College football: Notre Dame's Manti Te'o wins Lott Trophy

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. — Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te'o has won the Lott IMPACT Trophy as the collegiate defensive player having the biggest impact on his team.

The linebacker led the Irish in tackles each of the past three seasons, including 103 this year when top-ranked Notre Dame went undefeated in the regular season.

The other finalists were Arthur Brown of Kansas State, Jarvis Jones of Georgia and Chase Thomas of Stanford.

It was the seventh national award for Te'o in a week. He was runner-up for the Heisman Trophy on Saturday night in New York.

The award is named for Hall of Fame defensive back Ronnie Lott and goes to a player with strong academic work, community involvement and team leadership.

TOMMY TUBERVILLE'S GOT WORK CUT OUT FOR HIM: The newest coach has a challenge in front of him — to turn Cincinnati's already successful football program into something interesting enough to bring out the crowds and get other conferences interested, too.

It would help if he stuck around for a while.

The 58-year-old coach from Texas Tech brought a high-profile name to the football program when he was hired as head coach on Saturday. His predecessors were up-and-comers — an assistant at Ohio State, two Mid-American Conference coaches — who used the job as a career launch point.

The Bearcats hope Tuberville helps them become more than just a stepping stone. Mainly, he has to sell the program.

The Bearcats (9-3) have won or shared the Big East title in four of the last five seasons, but have trouble drawing fans.

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