Members of The O’Brien National Selection Committee are asked to vote for a NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) quarterback who embodies the attributes of football legend Davey O’Brien. As such, they are asked to evaluate each candidate on the criteria of his quarterback skills and athletic ability, academics, character, reputation as a team player, leadership and sportsmanship.
The 2010 season marks the fourth year in The O’Brien’s history that fans have participated in the voting. The fan vote counts as 5% during each round of voting, and it is combined with the results from the Selection Committee. Fans are invited to cast their vote for the nation’s best quarterback as often as once daily at www.VoteOBrien.org; Fan Vote totals are cleared after each voting round.
Watch List
Watch List candidates are determined by a subset of the Selection Committee and approved by the Executive Committee. This same subset will vote weekly for the O’Brien Quarterback of the Week to be featured in weekly press releases from the beginning of the season until the Semifinalists are announced.
The O’Brien Watch List will be released July 14.
Semifinalists
The ballot will consist of all 120 FBS quarterbacks. The Selection Committee will be asked to select their top 16 candidates from the ballot. Ballots will be issued the week of Oct. 18 and are due Oct. 24.
Beginning Sept. 7 fans will have all 120 FBS starting quarterbacks to choose from until the voting closes at noon CT on Oct. 24. The fan vote will count for 5% of the overall Semifinalist vote.
Sixteen Semifinalists will be announced Oct. 25.
Finalists
The ballot is comprised of the 16 Semifinalists. The Selection Committee will be asked to select their top three choices. Ballots will be issued the week of Nov. 15 and are due Nov. 21.
Beginning Oct. 25 fans will have the Semifinalists to choose from until the voting closes at noon CT on Nov. 21. The fan vote will count for 5% of the overall Finalist vote.
The three candidates with the most votes will be submitted to the Davey O’Brien Executive Committee for approval. Finalists will be announced on Nov. 22.
Winner
The ballot is comprised of the three Finalists. The Selection Committee will be asked to rank the finalists. Ballots will be issued the week of Nov. 29 and are due Dec. 5.
Beginning Nov. 22 fans will have the Finalists to choose from until the voting closes at noon CT on Dec. 5. The fan vote will count for 5% of the overall Winner vote.
The 2010 O’Brien Winner will be announced on The Home Depot College Football Awards Show on ESPN on Dec. 9 and will be honored at the 34th Annual O’Brien Awards Dinner on Feb. 21, 2011 in Fort Worth, Texas.
