Harvard's Corbat Named To All-America Team

Harvard offensive guard Michael Corbat became the sole Ivy League player selected for the Kodak Division I-AA All-America football team yesterday. The 6-ft., 4-in., 230-lb, senior was chosen through a vote of college football coaches.

Corbat is the first Harvard football player since 1975 to be named to an All-American team.

"It took a while to sink in," Corbat said last night. "I really didn't expect it."

The two-time All-Ivy selection attributed at least part of his success to his teammates on the Crimson offensive line. Harvard runners picked up 1877 yards behind the blocking of Corbat and Co. as Harvard grabbed a share of this year's league championship.

"A lot of times I'd mess up on things and the other guys would back me up," Corbat said.

The Shelton, Conn. native may well have benefited from others' support, but Crimson Offensive Line Coach Richard Corbin said that Corbat "grades out as one of the best offensive lineman every week" when the coaches review Saturday's game films.

"He's as good as any player I've ever coached," Corbin said.

Corbat hasn't decided yet whether he wants to play football professionally. "I'm just going to wait and see all my options and then I'll make a decision," the Economics concentrator said.

Corbat claims that he has played only for enjoyment. "I don't really play the game to be in the spotlight," he said.

Coach Joe Restic's Multi flex offense made being an offensive lineman "more fun." Corbat said, because Harvard's linemen pull and execute traps more often than players in other offenses.

Harvard's last All-American, to whom Corbat has often been compared, was offensive tackle Dan Jiggetts '75, who now plays for the Chicago-Bears.

Twenty-four players from NCAA Division I-AA schools earned selection to the All-America team. Corbat is one of two New England offensive players on the team.