Teel Takes Homer Hazel MVP Award at Rutgers Awards Banquet
Dec 14 | Football
EAST BRUNSWICK, N.J. - Senior quarterback Mike Teel (Oakland, N.J.) was awarded the Homer Hazel Trophy as the Rutgers' Football Most Valuable Player at the program's 70th annual awards banquet, held Sunday evening at the Hilton in East Brunswick. The awards banquet is sponsored by the Rutgers Football Touchdown Club in conjunction with Rutgers' Division of Intercollegiate Athletics.
| Mike Teel received the Homer Hazel Trophy as MVP of the team and Courtney Greene was named MVP of the defense. |
Teel earned the honor after becoming the school's all-time leader in passing yards, passing touchdowns and total offense in 2008. Teel set a BIG EAST and school record with seven touchdown passes in his final home game vs. Louisville. He also established a school record for passing yards in a game with 447 vs. the Cardinals in the regular season finale.
The Scarlet Knights also honored their Most Valuable Players for each unit as senior free safety Courtney Greene (New Rochelle, N.Y.) was named the MVP of the defense; junior wide receiver Kenny Britt (Bayonne, N.J.) was named the MVP of the offense for the second consecutive season and junior strong safety Zaire Kitchen (Hightstown, N.J.) was honored as the MVP of the special teams.
Greene was selected as First Team All-BIG EAST honoree in 2008 and has started a school-record 50 consecutive games at free safety. He is fourth in Rutgers history with 382 career tackles. In 2008, Greene is third on the squad with 83 tackles to go along with one sack, one interception, two pass breakups and two quarterback hurries.
Britt, the nation's second leading receiver with an average of 113.8 yards receiving per game, leads the BIG EAST in receptions (81) and receiving yards (1,252). Britt is Rutgers' all-time career leader and ranks second in BIG EAST history with 2,924 receiving yards. He is 80 yards shy of the BIG EAST all-time record for career receiving yards.
He owns the single-season school record with 1,252 receiving yards in 2008. Britt is third in Rutgers' career annals with 172 receptions and tied for second with 16 career touchdown receptions. He has also caught a pass in 30 straight games, the eighth longest streak in the BIG EAST.
Kitchen was a standout at strong safety and on special teams the entire season. The junior led the squad with three forced fumbles, including a game-changing forced fumble in the 54-34 victory at #17 Pittsburgh. In 12 games, Kitchen totaled 31 tackles.
Senior defensive end Jamaal Westerman (Brampton, Ontario) and senior defensive tackle Pete Tverdov (Union, N.J.) received the David Bender Trophies, awarded to the top linemen on the team. Westerman finished his sensational Scarlet Knight career in the 63-14 win over Louisville after tearing his biceps Oct. 25 in the win at Pitt. Westerman led RU with six sacks in 2008 and his 26 career sacks place him in a tie for third in the career record books at Rutgers.
Tverdov earned the award for the second straight year after leading RU with 13 tackles for loss. He tied for seventh in the BIG EAST in TFLs and was one of the most disruptive defensive linemen in the conference the entire season.
| Kenny Britt was named Offensive MVP for the second consecutive year. |
Senior linebacker and captain Kevin Malast (Manchester, N.J.) was presented with the Iron Knight Award. The Iron Knight Award is presented to the player who has demonstrated an exceptionally high level of mental and physical toughness throughout his career. Malast leads RU with 96 tackles in 12 starts this season at linebacker. One of the plays of the year was Malast's 74-yard interception at Pittsburgh to help seal the RU win.
Junior linebacker Ryan D'Imperio (Sewell, N.J.) took home the Paul Robeson Award, which is presented annually to the "individual whose performance, leadership and dedication on and off the field during his career has had the greatest impact on Rutgers football" and is donated by the Rutgers Football Touchdown Club. D'Imperio returned from a broken leg in spring drills in 2007 and was a Second Team All-BIG EAST selection in 2008. He ranked fifth in the BIG EAST in tackles with 88.
This year's recipient of the Loyal Knight Award, honoring the player whose character and dedication have proved resilient in his pursuit of excellence, was senior wide receiver and captain Tiquan Underwood (Lawrenceville, N.J.). Underwood was second on the team in receptions and is ranked in the top 10 in school history in career receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns.
Redshirt freshman Fabian Ruiz (Miami, Fla.) was presented with the Most Improved Scholar award. Ruiz has displayed tremendous improvement in the classroom in his second year "On the Banks" in 2008.
The Scarlet Knights return to action December 29, 2008 in the PapaJohns.com Bowl vs. NC State. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. on ESPN. For ticket information, visit RutgersBowl.com or call 1-866-445-GORU.
