to win over Southern California wide receiver Steve Smith (18%), Virginia Tech running back Branden Ore (17%) and Texas Tech quarterback Graham Harrell (15%). Each player was nominated for this week's award by a panel of ESPN college football analysts based on their outstanding performances last weekend.

The Cingular All America Player of the Week winner's list in 2006 includes Rutgers running back Ray Rice, Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn, Michigan wide receiver Mario Manningham, Georgia Tech wide receiver Calvin Johnson, Tennessee quarterback Erik Ainge, and Brigham Young quarterback John Beck.

Fans can register to vote for the Cingular All-America Player of the Week throughout the season by text messaging "VOTE" to "87654" on their wireless phone, with the nominees being revealed each Sunday on the 9 a.m. ESPN SportsCenter and on the Web at http://www.espnallamerica.com/. Fans have until 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the following Wednesday to submit their votes. The winner will then be announced during ESPN's Thursday night college football game. Fans can vote as many times as they like, with each vote counting as one entry into a sweepstakes to win a trip to the 2007 BCS National Championship game.

Cingular customers can visit Cingular's NCAA(R) Football page on MEdiaNet on their wireless handset to view video highlights of each week's candidates, retrieve photos, check scoreboards, track their favorite teams, and download school ringtones.

In December, four finalists for the Cingular All-America Player of the Year award will be announced during a one-hour special on ABC Sports. Fans will then get a chance to say who the best player in the nation is by voting for the Cingular All-America Player of the Year up until the Bowl Championship Series. The selection process will culminate during the BCS National Championship game on FOX when the Cingular All-America Player of the Year will be presented.

Last year, Texas quarterback Vince Young was crowned as the Cingular All- America Player of the Year, beating out Southern California teammates Reggie Bush and Matt Leinart and Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn. Young was the second Longhorn to claim the award, after running back Cedric Benson won the inaugural honor in 2004.

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