An article from the StarTribune:
Editorial: Eslinger is a treat to watch
Last update: December 09, 2005 – 4:50 PM
We watch a lot of college football, but never have we seen an offensive lineman as consistently impressive as Minnesota's Greg Eslinger, who last week won the Outland Trophy as the nation's best interior lineman.
Most of the glory goes to players who touch the ball, and the Heisman Trophy (this year's shoo-in winner is Southern California running back Reggie Bush) has become the glory award in the college game. But even Bush couldn't run far without blocks from the big guys. And blocking -- especially down field -- is where Eslinger is eye-popping.
Keep in mind, he's a center, perhaps the game's hardest position. You'll see him snap the ball. You'll see a fast Gophers running back -- say, Laurence Maroney -- racing 20 yards down the sideline. And suddenly -- boom! -- there's Eslinger delivering a block. How did a guy so big get down field so fast?
Speed is not the 285-pound Eslinger's only asset. He uses eye contact to deceive defenders who don't know quite when or where his block is coming.
Few colleges noticed Eslinger at Bismarck (N.D.) High School, but the senior now joins only two other Gophers ever to win the Outland award.
Fans have one last chance to see Eslinger play as a collegian: on December 30 in Nashville against Virginia. We recommend it.
Also from the Startribune:
The honors keep coming for Eslinger and Gophers
Dennis Brackin, Star Tribune
Last update: December 13, 2005 – 9:50 PMIt might be time for the University of Minnesota to start a new building project: a Greg Eslinger wing on the school's football trophy case.
Eslinger on Tuesday earned first-team Associated Press All-America honors, adding to an offseason honor haul that includes the Outland Trophy (best interior lineman) and Rimington Award (best center) and a sweep of the major All-America teams (AP, Walter Camp and Football Writers Association of America).
"He's gotten every award an offensive center could get this year," Gophers coach Glen Mason said Tuesday. "The thing that makes it special for me is that he's truly an All-American. When I think of the term All-American, I'm thinking great, clean-cut kid, hard worker, tremendous teammate, never in trouble, community service, good student -- you name it. He's all of that. I've never heard anyone ever utter a negative thing about Greg Eslinger."