On May 20, the Rimington Trophy committee released the 2013 Spring Watch List. The Rimington Trophy is awarded annually to the "Most Outstanding Center in NCAA Division I-A College Football (current FBS/FCS)". 

With 44 players listed, there is a good chance that your favorite center is on it, but Conference USA still failed to have a player named on the watch, despite being a 14 team conference. The SEC had the most named with nine while next up were the Mountain West with six and PAC-12 with five. The smallest FBS conference, the Sun Belt, had three players make the list. 

Arkansas' Travis Swanson, Oklahoma's Gabe Ikard, and Florida State's Bryan Stork are some of the early favorites for the Rimington.

Swanson is one of 17 players listed returning from the 2012 Spring Watch List and started all 38 games of his collegiate career for the Razorbacks while being selected for the All-SEC Second Team by the Associated Press last season. He is also No. 11 on the 2013 Freaks List and is reported to have done the three-cone drill at 7.39 seconds, faster than 2013 NFL Draft No. 1 pick Eric Fisher. 

The Sooners lineman Ikard has started 37 games and was named All-Big 12 First Team by the AP and Coaches in 2012; he played mostly at left guard in 2010 and 2011. Ikard has gained 30 pounds while at OU since converting from a tight end. 
 
Stork has 27 career starts for the Seminoles and had a team-leading average grade of 85.6 percent last regular season while being named All-ACC Second Team by the Coaches for 2012. He is a solid run-blocker and has seen snaps at guard as well. 

ACC
Russell Bodine North Carolina 6'4" 310 Junior
Jay Finch Georgia Tech 6'3" 285 Senior
Macky MacPherson Syracuse 6'2" 280 Senior
Shane McDermott Miami 6'4" 296 Junior
Bryan Stork Florida State 6'4" 312 RS Senior

American Athletic (Formerly Big East, official July 1, 2013) 
Betim Bujari Rutgers 6'4" 290 Junior
Taylor Lasecki SMU 6'3" 288 Sophomore
Bryce Redman Houston 6'1" 285 Junior
Austin Reiter USF 6'3" 273 RS Junior

Big Ten
Travis Jackson Michigan State 6'3" 280 Junior
Corey Linsley Ohio State 6'3" 297 Junior
Cole Pensick Nebraska 6'2" 275 Senior
Brandon Vitabile Northwestern 6'3" 300 RS Junior

Big 12
Dominic Espinosa Texas 6'4" 300 Junior
B.J. Finney Kansas State 6'4" 303 Junior
Gabe Ikard Oklahoma 6'3" 298 RS Senior

Independents 
Mike Marboe Idaho 6'2" 301 Junior
Ryan Powis Army 6'0" 248 Junior
Valerian Ume-Ezeoke New Mexico State 6'2" 285 Junior

MAC
David Kekuewa Bowling Green 6'2" 308 Junior
Zac Kerin Toledo 6'5" 300 Senior

Mountain West
Ben Clarke Hawaii 6'3" 275 Sophomore
Dillon Farrell New Mexico 6'5" 292 Senior
Matt Galas Nevada 6'1" 280 Junior
Tyler Larsen Utah State 6'4" 312 Senior
Weston Richburg Colorado State 6'4" 297 RS Senior
Robert Waterman UNLV 6'2" 290 Junior

Pac-12
Jake Brendel UCLA 6'5" 276 RS Sophomore
Hroniss Grasu Oregon 6'3" 297 Junior
Gus Handler Colorado 6'3" 290 Senior
Kody Koebensky Arizona State 6'3" 290 Senior
Isaac Seumalo Oregon State 6'3" 302 RS Senior

SEC
David Andrews Georgia 6'2" 295 Junior
Evan Boehm Missouri 6'3"; 315 Sophomore
Dillon Day Mississippi State 6'4" 295 RS Junior
Reese Dismukes Auburn 6'3"; 290 Junior
Jonotthan Harrison Florida 6'4" 299 RS Junior
Ryan Kelly Alabama 6'5" 290 RS Sophomore
James Stone Tennessee 6'3" 300 Senior
Travis Swanson Arkansas 6'5" 305 Senior
Evan Swindall Mississippi 6'4" 295 Senior

Sun Belt
Sean Conway Western Kentucky 6'3" 305 Senior
Bryce Giddens Arkansas State 6'0" 225 Sophomore
Andre Huval Louisiana-Lafayette 6'1" 290 Senior

Source: RimingtonTrophy.com

The hog mollies on the offensive line never seem to get enough attention in college football so here is a rundown of the best O-linemen in the nation for the 2012 season. The top 20 offensive linemen are ranked along with a summary of the top five and notes on the rest. The ranking is based on the best college football linemen not NFL prospects, but information on draft status is included. Bench, squat, and 40-yard dash numbers are provided for the top five. Four of the top five linemen have weight room numbers listed from high school and some of the other players have more recent weight room numbers posted. 

Size: 6'5 302 pounds
Bench Max: 335 pounds 
Squat Max: 490 pounds 
40 Yard Dash: 4.9 seconds 
Stats: Only nine missed assignments in 587 snaps (98.5 percent) and 100 percent on assignments in four games last season according to Rolltide.com
Draft Rating: Second/ Late First Round

Size: 6'6 335 pounds
Bench Max: 375 lbs 
Squat Max: 525 lbs 
40 Yard Dash: 4.9 secs 
Stats: 22 career starts at right tackle
Draft Rating: Early/Mid First Round

DJ Fluker is a behemoth on the offensive line and is the top rated lineman on Mel Kiper's Big Board at six overall. He has played mostly right tackle for the Crimson Tide, but there is a chance that he could be a guard at the next level. His posted weight is actually less than it was in high school and he is currently listed as 335 pounds. Fluker may not be as accomplished as his teammate Barrett Jones, but there are high expectations for him due to his physicality alone. With a little refinement, he should easily maintain his NFL Draft stock. 

Size: 6'8 302 lbs 
Bench Max: 335 lbs  
Squat Max: 450 lbs 
40 Yard Dash: 4.72 secs 
Stats: Started 22 games in two seasons 
Draft Rating: Mid/Early First Round

After a misfit freshman season that involved antics and penalties, Taylor Lewan came back strong and matured some as a sophomore. He is an athletic lineman that has good power for his build and incredible length with his 6'8 height to fight off defenders. The Wolverine lineman has definite first round potential for the NFL Draft coming into his junior season. Lewan started all 13 games last season at left tackle and his athleticism should translate well in the pros. 

Size: 6'6 322 lbs
Bench Max: N/A
Squat Max: N/A
40 Yard Dash: 5.32
Stats: Started all 14 games in 2011 and played in 38 games for career 
Draft Rating: Late First/ Early Second Round

Ricky Wagner is a durable lineman that rose from walk-on to NFL prospect thus far in his college career. He was a consensus honorable mention on the All-Big Ten team for the past two seasons and is a first team preseason All-American on various lists for 2012. He performs well as a blindside pass blocker at left tackle and is consistently good all around in his play. Wisconsin has traditionally done a great job of prepping players for the NFL and Wagner should be the next. 

Size: 6'3 300 lbs
Bench Max: 340 lbs 
Squat Max: 500 lbs 
40 Yard Dash: 5.3 secs
Stats: 22 career starts and 36 games played
Draft Rating: Second/Third Round

Experienced right guard Omoregie Uzzi is a powerful run blocker for the Ramblin Wreck. He earned First Team All-ACC in 2011 and is a Second Team Phil Steele's 2012 Preseason All-American. His effort on the line helped his team rank second nationally in rushing yards last season with 316.5 yards per game and they ranked in the top four rushing yards in each of his three seasons. He is the most questionable of the top five due to a late season injury, but if he fully recovers, expect another strong season. 

There are a lot of good players on this list that could have placed in the top five and that may have higher NFL Draft potential.  Luke Joeckel is a first round prospect, Gabe Ikard has had an outstanding college career, and Travis Frederick's weight room numbers are freakish. Here are the rest of the top 20 offensive linemen in college football for 2012 with their height, weight, and a note on each:

6. C Gabe Ikard, Oklahoma: 6'4 295 lbs, 88 knockdowns on 860 snaps in 2011 according to SoonerSports.com.
7. OT Luke Joeckel, Texas A&M: 6'6 310 lbs, First round NFL Draft potential at 16 on Mel Kiper's Big Board.
8. OG Travis Frederick Wisconsin: 6'4 328 lbs, school record 770-lb squat & benchs around 500 lbs. 
9. OG Jonathan Cooper, North Carolina: 6'3 310 lbs, 2012 Phil Steele's All-American First Team.
10. OT Alex Hurst, LSU: 6'6 340 lbs, 71.5 knockdowns in 767 plays in 2011 according to LSUSports.net.
11. OG Chance Warmack, Alabama: 6'3 320 lbs, started 26 straight games.
12. OT Chris Faulk, LSU: 6'6 325 lbs, 500-lb squat & 73.5 knockdowns in 724 snaps in 2011 according to LSUSports.net. 
13. OT Jake Matthews, Texas A&M: 6'5 305 lbs, started all 13 games in 2011 & son of Bruce Matthews.
14. OG Alvin Bailey, Arkansas: 6'5 319 lbs, 2011 All SEC Second Team (Coaches), 440-lb bench press & 555-lb squat.
15. C Dalton Freeman, Clemson: 6'5 285 lbs, 36 career starts & 2012 Rimington Award Watch List. 
16. OG Larry Warford, Kentucky: 6'3 336 lbs, 1 QB sack & graded 87.5 percent in 2011 according to NFLDraftScout.com.
17. OG Blaize Foltz, TCU: 6'4 310 lbs, 2011 All MWC First Team, posted 580-lb bench press & 800-lb squat.
18. C Khaled Holmes, USC: 6'4 305 lbs, 2011 All Pac-12 Second Team.
19. OG Mason Walters, Texas: 6'6 315 lbs, started 25 games in a row at right guard.
20. OG Marcus Martin, USC: 6'3 325 lbs, 2011 Freshman All-American First Team by various publications.

Honorable Mention: OG Lane Taylor Oklahoma State (6'3 328 lbs), OT Oday Aboushi Virginia (6'6 310 lbs), OG Braden Hansen BYU (6'6 313 lbs), C Braxston Cave* Notre Dame (6'3 304 lbs), OT Morgan Moses Virginia (6'6 336 lbs), OG Chris McDonald Michigan State (6'5 299 lbs), OG Carson York Oregon (6'5 284 lbs), and OT Cameron Fleming Stanford (6'6 308 lbs). *Cave benchs 520 lbs.

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