THE NEBRASKA 100

A football career that ended in the NFL had humble beginnings for Dave Rimington.

His first taste of organized football came in south Omaha, playing for the Pee Wees organization. Rimington played on teams that almost never lost. "We had seasons where we weren't even scored upon,'' Rimington said.

Considered the finest center ever to play college football, Rimington spent his early years trying to impress older brother Dennis. "I tried to follow in his footsteps,'' Rimington said. "I always thought it was funny, he played nose tackle and I was a center. I never did play against him, but he was the one guy I always tried to impress.

"Parents, you can't trust them. They'll always tell you that you played well. But my brother would always let me know how I played. When he didn't have anything to criticize, I knew I had played well.''

Dave Rimington's play at Nebraska drew few criticisms from anyone. He was a two-time consensus All-American, a two-time Outland Trophy winner, a winner of the Lombardi Award in 1982 and finished fifth in the Heisman Trophy voting that season. To top things off, Rimington twice earned academic All-America honors.

He went on to play seven years in the NFL. After retiring, he was an assistant coach at Wisconsin and, for the past 20 years, has been president of the Boomer Esiason Foundation, which raises funds to fight cystic fibrosis.

As a player, Rimington never saw himself working as a fundraiser. "It's rewarding knowing you're making a difference in people's lives, but I thought I would have been out of a job by now,'' he said. "It's tough finding a cure for this disease.''

-- Steven Pivovar