The American Football Coaches Association is an association of football coaches on all levels and is responsible for the Coaches Poll that determines the national champion each year. The American Football Coaches Association is also responsible for the Top 25 poll for Division II and Division III.
The AFCA was founded in a meeting for 43 coaches at the Hotel Astor in New York City on Dec. 27, 1921. It is headquartered in Waco, Texas (the headquarters building is located across from Baylor University, formerly coached by AFCA executive director Grant Teaff).
Maj. Charles Daly of the U.S. Military Academy was the first president. He was followed by John Heisman. Other presidents have included Bear Bryant, Darrell Royal, Eddie Robinson, Bo Schembechler and Vince Dooley. The 2006 president is Mel Tjeerdsma.
In 2006 the Association has 10,000 members and represents coaches at all levels including the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics, the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, the National Junior College Athletic Association, the National Federation of State High School Associations, the National Football League, the Canadian Football League, USA Football, the National Football Foundation, College Football Hall of Fame, and Pop Warner Football.
Since 1940 it has awarded the annual Amos Alonzo Stagg Award to the "individual, group or institution whose services have been outstanding in the advancement of the best interests of football."
The Association has established a code of ethics and has made safety recommendations. It teams with USA Today and ESPN for the Division I-A Coaches Poll.

All-American Teams
The AFCA National Championship Trophy is the trophy awarded by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) to the winner of college football's BCS National Championship Game, which determines the national champion for purposes of the Coaches Poll. The trophy has been awarded since 1986.
The trophy consists of a Waterford Crystal football affixed to an ebony base, and carries a value of over $30,000. The winning school retains permanent possession of the trophy, as a new one is awarded every year.
The trophy has undergone several sponsorship changes over the years. It was sponsored by the Gerrits Foundation during the initial 1986 and 1987 seasons. Pepsi came aboard as a co-sponsor in 1988 and 1989. McDonald's was the sole sponsor from 1990 until 1992. Sears became the trophy's sponsor in 1993 and remained so until 2001. Circuit City assumed sponsorship duties for the 2002 season. ADT Security Services, the current sponsor, took over in 2003.
As the sponsor obtains naming rights to the trophy, its current name is actually the "ADT National Championship Trophy."

AFCA National Championship Trophy
The Amos Alonzo Stagg Award is presented annually by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) to the "individual, group or institution whose services have been outstanding in the advancement of the best interests of football.'' The award is named in honor of Amos Alonzo Stagg, who was instrumental in founding the AFCA in the 1920s.

Amos Alonzo Stagg Award

1940 Donald Herring, Jr.
1941 William H. Cowell (posthumously)
1942 No award given
1943 No award given
1944 No award given
1945 No award given
1946 Grantland Rice
1947 William A. Alexander
1948 Gilmour Dobie, Glenn S. "Pop" Warner, Robert C. Zuppke
1949 Richard C. Harlow
1950 No award given
1951 DeOrmond "Tuss" McLaughry
1952 A.N. "Bo" McMillin
1953 Lou Little
1954 Dana X. Bible
1955 Joseph J. Tomlin
1956 No award given
1957 Gen. Robert R. Neyland
1958 Bernie Bierman
1959 Dr. John W. Wilce
1960 Harvey J. Harman
1961 Ray Eliot
1962 E.E. "Tad" Wieman
1963 Andrew Kerr
1964 Don Faurot
1965 Harry Stuhldreher
1966 Bernie H. Moore
1967 Jess Neely
1968 Abe Martin
1969 Charles A. "Rip" Engle
1970 Lynn "Pappy" Waldorf
1971 Bill Murray
1972 Jack Curtice
1973 Lloyd Jordan
1974 Alonzo S. "Jake" Gaither
1975 Gerald B. Zornow
1976 No award given
1977 Floyd "Ben" Schwartzwalder
1978 Tom Hamilton
1979 H.O. "Fritz" Crisler
1980 No award given
1981 Fred Russell
1982 Eddie Robinson
1983 Paul W. "Bear" Bryant
1984 Charles B. "Bud" Wilkinson
1985 Duffy Daugherty
1986 Woody Hayes
1987 Field Scovell
1988 G. Herbert McCracken
1989 David Nelson
1990 Len Casanova
1991 Bob Blackman
1992 Charles McClendon
1993 Keith Jackson
1994 Bob Devaney
1995 John Merritt
1996 Chuck Neinas
1997 Ara Parseghian
1998 Bob Reade
1999 Bo Schembechler
2000 Tom Osborne
2001 Vince Dooley
2002 Joe Paterno
2003 LaVell Edwards
2004 Ron Schipper
2005 Hayden Fry
2006 Grant Teaff
2007 Bill Curry
2008 Bill Walsh (posthumously) Winners
The Tuss McLaughry Award, established in 1964, is given to a distinguished American (or Americans) for the highest distinction in service to others. It is named in honor of DeOrmond "Tuss" McLaughry, the first full-time secretary-treasurer of the AFCA and one of the most dedicated and influential members in the history of the Association.
Tuss McLaughry, the award's namesake, began his coaching career at his alma mater, Westminster (Pa.) College in 1916. During his early days in coaching, McLaughry spent his spare time playing pro football with the Massillon (Ohio) Tigers. Knute Rockne was a teammate. He went on to become head coach at Amherst (1922-25), Brown (1926-40), and Dartmouth (1941-55). McLaughry retired from coaching in 1954, but continued in his capacity as chairman of the Physical Education Department at Dartmouth until 1960, when he accepted the appointment with the AFCA. He retired from that position in 1965.