All-America

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An All-American "team" is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players, those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position, who are referred to as All-America or, less precisely, All-American athletes.

Contents 1 Term usage 1.1 Other uses 2 Collegiate sports 3 High school sports 4 See also 5 References

[edit] Term usage

As of 2009, the term is used in the U.S. team sports to refer to players who are selected by members of the national media. The term is used primarily with regard to college and, occasionally (and more controversially), to high school players. Outstanding professional players usually are referred to as All-Stars, or, in the case of professional American football, All-Pros (as opposed to Pro Bowlers, who are selected by players, coaches, and fans to compete in Pro Bowl games).

Selection to an All-America team for high school and collegiate players, however, is honorary in nature, and All-America "teams" do not typically play any games as a unit, unlike many of the all-star teams. Therefore, to be an All-American does not constitute being on a team.

The original use of the term "All-America" seems to have been in reference to a list of college football players who were regarded as the best at their respective positions. The first "All-America" team was the 1889 College Football All-America Team selected by Casper Whitney and published in This Week's Sports in association with Walter Camp.^[1]

The United States Army 82nd Airborne Division was given the nickname "All-American", since its members came from all 48 states.

[edit] Other uses

The use of the term has been expanded to honor persons outside of the field of sports, especially informally; for example an individual may be popularly referred to as, an "All-America" level debater, drama coach, or other activity, having nothing to do with athletics.

Additionally, it has been applied to sports in a different way in the 21st century in that, Academic All-America teams also are named to honor the academic achievement of student-athletes, whether their sports skills are at an "All-America" level or not.^[2] The term "Academic All-America" is a registered trademark of the College Sports Information Directors of America. The organization began the program in 1952 which recognizes college athletes at all levels of competition and in all collegiate sports. Other organizations often misappropriate the term for their respective sport or coaches' association.

This concept of team selection is confined largely to the United States because in almost all other countries, national teams that participate in international competitions play a much greater role in sports culture at both adult and age-restricted levels.^{[citation needed]}

In a broader sense, the term all-American is colloquially used to describe stereotypically clean-cut, mainstream/conventional middle-class people, particularly teenagers and young adults, as used for example in the Bobby Bare song All-American Boy. Professional wrestler Jack Swagger is currently using The All-American American as a nickname in the WWE. Wrestling diva Michelle McCool uses her own nickname, The All-American Diva.

[edit] Collegiate sports

Each year different sets of All-American teams are recognized toward consensus and unanimous selection recognition. A unanimous selection is a player who is listed as a first team All-American by all recognized lists. A consensus All-American is a player who is listed as a first team All-American by at least half of the recognized lists. Today, the National Collegiate Athletic Association recognizes College Football All-America Teams selected by the Associated Press, American Football Coaches Association, Football Writers Association of America, The Sporting News, and the Walter Camp Football Foundation (WCFF) to determine consensus All-Americans.^[3]

There are many All-America teams selected annually in many other major collegiate sports.^{[citation needed]}

Cross Country: Selections are administered by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). In Division I, the top 40 overall finishers at the meet are all named to the All-America team. The student-athlete's team must be a member of the USTFCCCA.

Soccer: The NCAA anually names an eleven-member All-America team following the season.

Swimming and Diving: In NCAA Division I, athletes and relays who make the championship final (top eight) are considered First-Team All-Americans. Athletes and relays that make the consolation final (places 9-16) are considered Honorable Mention All-Americans.

Track and Field: Also administered by the USTFCCCA, the selection rules are that the top eight finishers in each individual event, as well as American finishers who finish outside of the top eight in their event but are among the top eight American finishers, earn All-America designation. Relays are judged strictly on a top-eight basis. The cutoff of eight places is the same for both indoor and outdoor competition. The student-athlete's team must be a member of the USTFCCCA.

Wrestling: In all NCAA and NJCAA divisions the top 8 placers at the national championship tournament are considered all Americans.

[edit] High school sports

At the high school level, the most recognized All-America teams are those selected by Parade magazine in football and the McDonald's restaurant chain in basketball. The McDonald's All-American Team is unlike other All-America awards because it stages an annual game involving these players. Since 2001, the United States Army has sponsored its own All-American Bowl for the top eighty high school football players across the nation.

In 2005, Offense-Defense Sports began publishing a Top 100 ranking for nation's the top high school football athletes. The rankings have been featured on Rivals.com, Scout.com, and most recently Sports Illustrated. The Offense-Defense All-American Bowl is held every January, featuring the top-ranked athletes.

Cross-country athletes who place in the top 15 at the Foot Locker Cross Country Championships are awarded All-American.

[edit] See also

• College Football All-America Team
• NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans

[edit] References

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