Holgorsen a finalist for the Paul “Bear” Bryant Coach of the Year Award

Dana Holgorsen, WVU head football coach, is a finalist for the Paul “Bear” Bryant Coach of the Year Award. The award will be presented at the banquet tonight at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas, the night after he was honored as a finalist for the American Football Coaches Association FBS Coach of the Year.

Holgorsen is joined by three faces from last night: Nick Saban (Alabama), P.J. Fleck (Western Michigan) and AFCA FBS Coach of the Year Mike MacIntyre (Colorado). The four gentlemen are joined by James Franklin (Penn State), Paul Chryst (Wisconsin), Dabo Swinney (Clemson) and Bob Stoops (Oklahoma).

You can vote for Holgorsen by donating to the American Heart Association.

Last year, Dabo Swinney won the title after guiding his Clemson Tigers to the national championship. If you recall, he took the Tigers to the top of the heap this year.

The award is sponsored by the American Heart Association and is voted on by the National Sports Media Association. It bears the name of legendary Alabama, Texas A&M and Kentucky and Maryland coach, Paul “Bear” Bryant. The houndstooth hat-wearing Bryant won six national championships and was a three-time AFCA Coach of the Year.

WVU finished the 2016 season with a 10-3 record and a 7-2 record in the Big 12, both best marks since joining the conference. The Mountaineers also finished in the AP Top 25 for the first time since 2011, when Holgorsen was named the Football Writers Association of America Coach of the Year.

Holgorsen received a contract extension through the 2021 from WVU after the final regular season game against Baylor.