University of Minnesota Athletics
FB: Eslinger Named Second-Team Academic All-America
12/1/2004 12:00:00 AM | Football
This season Eslinger has anchored an offensive line that has helped the Gophers average just over 255 yards rushing per game, ranking Minnesota first in the Big Ten Conference and fifth nationally heading into the Music City Bowl. The Gophers also rank third in the Big Ten and 13th in the nation in total offense at 446 yards per game and are on pace to establish the second-highest single-season average in school history. Minnesota's offensive line has allowed only nine sacks this season, the second-best mark in the Big Ten and the fewest number of sacks at Minnesota since 1970.
A native of Bismarck, N.D., Eslinger carries a 3.57 GPA and is an Inter-College Program major. He has started all 37 games during his Gopher career and has helped the offense accumulate at least 300 yards of total offense in a school-record 26 games. Minnesota is also the only school in the country to both run and pass for at least 2,000 yards each of the past six seasons.
Eslinger, a Rimington Award candidate for the best center in the nation, was recently named first-team All-Big Ten by both the coaches and media for the second consecutive season. He became only the third Gopher since 1963 to be named first-team by both the coaches and media for two consecutive seasons.
