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Cutler and Osemwegie Named AP First Team All-SEC 12/5/2005
Cutler Claims SEC Offensive Player of the Year Award; Bennett, Dunning on Second Team ATLANTA, Ga. — Vanderbilt senior quarterback Jay Cutler was named the Southeastern Conference’s Offensive Player of the Year by the Associated Press today and joined fellow Commodore senior Moses Osemwegie on the panel’s First Team All-SEC squad. Cutler, the Vanderbilt career record holder in virtually every statistical category for quarterbacks and just weeks after completing arguably the greatest season ever by a Commodore skilled position player, becomes the first Vanderbilt player to ever win SEC Offensive Player of the Year honors from the panel of Associated Press SEC beat writers. Osemwegie, the SEC’s active career leader in tackles, becomes a two-time First Team recipient, the first such Commodore honoree since linebacker Jamie Duncan won similar recognition in 1996-97. Duncan became the only Vanderbilt player to earn SEC Defensive Player of the Year honors in 1997. Two other Commodores — senior tight end Dustin Dunning and freshman wide receiver Earl Bennett — were named to the Second Team All-SEC by the sportswriters. Vanderbilt Head Coach Bobby Johnson was pleased to hear four Commodores were honored by the AP for the first time since 1999. “We are thrilled at Vanderbilt that our guys were recognized for their great play and hard work,” Johnson said. “We certainly think Jay, Moses, Dustin and Earl are very deserving candidates. Each one of them has been an outstanding representative of the Vanderbilt football team this season.” Cutler’s sensational senior campaign included guiding the Commodores to a pair of come-from-behind wins early in the season and a remarkable conclusion to the season when he averaged 352.5 passing yards and threw for 13 touchdowns in Vanderbilt’s last four games. Cutler’s final appearance in a Commodore uniform came in Vanderbilt’s 28-24 win at Tennessee, with his last pass resulting in a game-winning touchdown to Bennett. Cutler set numerous Vanderbilt career marks, including total offense (9,953 yards), TD passes, (59), passing yardage (8,697), pass completions (710), pass completions (1,242), combined TDs (76) and career starts by quarterback (45). This season, he also established numerous senior Commodore passing marks, including touchdown passes (21), completions (273) and passing yards (3,073). Cutler also set a team single-season record by amassing 3,288 yards of total offense. Cutler set a single-game team record with 39 completions against Kentucky and matched another with five touchdown passes against the Wildcats. “It’s just an honor. Coming in the SEC and being first-team and player of the year, I mean it’s quite an honor,” Cutler said. “Obviously being one of the best quarterbacks in the SEC was a goal. I felt I could be first team and as the year went on I progressed, and I think it went really well for me. I want to thank our coaches and players, guys like Dustin and Earl.” Osemwegie played perhaps his finest game in his final Commodore appearance, setting career highs with 12 solo tackles and 16 total tackles in Vanderbilt’s win over Tennessee. The performance sealed a solid senior campaign where Osemwegie netted 118 total tackles and ranked among the NCAA leaders with 83 solo tackles. Osemwegie was remarkably consistent as a senior, garnering at least eight tackles in 10 of the Commodores’ 11 games. He also set career single-season highs with three sacks, two interceptions and two forced fumbles. “I consider this a great honor because there’s so many great players in the SEC. This is recognition for a lot of hard work by all of my teammates and I,” Osemwegie said. “I’m really thankful to my teammates and coaches. They as responsible for this recognition as I am.” In his first year on campus, Bennett put together one of the best receiving seasons ever by a SEC player. He set a SEC and Vanderbilt freshman mark with 79 receptions, and ranked among the league leaders with 876 receiving yards and nine touchdowns. Bennett stunned the conference with his late-season performance. He averaged 12.25 receptions and 136 receiving yards in his last four games. He set a SEC freshman record with 16 receptions at South Carolina and became just the second SEC player ever to haul in five touchdown catches in a remarkable performance versus Kentucky. Dunning, a two-year starter, put together his finest season as a senior, setting career highs with 35 receptions and 389 receiving yards.
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