DOUBLETREE HOTEL - 16TH & DODGE STREETS

OMAHA, NE

2008 NOVAK TROPHY WINNER
(The Tom Novak trophy was established in 1950 and is presented to the Senior who “best exemplifies courage and determination despite all odds in the manner of Nebraska All-American center Tom Novak.)

Joe Ganz, #12 Quarterback, Palos Heights, Ill.

Quarterback Joe Ganz took the reins of the Nebraska offense late in the 2007 season and immediately began re-writing the Cornhusker record book. The 2008 season was no different as Ganz produced one of the most prolific individual offensive seasons in school history.
The 6-1, 210-pound Ganz engineered a Nebraska offense that became one of the most complete units in the country in the second half of the season. The Huskers ranked in the top 20 nationally in passing offense, total offense and scoring offense. Ganz has also guided Nebraska to one of the most efficient units in the country, and the Huskers rank second in the nation in time of possession and are among the Big 12 leaders in third-down conversions.
In the process of leading the Husker offense Ganz set Nebraska season records for passing yards with 3,568 yards and total offense at 3,826 yards. Ganz was extremely accurate throughout the season, completing 67.9 percent of his passes and set NUs record for season completions and percentage. He has also shattered the Nebraska career record for accuracy by completing nearly 66 percent of his 549 career pass attempts. He threw for 25 touchdown passes in 2008, the second-most in NU history and his 45 career touchdown passes also rank second in the Nebraska record book.
Ganz finished his senior season ranked among Big 12 and national leaders in several categories, including passing yards per game, total offense and pass efficiency. His career pass efficiency ranking was third among all active players entering the bowl games, trailing only the last two Heisman winners—Oklahoma’s Sam Bradford and Tim Tebow of Florida.
The leadership of Ganz allowed Nebraska to surpass 30 points 10 times in 2008 and in 13 of his 16 career starts. The Huskers passed for at least 200 yards in all 12 games in 2008 and gained more than 400 yards of total offense nine times.
Ganz was recognized as a leader by his teammates being selected as one of four captains for the season. In addition to winning the Tom Novak Trophy, Ganz was also named the winner of the 2008 Bobby Reynolds Award, was voted the Most Valuable Player of the 2008 Huskers and capped his career by being named the MVP of the 2009 Konica Minolta Gator Bowl. Ganz graduated in December with a degree in communication studies and was a first-team academic All-Big 12 selection in 2008.

Honors & Awards

• 2009 Konica Minolta Gator Bowl Most Valuable Player
• 2008 Nebraska Team Captain
• 2008 Nebraska Team Most Valuable Player
• 2008 Tom Novak Trophy Winner
• 2008 Bobby Reynolds Award Winner
• Nebraska Single-Game Record Holder for Passing Yards (510), Total Offense (528) and Passing TDs (7)
• Nebraska Season Record Holder for Passing Yards, Pass Completions and Total Offense
  Second on Nebraska Career Passing List
• 2008 First-Team Academic All-Big 12
• Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week (2007 vs. Kansas State; 2008 vs. Kansas State)
• Four-Time Big 12 Commissioner's Spring Academic Honor Roll (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008)
• Two-Time Big 12 Commissioner’s Fall Academic Honor Roll (2005, 2007)
• 2008 Brook Berringer Citizenship Team
• 2004 Nebraska Offensive Scout Team MVP
  

2008 GUY CHAMBERLIN TROPHY WINNER
(The Guy Chamberlin trophy was inaugurated in 1967 in memory of the former UNL All-America football player and is presented to the Senior player who has shown by his play and contributions to the betterment of the University of Nebraska football squad that he has the qualities and dedication of Guy Chamberlin to the great Cornhusker tradition.)

Nate Swift, #87 Wide Receiver, Hutchinson, Minn.

Nate Swift will completed one of the most dynamic careers ever by a Nebraska receiver in 2008. Swift began an assault on the Nebraska record book during his redshirt freshman season in 2005 and his pursuit of records continued throughout his Husker career.
Midway through the 2008 season, Swift established a Nebraska record for career receptions, surpassing 1972 Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Rodgers. Swift also finished just behind Rodgers in career and season receiving yardage and Swift’s 63 receptions in 2008 ranked as the second-most in school history. He capped his Nebraska career with a 17-yard touchdown catch from Joe Ganz in the Konica Minolta Gator Bowl win over Clemson. The touchdown reception was the 10th of the season for Swift and his 22nd career receiving score, both the second-best total in NU history.
Swift played in 51 games in his four-year career, with 29 starts, including all 13 games in 2008. In 2008, Swift and fellow senior Todd Peterson to give Nebraska one of the Big 12’s top one-two receiving tandems. The duo posted the second- and third-best reception totals in school history, respectively, and combined for 125 receptions, 1,727 yards and 14 receiving touchdowns.
The play of Swift and Peterson paced a passing game that ranked among the top 20 nationally at 281.0 yards per game. Nebraska has passed for at least 200 yards in all 13 games, topped 400 yards of total offense nine times and scored 30 points in 10 of 13 games.
Swift finished the season ranked 12th in the Big 12 Conference in receiving yards with 75.8 yards per game. He was one of only nine players in the Big 12 Conference to record four or more 100-yard receiving games in 2008.
The passing game was not the only area where Swift made a significant impact. He was also Nebraska’s primary punt returner and averaged 12.9 yards per return to rank second in the Big 12 and tied for eighth nationally. Swift’s year was highlighted by an 88-yard punt return for a touchdown against Virginia Tech. The play earned Swift honors as the Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Week.
Swift’s overall play earned him honorable-mention All-Big 12 honors in a league that featured many of the nation’s top receivers. Swift earned his degree in construction management in December.

Honors & Awards

• 2008 Honorable-Mention All-Big 12 (Coaches, Associated Press)
• Nebraska Record Holder for Career Receptions (166)
• Second in NU History in Season Receiving Yards (941) and Career Receiving Yards (2,476)
• No. 2 on Season Receptions List (63 in 2008), Season TD List (10) and Career TD List (22)
• 2008 Guy Chamberlin Trophy Winner
• 2008 Team Captain
  » 2008 Nebraska Offensive MVP
• Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Week (2008 vs. Virginia Tech)
• Nebraska Freshman Record Holder for Receptions (45), Receiving Yards (641) and Receiving TDs (7)
• 2005 Honorable-Mention All-Big 12 (AP)
• 2005 First-Team Freshman All-Big 12 (Sporting News)
• Two-Time Second-Team Academic All-Big 12 (2005, 2006)
• Two-Time Big 12 Commissioner’s Fall Academic Honor Roll (2004, 2007)
• Two-Time Big 12 Commissioner’s Spring Academic Honor Roll (2005, 2008)
  

2008 CLETUS FISCHER NATIVE SON AWARD WINNER
(The Native Son is selected by the Coaches for the player who best exemplifies good work ethic, competitiveness, leadership, forthrightness, sense of humor, pride, loyalty and love of Nebraska.)

Todd Peterson, #17 Wide Receiver, Grand Island, NE.

Todd Peterson was a reliable performer in the Husker receiving corps for each of the past four seasons. The Grand Island, Neb., native will completed his career among the top five players in school history in receptions and receiving yardage. He was one of the most decorated Nebraska student-athletes in recent years.
Peterson teamed with fellow senior Nate Swift to give Nebraska one of the top one-two receiving tandems in the Big 12 Conference. Peterson finished the year with 62 receptions, the third-highest receptions total in school history, trailing only Swift’s 63 catches this season and Marlon Lucky’s school-record total in 2007. Together, Peterson and Swift produced 125 catches for 1,727 yards and 14 touchdowns, helping Nebraska rank among the nation’s top 20 teams in passing and total offense.
Peterson was remarkably consistent in 2008, catching at least three passes in all 13 games and surpassing 50 receiving yards in nine games. He has increased his career receptions total to 108, good for fourth on the NU career chart and his 1,602 career receiving yards are fourth in school history. His 786 receiving yards as a senior ranked fourth on the Husker single-season list.
Off the field, Peterson continued to rack up the honors and accolades this fall. A December graduate, Peterson carried a 3.763 cumulative grade-point average in nutritional science and dietetics. This fall he and fellow senior Tyler Wortman were both chosen as second-team ESPN the Magazine Academic All-Americans, increasing Nebraska’s nation-leading total.
Peterson also earned first-team academic All-Big 12 honors for the fourth straight season, becoming just the eighth player in school history to be a four-time first-team academic all-conference honoree. For the second straight year, Peterson was also a finalist for the Wuerffel Award, a national award given annually to the football student-athlete who best combines excellence on the field, in the classroom and in the community.
Peterson originally joined the Nebraska program as a walk-on on an academic scholarship, but quickly earned a football scholarship.

Honors & Awards

• 2008 ESPN the Magazine/CoSIDA Second-Team Academic All-American
• 2008 National Football Foundation/College Hall of Fame Scholar-Athlete Semifinalist
• Four-Time First-Team Academic All-Big 12 (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008)
• Two-Time Wuerffel Award Finalist (2007, 2008)
• 2008 Cletus Fischer Native Son Award Winner
• Fourth on Nebraska’s All-Time Receptions List
• No. 5 on the Huskers’ Career Receiving Yardage List
• Two-Time Brook Berringer Citizenship Team (2007, 2008)
• Four-Time Big 12 Commissioner's Fall Honor Roll (2004, 2005, 2006, 2007)
• Four-Time Big 12 Commissioner’s Spring Honor Roll (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008)