June 17, 2008

Champaign, Ill. - Illinois senior football star J Leman and recently crowned All-America distance runner Angela Bizzarri have been named the 2007-08 Dike Eddleman honorees as University of Illinois Athletes of the Year.

Leman collected three top awards from the Illinois Division of Intercollegiate Athletics this year, earning the Big Ten Medal of Honor and the Fighting Illini Spirit award at the Scholar-Athlete Banquet April 29. He joins a select group of eight athletes ever to win both the Big Ten Medal of Honor and Athlete of the Year in the same year- Dike Eddleman (football, basketball, track & field, 1949), Clive Follmer (basketball and baseball, 1953), Abe Grossfeld (gymnastics, 1959), Jim Grabowski (football, 1966), Tim Simon (track & field, 1988) Steve Marianetti (wrestling, 1995) and Ashley Berggren (women's basketball, 1998).

Leman continued Illinois' linebacker tradition, having been named a finalist for both the Ronnie Lott and Danny Weurffel awards and a semifinalist for the Butkus, Lombardi, Bednarik and Bronko Nagurski awards. The Champaign native was Illinois' first Consensus All-American in football since Kevin Hardy in 1995. His list of All-America honors is long - American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), first team; Football Writers of America (FWAA), first team; CBS, first team; Sporting News, first team; Walter Camp, second team; Associated Press, second team, Sports Illustrated, second team, Rivals.com, second team; and Phil Steele, second team.

Leman was the emotional leader for the Illini in their successful quest for a Rose Bowl berth, the program's first since 1983. He was a First Team All-Big Ten linebacker in a league filled with great players at that position. His numbers back up his play on the field - 132 tackles, 10.5 for loss, 2.5 sacks, three passes broken up, one forced fumble and two quarterback hurries. Leman ranked in the top five in the conference in tackles per game for the second straight season.

Leman has been a success off the field as well, earning Academic All-Big Ten and Second-Team Academic All-America accolades. He is active in his church, The Vineyard, is a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, the Illini Leadership Academy and the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC). While Leman pursues the NFL, having signed a free agent contract with the Minnesota Vikings, he has a bachelor's degree in speech communication and a master's degree in human resource education in his back pocket.

"Coach Zook has always said to us that if you put the goals of the team first, you will always accomplish your personal goals," Leman said. "I think this year was a perfect example of that for us. We knew we would have a chance to help turn the football program around and because of the success we had as a team, I have benefited by receiving awards like this.

"None of this would have been possible if it weren't for a coaching staff that believed in us and pushed us to be better than we thought we could be. We never would have been successful if we didn't have a team that selflessly played for each other each week. I am so proud to be an Illini and to have been a part of this magical 2007 season."

Bizzarri continues a tradition of top female track & field athletes, a sport that has produced Eddleman winners in seven of the last eight seasons. The Mason, Ohio, native completed a wire-to-wire successful season with All-America honors in cross country, and both indoor and outdoor track & field, becoming the only athlete in the program's history to claim All-America honors in all three seasons during the same school year.

Bizzarri's 14th-place finish at the NCAA Cross Country meet earned her All-America honors for the second straight season and also propelled the Illini to sixth in the nation, their second straight season in the top six nationally. Bizzarri was second at the NCAA Midwest Regional Meet and third at the Big Ten Championships, setting a school 6K cross country record at the conference meet.

Bizzarri's success continued on the track where she competed for the school record distance medley relay team that finished sixth at the NCAA Indoor Championships. She gained steam outdoors in the 5,000 meters, placing second in the Big Ten, winning the NCAA Midwest Regional, and last weekend earning second place at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. She was also fifth in the 1,500 meters at the Big Ten meet.

"It's such an honor being named Illinois Athlete of the Year considering the many talented student-athletes at the University of Illinois," Bizzarri said. "There have been many outstanding athletes that have came from this university and it's an honor to even be put in the same category."

The University of Illinois Athlete of the Year was first awarded in 1940. The award was given annually until it was discontinued in 1973. Since 1982, the University of Illinois has recognized both a Male and Female Athlete of the Year. In 1993, the awards were named in honor of the 11-time UI letterman and former Olympian, Dwight "Dike" Eddleman.

The Illini's historic Rose Bowl season produced a sweep in the major University of Illinois male athletic awards, the others of which were handed out at the Scholar-Athlete banquet, as freshman wide receiver Arrelious Benn was named Newcomer of the Year. Other major women's awards that night went to soccer's Mary Therese McDonnell (Big Ten Medal of Honor) and Shannon McDonnell (Fighting Illini Spirit Award) and gymnast Allison Buckley (Newcomer of the Year).

All-Time Illinois Athletes of the Year

1940	William J. Hapac, basketball & baseball
1941 	John Drish, basketball & baseball
1942	Andy Phillip, basketball & baseball
1943	Andy Phillip, basketball & baseball
1944	Buddy Young, football & track
1945	Walton "Junior" Kirk, basketball
1946	Herbert McKenley, track
1947	Alex Agase, football & wrestling
1948	Dwight "Dike" Eddleman, football, basketball & track
1949	Dwight "Dike" Eddleman, football, basketball & track
1950	Russell Steger, football & baseball
1951	Don Sunderlage, basketball
1952	Charles Boerio, football
1953	Clive Follmer, basketball & baseball
1954	J.C. Caroline, football
1955	Paul Judson, basketball
1956	Em Lindbeck, football & baseball
1957	Abe Woodson, football & track
1958	Bob Mitchell, football & track
1959	Abe Grossfeld, gymnastics
1960	Bill Burrell, football
1961	Bill Brown, football & track
1962	Doug Mills, football, basketball & baseball
1963	Harold Holmes, gymnastics
1964	Dick Butkus, football
1965	Dick Butkus, football
1966	Jim Grabowski, football
1967	Jim Dawson, basketball
1968	Dave Scholz, basketball
1969	Dave Scholz, basketball
1970	Mike Price, basketball
1971	Lee LaBadie, track/cross country
1972	Rick Gross, track/cross country
1973-81 Award not given
1982	Tony Eason, football
1983	Tony Eason, football
 	Marianne Dickerson, track/cross country
1984    Don Thorp, football
 	Karen Brems, gymnastics
1985	Charles Lake, gymnastics
	Kelly McNee, track/cross country
1986	David Williams, football
	Jonelle Polk, basketball
1987	Darrin Fletcher, baseball
	Mary Eggers, volleyball
1988	Tim Simon, track
	Mary Eggers, volleyball
1989	David Zeddies, gymnastics
	Mary Eggers, volleyball
1990	Kendall Gill, basketball
	Laura Bush, volleyball
1991	Jon Llewellyn, wrestling
	Sarah Sharp, basketball
	Renee Heiken, golf
1992	Tim Simpson, football
	Len Sitko, track/cross country
	Renee Heiken, golf
	Tonja Buford, track
1993	Marko Koers, track
	Tonja Buford, track
1994	Anthony Jones, track
	Tina Rogers, volleyball
1995	Dana Howard, football
	Steve Marianetti, wrestling
	Tonya Williams, track
1996	Kevin Hardy, football
	Tonya Williams, track
1997	Ernest Benion, wrestling
	Ashley Berggren, basketball
1998	Eric Siebert, wrestling
	Ashley Berggren, basketball
	Yvonne Harrison, track & field
1999	Oliver Freelove, tennis
	Cristy Chapman, volleyball
2000	Jason Anderson, baseball
	Jessica Aveyard, swimming
2001	Adam Tirapelle, wrestling
	Perdita Felicien, track & field
2002	Kurt Kittner, football
	Perdita Felicien, track & field
2003	Amer Delic, tennis
	Matt Lackey, wrestling
	Perdita Felicien, track & field
2004	Justin Spring, gymnastics
	Leisha Alcia, soccer
2005	Deron Williams, basketball
	Cassie Hunt, track & field/cross country
2006	Justin Spring, gymnastics
	Cassie Hunt, track & field/cross country
2007	Kevin Anderson, tennis
	Yvonne Mensah, track & field
2008	J Leman, football
	Angela Bizzarri, track & field/cross country