Tom Dienhart, BTN.com Senior Writer, December 19, 2012

The Maxwell Club, the oldest football club in America, announced Wednesday that Penn State?s Bill O'Brien has been selected as its Coach of the Year for the 2012 season.

O'Brien led the Nittany Lions to victories in eight of their final 10 games, earning an 8-4 overall record and a 6-2 mark in the Big Ten, with the only losses coming to division winners Ohio State and Nebraska.

In its final game, Penn State beat eventual Big Ten Champion Wisconsin, 24-21, in overtime. O'Brien's eight wins are the most by a first-year Penn State coach in the 126 years of the program.

O?Brien also was named the Big Ten's Dave McClain Coach of the Year (media) and Hayes-Schembechler Coach of the Year (coaches). He was just the seventh first-year head coach to earn the Big Ten-Dave McClain Coach of the Year in the 41 years it has been awarded.

About Tom Dienhart BTN.com senior writer Tom Dienhart is a veteran sports journalist who covers Big Ten football and men's basketball for BTN.com and BTN TV. Find him on Twitter and Facebook, read all of his work at btn.com/tomdienhart, and subscribe to his posts via RSS. Also, send questions to his weekly mailbag using the form below and read all of his previous answers in his reader mailbag section.

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