Jan. 10, 2006

Allendale, Mich. - The American Football Coaches Association capped its 2006 convention by presenting its top coaching award -- AFCA Coach of the Year -- to four outstanding coaches today. Grand Valley State's Chuck Martin, Penn State's Joe Paterno, Appalachian State's Jerry Moore, and Wisconsin-Whitewater's Bob Berezowitz are the 2005 AFCA National Coach of the Year winners. Paterno in Division I-A, Moore in Division I-AA, Martin in AFCA Division II (NCAA Division II and NAIA schools) and Berezowitz in AFCA Division III. The winners are selected by a vote of the Active AFCA members (coaches at four-year schools) in the Association's four divisions. The AFCA has named a Coach of the Year since 1935. The AFCA Coach of the Year award is the oldest and most prestigious of all the Coach of the Year awards and is the only one chosen exclusively by the coaches themselves.

Chuck Martin led the Lakers to a 13-0 record, the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title and the NCAA Division II championship in 2005 to earn his first AFCA National Coach of the Year Award. The 36-year-old Martin has lost only three games in his two seasons as the head coach at Grand Valley State. Martin's 2004 squad finished 10-3 and advanced to the quarterfinals of the Division II playoffs, making him the winningest first-year head coach in the program's history. Martin served as an assistant coach for four years at GVSU (2000-2003) and was the defensive coordinator for the Lakers' 2003 national championship squad. In all, Martin has been a member of the coaching staff for all three Grand Valley State national championships (2002-03-05).

Joe Paterno led Penn State to an 11-1 record, the Big Ten championship and a victory in the Orange Bowl in 2005. This year's honor is Paterno's Division I-A record fifth AFCA National Coach of the Year award (1968-72-82-86-2005). With his selection he is now the first coach in AFCA history to earn national honors in four different decades. The fourth-winningest coach in college football, Paterono joined Amos Alonzo Stagg as the only coaches in college football history to serve 40 or more years as the head coach at one school.

Jerry Mooreled the Mountaineers to a 12-3 record, the Southern Conference title and the NCAA Division I-AA championship to earn AFCA National Coach of the Year honors for the first time in 2005. The national title was the first in any sport for Appalachian State. The winningest coach in the history of the Southern Conference, Moore's teams have made 11 postseason appearances and 12 of his 16 teams have finished the season ranked in the NCAADivision I-AA Top 25.

Bob Berezowitzled the Warhawks to a 14-1 record, the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Association title and a berth in the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl in 2005 to earn AFCA National Coach of the Year honors for the first time. Whitewater set a school record for victories in a season this year and their road to the Stagg Bowl included victories over thes chools that captured the 2002 and 2003 NCAA Division III championships. The winners will be honored Tuesday evening at the AFCA Coach of the Year Dinner atthe Hilton Anatole Hotel.

Aloha -- The Division I-AA, Division II and Division III Coach of the Year winners have been invited to serve as assistant coaches at the 2006 HulaBowl. The I-A winner will be invited to serve as a head coach in the 2007 Hula Bowl. This year's game will be played at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu on January 21 and will be shown on ESPN2 at 7 p.m. EST.