Liberty Mutual Insurance and Archie Manning Announce 2008 Liberty Mutual Coach of The Year Award Finalists

NEW YORK, Dec. 9 /PRNewswire/ — Today Liberty Mutual Insurance and Archie
Manning, chair of the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall
of Fame, announced the 25 finalists for the 2008 Liberty Mutual Coach of the
Year Award. The finalists represent standout college football coaches across
the four NCAA divisions who best exemplify excellence in coaching — on and
off the field — as determined by a combination of hundreds of thousands of
fan votes at www.CoachoftheYear.com and an objective scoring model endorsed by
the College Football Hall of Fame.

Each Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year finalist will have an opportunity to
receive recognition in the permanent College Football Hall of Fame display in
South Bend, Ind., $50,000 to support personal civic and charitable activities,
and a $20,000 scholarship donation for his alumni association. After this
season, the total Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year charitable and scholarship
contributions will reach $680,000. The Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award
was introduced in 2006.

“I’ve had the opportunity to observe these coaches and their teams
throughout the season and this lineup of finalists tells me that fans embraced
what is unique about this award by voting for their favorite coach,” said
Manning who helped Liberty Mutual announce the finalists at the National
Football Foundation Annual Awards press conference in New York City. “Being a
successful college football coach is a balancing act that requires the ability
to inspire a team to win on the field while developing responsible
student-athletes off the field.”

2008 Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award Finalists

The 25 award finalists represent 10 coaches from the Football Bowl
Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) and five coaches each from the Football
Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA), Division II and Division
III. To qualify as a finalist, a coach had to be among the top 25 fan vote
getters in his division at www.CoachoftheYear.com and then be scored by an
objective model that considers, among other criteria: wins, team penalties,
on-field comportment, academic achievement by the student-athletes, and civic
and philanthropic commitments.

The Football Bowl Subdivision (Division I-A) finalists are, in
alphabetical order: Mack Brown, University of Texas; Brady Hoke, Ball State
University; Pat Fitzgerald, Northwestern University; Urban Meyer, University
of Florida; Joe Paterno, Pennsylvania State University; Chris Petersen, Boise
State University; Nick Saban, University of Alabama; Bob Stoops, University of
Oklahoma; Jim Tressel, Ohio State University; and Kyle Whittingham, University
of Utah

The Football Championship Subdivision (Division I-AA) finalists are, in
alphabetical order: Mike Ayers, Wofford College; Henry Frazier III, Prairie
View A&M University; Mickey Matthews, James Madison University, Jerry Moore,
Appalachian State University; and Danny Rocco, Liberty University.

The Division II finalists are, in alphabetical order: Chuck Broyles,
Pittsburg State University; David Dean, Valdosta State University; Danny Hale,
Bloomsburg University; Chuck Martin, Grand Valley State University; and Bill
O’Boyle, Chadron State College.

The Division III finalists are, in alphabetical order: Greg Debeljak, Case
Western Reserve University; John Gagliardi, St. John’s University; Larry
Kehres, Mount Union College; Dan MacNeill; SUNY Cortland; and Mark Speckman,
Willamette University.

“These finalists represent what is great about college football,” said

Greg Gordon, Liberty Mutual senior vice president of Consumer Marketing.
“Today we recognize 25 coaches who understand that how you win is every bit as
important as winning itself, and who are revered by their fans for exhibiting
characteristics of sportsmanship, integrity and responsibility.”

2008 Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Winner Selection

Between Dec. 12 and Dec. 22 college football fans are once again invited
back to www.CoachoftheYear.com to cast their vote for the winner. On the site,
fans have the opportunity to review bios and fan testimonials supporting each
finalist before they make their selection and enjoy episodes of “Coach’s
Corner” which offer Archie Manning and Kirk Herbstreit’s perspectives on the
latest topics in college football.

To ensure candidates are evaluated fairly and measured against the
specific values of responsibility and integrity, a Selection Committee
composed of College Football Hall of Fame players and coaches and the national
media will also cast votes for the winners. Fan votes account for 20 percent
of each coach’s final score while the College Football Hall of Famers and
national college football media account for 55 percent and 25 percent,
respectively.

The 2008 Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award winners will be announced
on ESPN during halftime of the Music City Bowl on Dec. 31.

About Liberty Mutual Group

“Helping people live safer, more secure lives” since 1912, Boston-based
Liberty Mutual Group (LibertyMutualGroup.com) is a diversified global insurer
and sixth-largest property and casualty insurer in the U.S. based on 2007
direct written premium. Liberty Mutual Group ranks 94th on the Fortune 500
list of largest U.S. corporations, based on 2007 revenue. The company has over
45,000 employees located in more than 900 offices throughout the world.

The eighth-largest auto and home insurer in the U.S., Liberty Mutual
(LibertyMutual.com) sells full lines of coverage for automobile, homeowners,
valuable possessions, personal liability, and individual life insurance. The
company is an industry leader in affinity partnerships, offering car and home
insurance to employees and members of more than 10,000 companies, credit
unions, professional associations and alumni groups.

About the National Football Foundation & the College Football Hall of Fame

Founded in 1947 with leadership from General Douglas MacArthur, legendary
Army coach Earl “Red” Blaik and immortal journalist Grantland Rice, The
National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame, a non-profit
educational organization, runs programs designed to use the power of amateur
football in developing scholarship, citizenship and athletic achievement in
young people. With 121 chapters and 12,000 members nationwide, NFF programs
include the College Football Hall of Fame in South Bend, Ind., the NFF
Hampshire Honor Society, Play It Smart, the NFF-FWAA Football Forum, the NFF
Gridiron Club of New York City, and scholarships of over $1 million for
college and high school scholar-athletes. The NFF presents the MacArthur
Trophy, the Draddy Trophy, presented by HealthSouth, and releases the Bowl
Championship Series (BCS) Standings. Learn more at www.footballfoundation.org
or www.collegefootball.org.

SOURCE Liberty Mutual