July 15, 2013
Houston, Texas - San José State University offensive guard Nicholas Kaspar, defensive tackle Travis Raciti and linebackers Vince Buhagiar and Keith Smith are four of the 107 players named to the 2013 Rotary Lombardi Award Watch List.
The award is named in honor of Hall of Fame Green Bay Packers head coach Vince Lombardi. The Rotary Lombardi Award recognizes the top offensive or defensive lineman and/or linebacker who lines up no more than five yards away from the line of scrimmage.
Kaspar, from Dana Point, Calif., is an anchor on the offensive line. The 2012 first-team All-WAC honoree has a 31-game streak of starting assignments at guard covering the last three seasons. He was part of an offensive line that in 2012 allowed just three sacks in the last seven games - all wins by the Spartans that finished the season with an 11-2 win-loss record and 21st in the Associated Press and USA Today/ESPN coaches polls..
Smith, from Covina, Calif., is on the Watch List for the second year in a row. A 2012 first-team All-WAC performer, he earned College Football Performance Awards' (CFPA) National Linebacker Performer of the Week for his 19 tackles, 2.0 tackles for loss and two forced fumbles in last season's 20-14 win over BYU. Earlier this month he was named to the CFPA Linebacker Trophy Watch List.
Raciti, a first-team All-WAC and CollegeFootballNews.com sophomore All-American in 2012, started all 13 of the Spartans games. He was credited with 52 tackles, 13.0 tackles for loss and 8.5 quarterback sacks. His sack total was the second best in the WAC and ranked 35th in the nation. From Pleasant Hill, Calif., Raciti recorded a tackle for loss in 10 of the team's 13 games last season.
Buhagiar, a first-team All-WAC linebacker, started in all 13 games in 2012. He was second on the Spartans in tackles with 89, including three games with 10 or more. Among his 8.0 tackles for loss, he had a single-game career best 3.0 in the Spartans 38-34 victory at San Diego State.
The 44th annual Rotary Lombardi Award will be announced December 11 in Houston, Texas.
With Buhagiar, Kaspar, Raciti and Smith's inclusion on the Rotary Lombardi Award Watch List, San José State football players have received recognition in the 2013 preseason on 11 national Watch Lists:
College Football Performance Awards (CFPA) - Offensive Award Watch List
College Football Performance Awards (CFPA) - Defensive Award Watch List
College Football Performance Awards (CFPA) - Special Teams Award Watch List
Maxwell Award Watch List
Chuck Bednarik Award Watch List
Paul Hornung Award Watch List
Ray Guy Award Watch List
Lou Groza Award Watch List
Bronko Nagurski Trophy Watch List
Jim Thorpe Award Watch List
Rotary Lombardi Award Watch List